
St. Joseph Parish
was established February 26, 1949. Father Joseph B.Gremillion, the
first Pastor of the Parish, offered the first Mass at the new St.
Joseph Parish March 13, 1949 at the Broadmore Theater. Mass continued
to be conducted at this site for the next thirteen months. At this
time there were 235 families in the parish with Father Gremillion
urging those not yet contacted to please register with the usher
after Mass.
The ground breaking
for the first building of St. Joseph Parish was held Wednesday,
July 13, 1949 on the site of Patton and Anniston Streets. The Official
was Most Reverend Charles P Greco, Bishop of Alexandria. The formal
dedication and blessing of the new combination church and social
hall building of St. Joseph parish took place Sunday, April 16,
1950 at 11:00 AM, with Bishop Greco officiating. Also, Bishop Greco
blessed a dedicatory cornerstone, which bears the inscription "To
the Glory of God, The Love of Christ, and The Eternal Life of Souls
- 1950." A solemn High Mass followed.
The first school
building was completed and school opened September 1951 with 102
pupils, four teachers, a kindergarten and three grades. Today there
are almost 500 students enrolled K3 - eighth grade. The physical
plant of St. Joseph now has over 25 permanent structures.
The parish now
has more than 1700 families. One entire parish, St. Elizabeth Ann
Seton, was formed out of its original borders.
Father Gremillion
was a dynamic, young priest. Today, St. Joseph is still a growing
and dynamic parish under the pastoral leadership of Father Karl Daigle.
St.
Joseph School…celebrating 53 years of Catholic education….