By Heather Graves
Correspondent
LEDGEVIEW – Though the physical location of St. Mary Catholic Church has moved since the parish opened its doors in 1869, the community has remained strong.
Now celebrating its 150th anniversary, St. Mary parishioners look to celebrate its roots, while looking toward the future.
“150 years is a milestone,” said Rev. Richard Getchel, St. Mary’s pastor. “Some parishes have never celebrated such an event, and some never will. So when something like this comes along, whether you can trace your roots and ancestry to day one or have been a parishioner only recently, we have been and are part of the great history of St. Mary Parish.”
The history of St. Mary Catholic Church can be traced back to 1869, when a group of Hollanders, Belgians and Germans started Immaculate Conception Parish on the east side of the Fox River in De Pere.
A school, Notre Dame of De Pere, was added in 1882. The current school building was built in 1952.
“We are linked to St. Francis Xavier parish in De Pere. We share pastoral staffs and share in the operation of Notre Dame elementary and middle schools,” said Terry Charnetski, chair of the Pastoral Council and member of the 150th committee. “Thanks to the generosity of Miriam and James Mulva, we will have a new $20-million plus Notre Dame School opening in September, 2020.”
Charnetski said the church parishioners worship in today opened March 29, 1998, in the Town of Ledgeview.
The carport and bell tower were completed in 2001.
“I think that St. Mary is unique in that the new church literally was built on farmland and with that in mind, the interior motif has the beams and trusses that would be found in a barn,” Rev. Getchel said. “It’s a bit unusual when first viewed, but beautiful when that fact is known.”
St. Mary currently has 1,288 registered members and offers a variety and a multitude of ministries.
“We have a lot of active ministries and I dare say many people in our parish don’t know everything we do,” Charnetski said.
Some of St. Mary’s ministries in the community include helping feed the homeless, helping those with transitional housing, a prayer shawl ministry, nursing home/assisted living ministries, as well as faith formation programs.
Charnetski said there are almost too many to mention.
“I believe our parish community has many great opportunities to be missionary disciples,” Charnetski said.
St. Mary’s 150th anniversary celebration kicks off with a special mass and potluck dinner at 4:30 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 30, with Bishop David Ricken.
“We have invited all priests who have ever served at St. Mary, we’ll display items in a time capsule that’s been secret for many years and we’ll have many photos to look at,” Charnetski said. “Our focus has been to kick things off with this special mass and dinner celebration, but I’m sure we will do many things over the course of the next year to recognize our 150th.”
For more information on St. Mary Catholic Church, visit saintsdepere.org.