Bishop Olson blesses Pallottine Multipurpose Building at St. Stephen Parish in Weatherford
Bishop Michael Olson blesses the newly constructed Pallottine Multipurpose Building on June 1, 2025 at St. Stephen Church in Weatherford. (NTC/Juan Guajardo)
WEATHERFORD — Parishioners at St. Stephen Church in Weatherford welcomed Bishop Michael Olson on June 1 to celebrate Mass and also commemorate a major milestone in a nearly two-year-long process.
The recently completed Pallottine Multipurpose Building was blessed by Bishop Olson following the 8 a.m. Mass.
A long time coming
In a nod to Pallottine priests, who have served at St. Stephen Parish since 1953, the new building was named after St. Vincent Pallotti, the community's founder.
Ray Carr, who serves on the building committee, said an anonymous donation helped kickstart the project. The donation was intended to “be used towards something like this building,” Carr said. “As part of that, we granted that initial anonymous donor naming rights.”
Since its groundbreaking in November 2023, the parish community has been eagerly awaiting the project’s completion. Carr said the blessing ceremony was a special event for everyone.
“It has been quite a journey,” Carr said. “My wife and I have been with the parish since 2013, and long before we showed up, they purchased the land for the building. It was an effort to finally get that paid off.”
The north half of the building is an open multi-purpose area. It has a sports floor striped for basketball, volleyball, and pickleball, with two retractable basketball goals mounted to the ceiling. A stage is located at the far north end, and the main floor can be configured with tables and chairs as needed for banquets, performances, and assemblies.
The first floor of the south half has a reception area, five classrooms, a kitchen and pantry, office, and chapel area. The first level also has a large, covered patio area on the southwest corner, complete with a gas fireplace.
The second floor is an open loft area, primarily envisioned to be utilized by the youth ministry. It has a stage, refreshment bar, individual gathering areas, and large windows overlooking the patio outside and the multi-purpose area inside.
A new direction
Annette Calderon, parish director of youth ministry, said the blessing ceremony marks the beginning of a new direction.
“For me, there is a definite feeling of excitement,” Calderon said. “I saw some of my youth ministry students and said, 'How are you feeling?' And they were all so excited, because with all that we are doing, it's going to be more of a home for them, and for me, my heart just bursts for that. I want them to find a place at St. Stephen that they can call home.”
Calderon said she anticipates using the Pallottine building for youth ministry meetings and Masses as well as other young adult and campus ministry social events held throughout the year.
“We are trying to give young people the opportunity to see where our friendships grow and to empower them to grow in their faith,” Calderon said. “It can be hard, especially for young adults if they don't know anyone in the area. This is a way that they can build those relationships and find Catholic friends.”
Rev. Mariya James, SAC, said the Pallottine building in essence is not just about preparing young people for the future, but actively shaping their future.
"By investing in youth development, we empower the next generation to become the leaders, innovators, and citizens who will create a more sustainable, equitable, and faith-filled world for all," the parish pastor said.
"It’s not just a building," Fr. James added. "It is one of the future hopes of St. Stephen’s parishioners. By generously supporting this project, they firmly believe that it is time to invest in the spiritual development of young people — the future parishioners of St. Stephen.”
Although the youth will regularly use the building, Calderon hopes the center will also serve as a gathering place for parishioners of all backgrounds to meet in fellowship.
“We want that,” Calderon said. “We want people to come here and see that this is a home we are building for the future and that also means that the present is very important to us ... We want to help build those bridges between our ministries and our communities. This is something very beautiful that a lot of people have worked hard at and now it has come to fruition.”
Eyes set to the future
Dr. Tom Novak, who also serves on the building committee, said one of the main objectives for the committee was to prepare for the future.
"The biggest thing was just to try to accommodate for the future growth of the parish," Novak said. "Per capita, Parker County is one of the fastest growing counties in the US, so we are experiencing a tremendous amount of growth, and you see it. Not only are we full of families all the time, but we're full of kids, and we're just trying to stay a little bit ahead of things because the growth is coming.”
Parishioner and receptionist Lilia Arevalo said she had been part of the initial discussions about the development of the structure. Arevalo shared the new building was everything she had hoped for, and that the blessing ceremony was a lovely way to mark the occasion.
“It was beautiful,” Arevalo said. “My son is an altar server, and he was excited about the bishop being there, and I was also serving. I am a Eucharistic minister, so I was super blessed to be able to serve with him. It was a great experience.”
Fr. James said the Pallottine building reflects the faith of the parishioners of St. Stephen. He explained, “Nothing comes into existence when you don’t have faith and belief. It is the visible sign of their deep faith in action."