St. Anthony’s Parish
Hereford, Texas
Claudia Smith
At weekend masses April18-19, 2009
At the Bishop’s request each Parish is asked to assemble and present a brief history of our Parish Blessings. I appreciate your attention and will endeavor to present a reflection of our blessings; Past, Present and Future.
In the late 1800’s settlers began to come to this part of Texas, the Panhandle. Among the settlers were some Catholic families scattered over the wide area. Fr. David Dunn and Fr. Reisdorff who had established Holy Family Parish in Nazareth offered Mass and administered the sacraments on occasion in the homes of the settlers. In 1910 Fr. J.A. Campbell came to Umbarger and ministered to the Catholics from Canyon to Farwell. He bought the old Deaf Smith County Courthouse and established a chapel in the district courtroom. He named the chapel in honor of St. Anthony of Padua – thus the name of our church. He needed help in publishing “The Anecdote” a periodical in defense of the Catholic faith. Subsequently four sisters from the Sisters of the Atonement from Graymoor, N.Y. came to Hereford. These brave women helped Fr. Campbell and taught the children. In 1917 they opened the first Catholic School in Hereford. Classes were held at the St. Frances House and in a house at the northwest corner of Sampson and 4th Street.
In 1915 there were 15 Catholic families. In 1918 Fr. Campbell’s health failed and he returned to Canada. In the interim Fr. J.J. Dolje of Umbarger administered to the parish of St. Anthony of Padua.
June 16, 1920 Fr. Salvator di Giovanni and Brother James left Graymoor in New York to establish the first mission of the Friars of the Atonement and came to Hereford. Fr. Salvator’s first duty was to build a church. He built a beautiful church from the old Deaf Smith County Courthouse for $25,000. The parish was free of debt when the church was dedicated due to the generosity of benefactors of the Friars of the Atonement and subscribers of “The Lamp”
The First Mass was offered on December 8, 1921. At the dedication of June 13, 1922 our church was declared a little basilica. There were approximately 20 families in the parish at this time.
This church sufficed until the late 1940’s when a new church became necessary to serve 150 families in the parish. This new church, our present church was dedicated on October 30, 1951.
The Friars of the Atonement administered St. Anthony’s Parish until 1988 when they relinquished the parish to the Diocese of Amarillo. As I stated earlier four sisters from Graymoor established a school in 1917. In 1927 a new school opened with 35 students. The school was dedicated June 19, 1924 with grades 1-8th. The old school now houses the County Museum. Our present school was dedicated on May 15, 1955. The convent and rectory were dedicated at the same time. There have been three additions to the school since the dedication. Today there are 122 students enrolled in the school from K-4 thru 6th Grade. The highest enrollment ever was 320 students. The school is partially supported by two major fund raisers: the Annual Auction and Karnival Krazy.
There were 15 families registered in the Parish at the beginning. The church now has 839 families registered. From 2005 until now there has been 39 new Catholics accepted from the RCIA program. During this same time 155 Baptisms and 31 marriages have been registered. The last person to be baptized in the old church was Christi Loerwald 10-23-1951. The first person to be baptized in the new church was Gerald Joseph Paetzold. 10/31/1951. The last marriage in the old church was Anthony and Catherine Brorman Paschel 8-8-1951. The first marriage in the new church was of Walter and Theresa Fangman Paetzold 10-19-1951. There have been many vocations to the religious life especially in the early years. There have been 4 priests and 3 deacons ordained from our parish, as well as 13 nuns who took their vows.
There are 300 children enrolled in our Christian Formation classes K-5 – 12th grade, which includes members from the Young Life and Life Teen programs. There has always been an Altar Society to assist with linens, wine, candles, cleaning of church and preparing social activities. The women of the parish have done this work under various affiliations. The Diocesan Council of Catholic Women began in 1936, The Guild began in 1936, Antonian Circle began in 1949, the Confraternity of Christian Mothers began in 1971 and were all united under St. Anthony’s Women’s Organization until 1992. In 1992 the structure was changed and the Parish Organization was established. Every fall a request is extended to all the parish members to share our gifts, talents and abilities to help in the various ministries and life of the Church. The men organized the Knights of Columbus in 1937 and continue their good works to this day. The youth of the parish have also been an integral part of our parish. From the Sodality of the Blessed Virgin to the present Young Life and Life Teen groups they have always contributed much to our parish. They are the prevention for the “graying of our parish” and the future of the Church.
We have been blesses with many ministries in our parish. I hope that each one present today has been actively involved or participated in at least one of the following: SAPO, PTO, Advisory Board, School Board, Endowment Fund, Knights of Columbus, ACTS, Christian Formation as a student or teacher, Christian Mothers, Rosary Makers, Life Teen, Young Life, RCIA, Altar Servers, Eucharistic Ministers, Bible Study Groups, DCCW, Music Ministry as a musician or vocalist, Lectors, Ushers, Greeters, Teachers, Room Mothers, Van Drivers, Paper Barn Workers, Visitation of the Sick, Prison Ministries, making a dish for the Bereavement Committee, mowed the lawn or planted a flower, manned the Gift Shop, or put a dollar in the Black Bag, or any other acts of charity you can relate to in our parish. By listing some of the activities and ministries that St. Anthony’s has to offer I hope you shake your head and say “yes” I have done that. Today I would like to say thank-you to each one of you for continuing on the work of the Lord. We have had some awesome and wonderful Priests, Deacons, and Nuns in our parish that have taught us that the gift of faith we are given continues to be nurtured so we can grow where we are planted. There have been many former parishioners who have moved onto other parishes and continue to lead and work for the betterment of the church.
Some activities that we all look forward to are: the Parish Christmas Dinner, Fish Fries during Lent, the Easter Celebration for RCIA Candidates, Hospitality Hour after Mass, the Farmers Mass, and social get-togethers for different age groups. And of course Karnival Krazy and the Auction.
Three masses are offered each weekend as well as daily mass and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament on Wednesdays. We have Christian Formation classes for families and younger children to receive the sacraments as well as the RCIA program for adults. There are 7 different Bible Study groups that meet weekly. So if you can’t find your cup of tea we don’t mind if you would like to brew a new one.
What I like about my parish is the loving relationships and fellowship that is so evident in the eagerness of all to work together as brothers and sisters in Christ. In this fast pace, electronic world we live in it is so good to see that we accept each other and can work side by side regardless of nationality, age or social standing. We are truly one body in Christ. Because of this unity the people of St. Anthony’s Parish are blessed.
As for the future we are like excited children at Christmas, anxiously awaiting the completion of the renovation to our beautiful church. And because we a fiscally responsible people and generous people we will soon be debt free. In the future we would like to build a new Parish Hall where we can hold celebrations and house our many ministries. This has been a dream for decades and we would like to see this dream come true. Maybe we can rekindle the fire for vocations to the religious life. Keep praying- God works in mysterious ways.
Thank you for your undivided attention today and I hope I have given you some history or statistics you didn’t know about or that I have stirred up some good memories of the life and times of St. Anthony’s Parish. Keep up the great work that you do, love each other and God Bless You.