St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine celebrates 75th anniversary

North Texas Catholic
(Oct 10, 2024) Local

Father Jonathan Wallis, diocesan Vicar General, celebrates a Mass commemorating St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine's 75th anniversary on Sunday, October 6. (NTC/Scott Wagner)

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GRAPEVINE – It’s been seven decades, but Margaret Weddel still easily recalls the bake sales the founding families of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine conducted to raise capital to build the parish’s first church in 1949.

“I was little, but I can remember running around the cake stands,” she said. “They did a lot of little stuff to make money.”

Fast forward to Oct. 5 and Weddel brought down the gifts at a special Mass to mark the 75th anniversary of St. Francis of Assisi Church. The 82-year-old is believed to be the only original member of the congregation that has grown to approximately 3,700 families.

Reverend Sojan George, the pastor of St. Francis, has overseen a number of activities throughout the year to celebrate the parish’s milestone. The pinnacle event was the Mass and dinner afterwards that drew more than 650 people on the weekend of the Feast of St. Francis of Assisi.

The local faith community is a lively, welcoming family, parishioners say, and it’s also been a shining example of faith in action, according to Bishop Michael Olson.

“I think St. Francis of Assisi Parish has always taken seriously its Catholic faith and its responsibility to put that faith into action through good works,” he said, “especially works of charity for the poor, works of teaching the faith to their young people, and caring for the elderly in their church, as well.”

Humble beginnings

The original church was built on Northwest Hwy. at a cost of $10,000, according to literature Weddel has kept since she was 7. She said at one point, the founding families — whom she estimated numbered at least 12 to 15 — looked at a site off White Chapel Road in Southlake.

But the group settled on Grapevine — and the parish name — and a single family put up $5,000 toward construction to give the project a boost. Various fundraisers helped with costs, which included the $3,000 purchase of two acres on which the church would sit. The first Mass was held the last Sunday of July in 1949.

St. Francis predated the 1969 establishment of the Diocese of Fort Worth, thus the church’s dedication on Jan. 29, 1950, was celebrated by Bishop Joseph Lynch of the Diocese of Dallas, according to an archived article from the Grapevine Sun. By the late 1950s, an expansion of the church was needed, according to documents kept by Weddel. She said in 1957 a west wing was built and soon afterward, an east wing.

As a mission church, a revolving schedule of about 10 priests would celebrate Mass at St. Francis. It was not easy for the clergy, with the church located in a rural area at the time.

Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine commemorated the church's 75th anniversary with a Mass celebrated by Father Jonathan Wallis, diocesan vicar general, on Sunday, October 6. (NTC/Scott Wagner)

“Back then Grapevine was small, and it was just two lanes to Dallas,” Weddel said. “Different priests took turns coming out. It was way out in the country.”  

Weddel said St. Francis had its first pastor, Fr. Charles Mulholland, from 1958 to 1961. From there, a Hungarian priest who had at times said Mass in Grapevine was assigned pastor of St. Francis. His name was Father Baltasar Szarka, O.Cist., and he would become known far and wide as Fr. B.

“He came, and he said, ‘I’ll take it,’ and that’s how Fr. B started,” said Weddel.

It was the beginning of a defining chapter in the history of St. Francis.   

Fr. B era

Fr. Szarka served as pastor of St. Francis from 1961-1997, overseeing the 1985 move from the Northwest Hwy. site to the church’s current location on Wildwood. But his time with the faith community was about so much more than the significant expansion and growth of the parish.

“Fr. B. was pastor there for a very long time,” Bishop Olson said. “In a sense, St. Francis has such strong roots because of Fr. B’s attention and devotedness as a pastor who exemplified what a man of prayer and a man of faith looked like. And a man of service.

“And because of that, Fr. B helped the people of that parish to move from before Vatican II, through the Second Vatican Council, through so much of the turmoil of late 60s and early 70s and then well through the 80s and 90s. And throughout all of that, he always remained a Cistercian monk and a priest.” 

Tibor and Maria Penzes were thrilled to learn St. Francis was led by a Cistercian priest when Tibor was transferred from New Jersey to Texas for work in October of 1978. There is a vibrant Cistercian community in their native Hungary.  

“When my husband came to enroll at St. Francis, his name is very Hungarian and Fr. B looked at him and hugged him, and said, ‘I’m Hungarian, too,’” recalled Maria, 90. “So that was a wonderful, wonderful surprise to us.

“Fr. B. used to come very often to our house,” she continued. “I told him he had an open invitation, and he would call and say, ‘Little lady, I’m coming for dinner!’ We would always speak Hungarian. The first couple of months he was a lifesaver, told us where to go, where to find doctors.”

Parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine commemorated the church's 75th anniversary with a Mass celebrated by Father Jonathan Wallis, diocesan vicar general, on Sunday, October 6. (NTC/Scott Wagner)

Fr. Szarka also helped nourish the faith life of the Penzes family.

“Fr. B was a unique man,” Maria said. “He didn’t push the faith on you, but his action, his demeanor, made your faith deeper. My husband came from a very religious background, and we just found here the faith that we were used to. Hungary is a Catholic country.

“The little church became our home,” she said. “And it was a beautiful little church. I loved it, and then we built this one. And this is a beautiful church.”

Weddel said her paperwork shows St. Francis had grown to 450 families by 1983, at which time a campaign was started to raise $1.5 million to build a new church, which is the current structure on Wildwood. It was completed in 1985 and dedicated by Bishop Joseph Delaney, the second bishop of the Diocese of Fort Worth.

A parish home

Don and Fran Kolker have been parishioners at St. Francis for about 30 years. The couple serve the parish as extraordinary ministers of holy Communion, and the fruits of Don’s woodworking hobby can be seen in different areas of St. Francis. The couple's grandson, Father Kevin Kolker, is a priest in the Diocese of Dallas.

“When we came to St. Francis, it was like coming home,” said Fran Kolker. “We felt like family, like a family. And we still feel that way. We just feel very comfortable here.”  

“It is wonderful to come here,” Don added. “It’s like a family. You don’t feel left out. You walk in here, and you’re immediately welcomed. And that’s important.” 

The Kolkers are regulars at morning Mass and distinctly remember when Fr. George was assigned as pastor of St. Francis in 2019.

“That man is incredible,” Fran said. “His first Mass here was Valentine’s Day. Everybody in the church introduced themselves to him, and the next day we came to Mass, he called us by name. He has a gift, and he is just so special. He’s a blessing to our parish.”

“He’s easy to talk to,” Don said. “He’s a friend beyond being a priest.”

Lisa Peterson and her family became members of St. Francis in 1996. She said all of the pastors that have served in her time here have been wonderful. Her four children have received a number of sacraments, from baptism to marriage, at St. Francis.

“One of my kids, my daughter, was married here,” Peterson said. “She and her husband, and now my grandbaby, are parishioners here also.

James and Margaret Weddel walk hand in hand as parishioners of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Grapevine commemorate the church's 75th anniversary with a Mass celebrated by Father Jonathan Wallis, diocesan vicar general, on Sunday, October 6. (NTC/Scott Wagner)

“It’s been a really special parish, a family, a great place to raise the family,” she continued. “Everything is very family friendly, and everybody just knows each other. It’s a real special place.”

Celebrating milestones

During the anniversary Mass, Weddel brought the gifts down with her husband, James.  They were the first couple to be married in the parish, in the original church in 1961. The celebrant for the wedding was Fr. Szarka.

Vicar General Father Jonathan Wallis celebrated the anniversary Mass alongside Fr. George. In his homily, Fr. Wallis talked about the importance of parish life in the grand scale of the universal church.

“We live our faith individually and as a community, both at the same time, and this is what a parish is able to foster and bring together,” he said, “and so therefore, we’re able to say a parish is us, all of us. It’s not just the parishioners, or the priest, or the staff, but all together, and this is the great unity of our Catholic Church.”

Fr. Wallis also offered his prayers for the community of St. Francis.

“God has blessed the parish of St. Francis of Assisi for 75 years, and it’s my earnest prayer that this parish continues to flourish and grow and preach the Gospel,” he said.

Fr. George made remarks before the dinner in the Family Life Center.

“It’s a privilege to stand among so many faithful members of this community who have all sustained and grown our parish over the years,” he said. “Three quarters of a century ago, a group of faithful men and women had a vision to build a spiritual home, where God’s grace could be experienced and shared.

“And for 75 years this parish has been a place of comfort, hope and spiritual renewal for all who have entered these doors,” Fr. George continued. “We owe so much to the clergy, religious, and lay people who have served here over these years. And we especially remember Fr. B, who was the pastor for about 35 years. It’s still, as you know, Fr. B’s parish. He shaped this community into what it is today, and we are so thankful for his leadership, and we remember him today with gratitude. At the same time, we remember other pastors who came after him: Father Ken Robinson, Father Anh Tran and Father James Flynn.”

Fr. George closed his remarks looking to the future.  

“So as we mark this milestone,” he said, “let us renew our commitment to the mission of this parish: To proclaim the good news, to serve others, and to strengthen the body of Christ. And may we continue to grow together in faith, love, and unity, dedicated to spreading Christ’s love in all that we do.”

On to the next 75 years…

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