Mission & History

The Mission of Blessed Sacrament Parish is to grow as a faith community in which the members, through their loving ministry to one another, create an atmosphere in which faith, strengthened by the Eucharist and the love of Christ, is experienced.  In this faith community, the members are encouraged to respond to God's call by ministering to the needs of others and bringing the good news of Christ to the world through the use of their individual and collective gifts. 

History

Bishop Emmet M. Walsh founded Blessed Sacrament Parish on July 10, 1959, to serve the Catholic population of northeast Warren and Howland.  Rev. A.M. Nist was appointed the first pastor.  The community gathered in the Garfield School auditorium until a church and school building was completed and inaugurated on Christmas Eve, 1960.  Building and renovating projects in 1975 and 1982 expanded and updated the parish facilities.

During the same period of time the Second Vatican Council challenged the parish community to look at itself in new and creative ways.  A parish council was established, and ministries involving many parish members expanded and flourished.  In 1994 the parish community decided to build the long promised church/worship space to accommodate the growing number of families moving into the parish and to provide for the parish a worship space that would serve the needs of the renewed liturgy.  Bishop Thomas Tobin dedicated the new church --- designed by Richard Fleishman Architects, Inc. of Cleveland, with Richard Vosko, Liturgical Designer, and constructed by the Jack Gibson Construction Company --- on February 21, 1998.

During its forty years pastors serving Blessed Sacrament Parish have included Rev. A.M. Nist (1959-1967), Rev. Arthur DeCrane (1967-1972), Msgr. Donald Reagan (1972-1983), Rev. Thomas McCarthy (1983-1991), and Rev. Donald King (1991-present).  During that same time the parish staff and support staff have also provided a high quality of pastoral leadership.

As we look over the more than forty years of our parish’s history, we are proud of our growth and progress.  In the 1960’s the Second Vatican Council challenged us to see parish in a much different way from those early “pioneers” of the 1950s.  We continue to respond to that challenge.  We not only celebrate Jesus present in the Blessed Sacrament, we also strive to be a blessed sacrament for the people of Warren and Howland and the entire world.