It would be quite hard for most to briefly sum up all the work that Father Joseph Pickard has done for St. John of the Divine Episcopal Church and the Hasbrouck Heights community.
Under his leadership, the congregation has grown and expanded, joining with St. Martin’s Church in Maywood. His leadership led to the creation of Care on the Corner, a non-profit organization built out of the church’s ministry which provides numerous services and resources to the people of Hasbrouck Heights and its surrounding community.
Father Pickard spent 16 years laying that foundation for these congregations and the community and now it is time for him to move on.
Pickard, who also resides in the borough, just officially began his retirement. He doesn’t really like the word retirement, he says. He sees it more like it’s a time to get started again and move on to the next thing.
Since he was ordained, first as a deacon in 1984 and then as a priest in 1985, ministry has led him from congregation after congregation where he has used what he says is a gift from God to lead congregations to their next steps.
