Cardinal DiNardo blesses Phase 1 of Sacred Heart Church and school

CONROE, Texas -- Rev. Philip Wilhite, Pastor, and the Sacred Heart Catholic Church community recently welcomed Cardinal Daniel DiNardo to bless and dedicate the completed Phase I of the church and school’s master plan, construction began in the summer of 2013.

His Eminence Daniel Cardinal DiNardo is the metropolitan archbishop of Galveston-Houston and pastor to its 1.3 million Catholics (and over 4 million non-Catholics) and 440 priests in 146 parishes and 60 schools.

“We are so pleased to welcome Cardinal DiNardo to lead us in Mass and we are honored to have him here to celebrate the blessing and formation of the future of our parish community,” said Sacred Heart Parish Administrator Eileen Borski, “We have enjoyed working together to provide these additions and changes for our parish for generations to come, as did those who came before us that are dedicated to the prosperity of our church and surrounding community.”

Cardinal DiNardo was named the bishop (later the archbishop) of Galveston-Houston in January 2004. In November of 2007, he was elevated to the College of Cardinals by Pope Benedict XVI at St. Peter's Basilica in Rome. As a member of the Sacred College, he served as a Cardinal-Elector in the Papal Conclave of 2013, which saw the election of Pope Francis.

The completion of Sacred Heart’s phase I included a new 5,600 sf St. Vincent de Paul building to serve the Conroe area for people in need of assistance. In the month of February 2014, Sacred Heart’s St. Vincent de Paul Society served 2,014 individuals, providing 833 bags of food, $3,515 in rent assistance to prevent eviction, $5,031 in utility bill assistance, $1,869 in medicine prescription assistance and $942 in furniture assistance. In addition, the St. Vincent de Paul Society provided clothing for 1,269 individuals with a like amount of $12,690.

The addition of a 2,000 square foot St. Joseph’s Workshop that will house the parish’s maintenance workshop, maintenance offices and storage for the various ministries and organizations of Sacred Heart, new secure fencing was added to better protect the more than 1,000 children that attend our religious education programs and for the children that attend Sacred Heart Catholic School, the new soccer field with an irrigation system, 300 parking spaces were added as well as improved drainage infrastructure and two new digital signs were installed on Highway 75 and FM 2854 to better communicate with our parish, school family and the community.

The auditorium, renamed the Moran Center, also received an extensive renovation including the addition of the new 2,000 square foot W.T. and Louis J. Moran Cafeteria. The building will serve as the cafeteria for Sacred Heart School and as our largest venue for adult faith formation and other parish activities.

School Principal Deb Brown added, “This has been a year full of excitement and growth for both the church and our school with many new opportunities for us to improve the overall education and development for all of our children and our programs on campus. We are looking forward to watching the new church come to light and are so blessed that our children get to be part of this amazing and unique opportunity of growth for their school and parish.”

Phase II will begin soon and will include building a new church with 1,500 seats and a new chapel. The church will also include a choir rehearsal room and a religious gift shop. The phase will also help transform the existing church into a new Family Life Center, adding a kitchen and bathroom as well as providing new meeting rooms and parish administrative offices.

Since 1898, Sacred Heart Catholic Church has been serving Montgomery County while watching the area grow and change from generation to generation. The parish continues to grow and now serves more than 6,500 families with approximately 70 active ministries, over 1,000 students in religious education and approximately 300 students in the parish school. There are two priests and two religious sisters that reside on campus, and currently there are 18 staff members working at the parish and 46 staff members at Sacred Heart School.

For more information about Sacred Heart Catholic Church, please call 936.756.8186 or visit the website link provided.