On October 7th, 2023, the clergy of the Eastern States Deanery of the Patriarchal Parishes in the USA gathered for Divine Liturgy at Elevation of the Cross Russian Orthodox Church in Hackettstown, NJ for the one-year anniversary of the falling asleep of one of the most respected priests of the Patriarchal Parishes and former rector of Elevation of the Cross Church, Archpriest John Kasatkin.

The Divine Liturgy was celebrated by the Acting Dean of the Eastern States Deanery, Priest Mark Rashkov, Rector of St. Nicholas Church in Bayonne, NJ, Archpriest Mikhail Kapchits, cleric of St. Nicholas Church in Bayonne, NJ, Priest Dimitry Sukhorukov, rector of Elevation of the Holy Cross Church in Hackettstown, NJ, Priest Andrew Massey, and rector of All Saints of Russia Church in Pine Bush, NY, Priest Artemy Kulikovsky. Following Divine Liturgy, Fr. Mark greeted the assembled clergy and parishioners and guests of the church with a homily and specifically noted the dedication, love, and devotion of the late Fr. John for his ministry, his flock, and his priesthood.

Afterwards, Fr. Andrew shared words in memory of the late Fr. John and especially thanked Matushka Maxine Kasatkin for her dedicated service over the past decades to the parish as the choir director, an obedience she continues to hold to this day.

After a meal, which the parish hosted a in memory of the late Fr. John, the clergy gathered for a deanery meeting. In attendance was also Archpriest Igor Tarasov, Rector of St. George Church in Bayside, NY. The clergy discussed diocesan changes that took place since the last deanery meeting along with other pastoral and administrative matters.

The deanery wishes the ever-memorable Archpriest John Kasatkin a memory eternal and sincerely thanks Elevation of the Cross Church for hosting the service and meeting.