About us  (under construction)

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History

 

Prior to 1982 St. Thomas was a Mission Community of Holy Rosary Parish, Portugal Cove, which was established in 1833.  The first Parish Priest, Father Edward Troy visited the different settlements of the South Shore of Conception Bay for the celebration of Mass and Administration of the Sacraments.  

 

In 1877 Bishop Thomas Power saw, with the increasing population in the area, the need for a new parish to be established in the Power's Court, Manuels area, known as St. Edward's Parish.  The first parish priest appointed was Father Lawrence Vereker.

 

On July 18, 1914 the Catholic community of the area was devastated to find that their church had burned to the ground.  The task of rebuilding the church fell to Father Peter Kelly.  The cornerstone was laid in 1917 and blessed by Archbishop Roche at its completion on August 14, 1918.  The parish, at the time, extended from St. Anne's siding to Kelligrews.  St. Anne's was a village in the the area of today's St. Anne's Industrial Park.  

 

In 1982 St. Edward's Parish was divided and Holy Family Parish was formally established on September 15,. 1982, comprising the town of Paradise, Topsail and St. Thomas (formerly part of Holy Rosary Parish, Portugal Cove).  Before the construction of a church, Masses were held at Immaculate Conception School Chapel in St. Thomas, the old Lions Club, and in the Anglican church in Paradise.  The parish was originally served by Sister Brenda Phelan of the Sisters of Mercy, as pastoral minister, and by Father Denis Walsh.

 

In 1984, Father John Wallis was appointed as Holy Family's first pastor, and under his guidance a new church and presbytery were constructed.  The new church opened in 1985, and served the town of Paradise - the fastest growing community in Atlantic Canada, with a population nearing 20,000.  Holy Family School, then part of the Catholic education system, was opened in 1987.

 

Among the church's striking features were two stained glass windows, installed in 1987 as a Marian Year project.  They were designed and assembled by Graham Howcroft, whose work can be seen in several other churches on the island.  The windows represent the Holy Spirit and the Immaculate Conception, symbolic of the two schools which had served the parish from it's inception, until September 5, 1997, when, by Referendum sponsored by Government, denominational education was lost.  The windows were funded by the Catholic Women's League, which remained active in the parish to its closing.

 

In 1989 Father Wallis was succeeded by Father Edward Purcell, who remained in Paradise until 1996.  On July 18, 1996 Father Richard McHugh was appointed to Holy Family; his seventh Parish since his Ordination in 1958.  It was also his final home, as he passed away in February of 2006, leaving the parish to mourn his loss.  A series of Pastors were kind enough to lead our religious life until the appointment of Father Charles Kelly in July of that year.  Father Kelly brought his energy and humour to invigorate the Parish until such time as he was appointed to the Basilica of St. John the Baptist in 2009.  Father David Butler became our spiritual leader and musical example in 2009 and continued to guide our steps until his passing in 2015.