For four days in September, Long Beach Road became a gathering place for food, faith and community as Sacred Heart Church celebrated its 56th annual San Gennaro Feast in Island Park.
The annual celebration, held Sept. 10-13, brought residents, parishioners and visitors together outside the church. With Italian food, rides, games and plenty of familiar faces, the feast continued a tradition that has become a fixture in the Island Park community.
The weekend began with a special Mass on Sept. 10, followed by an outdoor procession honoring San Gennaro, the patron saint of the parish and the patron saint of Naples, Italy. The religious observance served as a reminder of the faith at the heart of a celebration that has grown into one of the community’s most anticipated annual events.
Much of the feast’s success comes from the work of volunteers. Long before the first visitors arrived and after the final guests left, Sacred Heart parishioners spent weeks preparing the grounds, organizing food and running the various booths.
Longtime parishioner and Island Park resident J.J. Byrne said that work is an often-overlooked part of the tradition.
“People tend to have this false notion that most of the help is needed and done during the four days of the feast,” Byrne said. “Weeks beforehand and days after, there are many volunteers sweating, working very, very hard to set it up.”
For Byrne, the feast has become an “unofficial homecoming” for Island Park. Former residents return, families make plans to attend together, and longtime parishioners reconnect with one another.
“Everyone in Island Park comes out,” Byrne said. “Everyone.”
The feast has also remained a meaningful tradition for Island Park Mayor Michael McGinty, who remembers attending as a child and helping alongside his parents.
“I can still remember being a young kid, working alongside my parents during those early feasts here in Island Park,” McGinty said. “Those days are filled with some of my fondest memories — the food, the laughter, the familiar faces and, most of all, the incredible sense of community.”
McGinty said the feast represents a piece of Island Park’s history and has continued to connect generations under the leadership of Sacred Heart Pastor Msgr. John Tutone.
While the feast provides an important fundraiser for the parish, its significance extends beyond the financial support it provides. For those who help organize it and those who return each year, the event is a chance to celebrate a shared history and the community that has kept the tradition going.
“When we all pitch in and do our part, there’s nothing we can’t accomplish,” McGinty said. “It’s that spirit of teamwork and community that has kept this wonderful tradition alive for 56 years.”
