St. Joseph Catholic Church celebrates 125 years

NORMAN – Saint Joseph Catholic Church in Norman celebrated its 125th anniversary on June 12. The parish community came together for a day of worship and celebration. The event kicked off with Mass celebrated by Archbishop Coakley and six other priests from the archdiocese. 

“We had around 200 parishioners there, which we have not seen in a long time due to COVID-19,” said Father Joseph Irwin, pastor of Saint Joseph.

“It was nice to see a pretty full church. It was the cornerstone that set off the main tone for the whole day of celebration.”

Following Mass, the festivities continued with an array of activities for all ages from face painting, a dunk tank and food trucks to a jazz band with parishioners and different outdoor activities.

“It was good to hear the laughter of people,” parishioner Christina Mendoza said. “It was beautiful to see the dancers dancing in the street. There were so many volunteers that had a great part of this celebration, and Rita Ille, was the main one who spearheaded the whole event. She started early in the morning on Friday, and she kept going until Saturday night. Father Irwin was a good sport about sitting in the dunk tank. When they hit the target, he fell in. He got in there and did it!”

Father Irwin added that it was the volunteers who made the event come together and ensured everything ran smoothly.

Mendoza said the celebration also served as a time for parishioners to spend time with Father Thomas Nallapatti and Father Jim Chamberlain, who are leaving next week for new assignments.  

“There were a lot of people who came up to them to visit them and hug them. Parishioners knew that would probably be the last time they would have with them,” she added.

As the original parish in Norman, the first church building was built in March 1890 after the land was claimed during the Land Run in 1889. With Purcell only 10 miles away and on the Santa Fe railroad line, the pastor in Purcell, Father John Metter, was able to handle Masses for Norman.

Father Metter opened an elementary school in 1898 and a high school would follow in 1909. The parish served students at the University of Oklahoma, a naval base during World War II and Griffin Memorial Hospital, which was the state’s main facility for those with mental illness. The old church building was torn down in 1949 and was replaced by the current Colonial style church, which was dedicated by Bishop Eugene McGinness in February 1951. 

“We have been a stable presence in the Norman community for a long time, so we have an historic presence in the history of the town in regard to many things, like worship and Catholic education,” Father Irwin said. “We also have our parish that is multi-cultural. We have an English and Spanish Mass every weekend and we are the only parish that does that in Norman, so that is unique to our history too. We have a history of ministering to our Hispanic parishioners and community and having a diverse and multi-cultural community here at Saint Joseph.” 

Father Irwin added, “We are grateful God has given us so many wonderful years at Saint Joseph, and we continue to give thanks to God for that.”
 
Jolene Schonchin is a freelance writer for the Sooner Catholic. Editor Diane Clay contributed to the story.