WILDWOOD CREST — Sharing one’s gifts with God comes in many packages. Some people are called to be clerics, others to minister to the sick, others serve through their music. Some even share their artistic gift by decorating a church.
Nicholas Nastasi and his mother Mary have taken their art to a new level. Each year they have spent part of their holiday season adorning the sanctuary of the Assumption Roman Catholic Church on Seaview Road.
The mother-son team, owners of the Total Image Salon in Wildwood, have spent hour upon hour decorating God’s house for the holiday.
“Nick and his mother help create the environment,” said the church’s priest moderator, Father Michael Field.
The church, constructed in 1955, was built in the Art-Deco style, said Field. A huge mosaic of the Blessed Mother is the focal point of the altar.
Assumption Church is part of the Notre Dame de la Mer parish, which also includes St. Ann’s Church in Wildwood.
According to Field, the church was decorated in mid-December when the Bel Canto Lyric Opera Company of Philadelphia performed an array of Christmas music. The fifty musicians and 10 singers helped welcome the holiday season with their performance. The church will remain decorated through mid-January in celebration of the Epiphany as well as the Baptism of Christ.
There’s a team of five to ten people who help them,” said Field. “But Nick and his mother Mary have a knack for making an environment look celebratory.”
The church glistens with small white lights, Christmas trees and poinsettias. Each live plant that sits on the altar has been donated by a parishioner.
A crèche sits to one side of the altar, awaiting the 4 p.m. Christmas Eve Mass when the Christ child will be added to the manger as part of the children’s Christmas pageant.
“One of our goals is to get our youth involved in the liturgy,” said Field.
With over 2,100 registered parishioners, the parish offers multiple Masses, including one at St. Ann’s that is offered in Spanish.
“I love this church,” said Director of Maintenance Bill Nolan. “And I really love it when it’s decorated.”
“We want everyone to feel ‘welcome home,’ said Field about the church.
“Come home for Christmas, wherever it is,” he added. “But celebrate God is with us.”
