St. Jude Church honors parish’s heritage with dedication of new building
Father Daniel Kelley blesses St. James Center, the new parish hall for St. Jude Parish in Mansfield on August 15, 2025. (NTC/Matthew Redden)
MANSFIELD — Parishioners, clergy, and staff gathered at St. Jude Parish on Aug. 15 to celebrate two special occasions.
One was the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.
The second was the dedication of the new St. James Center, a ceremony that marked the culmination of years of hard work and something that was deeply personal for many at the Mansfield church.
More than 300 people were welcomed by Father Daniel Kelley, who presided over the dedication.
“If I’ve ever been out to bless your house, this is going to be similar,” Fr. Kelley said.
The St. Jude pastor then began the task of sprinkling holy water around the perimeter of the new facility, as people, many of them strangers, introduced themselves to others at their tables and got to know one another.
St. Jude Business Manager Julie Cosby said this is exactly what the new structure’s intended purpose was designed to accomplish.
“People have waited for this to happen for a while,” Cosby said. “[Previously,] we had to go across the street to have food after Mass, and a lot of people didn’t want to do that. This allows us to walk straight from Mass into this new parish center, and it will be so helpful for parishioners to have fellowship and get to know each other.”
Punch, coffee, and cupcakes were served as visitors inspected the new center, which is walled in white brick with stained-glass cathedral windows along the front facade.
There are both standard and elevated tables for parishioners to sit and socialize, and the reception has been overwhelmingly positive.
“It’s a bit surreal, I would say,” Don Rodrigues said.
Rodrigues headed up the Stewardship Committee that helped oversee the project’s construction.
“This was a modification to a structure that has been there for decades,” Rodrigues said. “When we got here in 1998, it was just one wing of a small church. ... When I walked through it last weekend with Father Kelley and some others, it’s just amazing. It really came together very nicely.”
The three-year, $5 million campaign was called “Embracing our Past and Connecting our Future,” and Cosby said a tremendous debt of gratitude is owed to the Campaign Chairman Carlos Coll; Stewardship Committee leader, Don Rodrigues; Communications Committee leader Greg Hladik; Building Committee leader Greg Winston; and Events Committee leader Mary Jo Miller for the project’s completion.
The original church that served the Mansfield community was called St. James Mission and was part of the Diocese of Dallas.
As an homage to the earlier church, the new facility was christened the St. James Center.
Parishioner Silvia Birk, who has been a member of the church since 1968, said that was a nice touch.
“When we came here, the red brick church was the church,” Birk said. “It was called St. James, so that was the idea was to honor that, and I’m happy about that.”
The new structure will serve as a venue for parish events, ministry meetings, and community outreach — and spiritually, Fr. Kelley said, that is its most important purpose.
“The new St. James Parish Center stands out in the community,” Fr. Kelley said. “The building itself has caught the eyes of many people from around Mansfield. The new center incorporates the old church building that was expanded upon two decades ago ... we have much more space to have social events as well as a place for receptions.”
The exterior of the St. James Center, a new parish hall for St. Jude Parish in Mansfield. (NTC/Matthew Redden)