But three decades later, with the AIDS crisis under control and changes in attitudes toward religious practice, about 200 people gathered inside that building on July 23 to bid farewell to the Church of Saint Veronica. Even as the church prepares to shutter for good, questions remain about what will happen to its many artifacts, including a humble AIDS memorial that historians say is one of the first public memorials to victims of the plague years in New York. [...]
The church opened in 1890 and its own history mirrors that of changes in the West Village. It first served Irish dockworkers and their families and later on, as members of the parish headed off to two world wars, a plaque was installed near the church’s entrance to honor those men who gave their lives fighting for their country. But it was the AIDS crisis that most dramatically shaped the St. Veronica’s community.
“St. Veronica’s is located on Christopher Street, which historically has been the center of the L.G.B.T. community in New York,” Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historical Preservation, said. “Like all of Greenwich Village, it was impacted quite heavily by the AIDS crisis.” [...]
“St. Veronica’s is located on Christopher Street, which historically has been the center of the L.G.B.T. community in New York,” Andrew Berman, executive director of the Greenwich Village Society for Historical Preservation, said. “Like all of Greenwich Village, it was impacted quite heavily by the AIDS crisis.”
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