Holy Spirit Parish was canonically established September 15, 1962. The Most Rev Walter W. Curtis, then Bishop of Bridgeport, appointed the Rev. Alfred J. Sienkiewicz as our first pastor. At the time our property was vacant land, so we were a parish with a pastor but no building. Fortunately the Bernardine Sisters invited us to use their facilities at the Villa Maria Retreat House. The Holy Spirit prevailed and an energetic and devoted group, from among our original 267 members, went straight to work converting the lower portion of the retreat house into a suitable place of worship. As soon as that was completed the task of raising money for our building fund began in earnest.
Parish History
Humble Beginnings
As it was policy then for all American parishes to have a school, our first building project was a Church/School facility. On August 11, 1963 ground-breaking ceremonies took place for this building. On March 24, 1964 (Easter Sunday) the building was sufficiently completed to accommodate parishioners for the Mass of the Solemnity of the Resurrections of The Lord. By the 8th of September, 1964 Holy Spirit School opened its doors and all work on the building was completed.
Soon after we provided a convent home for our teaching nuns and a rectory home for our pastor. It would take until 1981 for the Parish to pay off the debt incurred on these beginning projects. So plans for the construction of our church had to wait.
Building our Church
On May 10, 1981 the long term planning and fund raising for the Church began. Ground-breaking ceremonies took place on June 7, 1986 and exactly one year later, on June 7, 1987, which was the Feast of Pentecost, a capacity crowd of over 400 people assembled for the dedication of the Church.
Our 50th Jubilee
In 2012 we celebrated our 50th anniversary as a parish. The Parish Council organized several special events that were held throughout the year to mark this occasion. On September 21, 2012 we celebrated with dinner and dancing at The Italian Center on Newfield Avenue. Parishioners responded generously to the Jubilee Committee's collection of special gifts to the parish.
On December 22, 2013 Bishop Frank Caggiano installed Monsignor Kevin Royal as our fourth pastor.
Renewal
In 2015 we entered into an exciting renewal both physical and spiritual. Our parishioners once again responded generously to our needs. The renewal of our sanctuary was completed and Bishop Frank Caggiano rededicated our altar on December 12, 2015. See photos of this ceremony.
We are also looking forward to continued growth and renewal. We have entered into the implementation phase of the Fourth Diocesan Synod with the continued work of our Pastoral Planning Task Force.
We Stand With Christ
With gratitude to the generosity of parishioners to the We Stand with Christ Campaign, Holy Spirit Hall was completely revitalized in 2020. In the midst of the pandemic, while masses were being aired online one might hear the sounds of workmen below as the project was "shovel ready" at time of lockdown and was therefore permitted to go forward. The new beautiful hall welcomed us all back when we were once again able to gather. The photo to the left is from May of 2021.
The One
In 2025 Holy Spirit was one of several parishes to pilot Bishop Caggiano's "The One" renewal process.
There is a single invitation offered to each of us by Christ: Encounter
Him more deeply in mind, heart, and will. Once we encounter the person of Christ, learn more about Him, fall in love with Him, and share His life with others, our own faith becomes more profound.
The One is a continuing process we are currently undertaking to discern and offer whatever parishioners need to meet Christ as He desires us to.
Then, as missionary disciples in the world, we can accompany others who want to join in the journey, calling each of our brothers and sisters to their own encounter.
Our Pastors
Father Luke Suarez
2019 - present
Msgr. Kevin Royal
2013-2019
Rev. Robert J. Hyl
1999-2013
Msgr. Normand A. Methe
1993-1998
Msgr. Alfred J. Sienkiewicz
1962-1993