Ten days after Father Hogan's death, the Catholic Herald announced Bishop Joseph T. McGucken's appointment of Father Richard Doheny as administrator of St. Paul's. Father Doheny had come to the diocese from his native Ireland in 1948 and had previously served in Angel's Camp, Marysville, and immediately before his appointment to St. Paul, as pastor in Quincy.
One young parishioner of the time remembers that one of Father Doheny's first act after arriving at St. Paul was to plant a small garden of tomatoes in the space between the church and the rectory. This small garden marked the beginning of Father Doheny's 16 year labor in the fields and vineyards of St. Paul.
Father Doheny's tenure at St. Paul was to be marked by a number of significant events: the establishment of St. Paul as an independent parish, rapid growth of the St. Paul community and rapid changes in the Catholic church itself.
The establishment of St. Paul as an independent parish occurred on November 7, 1960 and shortly thereafter the Catholic Herald announced Father Doheny as pastor. The parish boundaries, which are still current, extended from Stockton Boulevard on the west to Grantline Road on the east. On the north it was bounded by Elder Creek Road to its dead end on Excelsior Road and then by the length of Jackson Highway between Excelsior to Grantline Road. The southern boundary was Stevenson Avenue and its extension between Stockton Boulevard and Grantline Road. At the founding date of the parish, these expansive boundaries held a mere 200 Catholic families.
The size of the new parish quickly grew with the completion of the first major subdivision in the Florin area in 1961 and 1962: Larchmont and Larchmont Lindale. This development was followed by numerous others, large and small, until 1976 when the St. Paul community enfolded over 700 families.
The changes in the Catholic church and its liturgy were similarly as rapid and wide-ranging. In the 1960s, the priest still celebrated the Tridentine Latin Mass with his back to the congregation. Responses to the Latin prayers were generally said only by the altar boys, communion was received on the tongue while kneeling at the communion rail, and every Mass ended with prayers for the conversion of Russia. The changes to this liturgical form started in 1962 with the placement of the altar so that the priest faced the people. Subsequent changes followed quickly one upon the other until, by 1970, the form of the Mass was substantially in the liturgical form we celebrate today.
Through the guidance of Father Doheny and the openness and generosity of the parishioners, the rapid growth and changes became an opportunity to grow even more stronger as a Catholic community.
Purchase of the Old Florin School
When it became obvious that parish activities would be constrained without more facilities, Father Doheny quickly purchased the old Florin Elementary School building which had previously housed the first integrated school in Florin. This structure, since torn down, was located about 200 yards east of the church on the south side of Florin Road. With the assistance of parishioners Ed Walker, Jack Ring and others, the old school was rapidly made ready for a three-week summer school of religion starting in June which was taught by the Sisters of Mercy from St. Patrick's School at the neighboring St. Rose's Parish. Students at this summer school have fond memories of Father Doheny playing catch and softball with them during recess.
This building was also used for a number of parish social events and fund raisers sponsored by the Women's Guild and other parish organizations including dances, dinners, and Bingo.
Acquisition of the old school property was paid for with the proceeds from a series of spaghetti dinners which were organized and cooked by Rosie Badella. These annual events, which were held at the old hall in Elk Grove Park, are fondly remembered by the parishioners of that time as happy social events which engaged the interest and energy of the whole parish, young and old alike. As recollected by Father Doheny, each dinner contributed over $1,200 to parish revenues, a large sum for the time.
The Second Church
As the growth of the Florin area continued, it became increasingly clear that the old church would no longer suffice for the parish. Not only was it becoming too small to accommodate the large congregation, but some parts of the facility were wearing out. As one example, parishioners of the time remember the school girl organist energetically working the organ's foot pumps after the electrically powered blower ceased functioning.
Although the Diocese thought the old school property might be adequate for building a larger church, Father Doheny judged that the creek on the property limited its potential as a future parish site. Consequently, he convinced the Bishop to lend the parish a down-payment for 15 acres on the corner of Florin Road and Gardner Avenue, the site of St. Paul parish today.
After the purchase the parish initiated a series of fund drives to raise money for the rest of the land payment and for a new church building. Construction of the new church and its parking lot began in early 1965, and the community celebrated the first Mass in the building on November 1, 1965, All Saints Day.
While the church was being built, Father Doheny and the parishioners looked for every means to stretch the available funds. One result of this vigilance was the "Great Pew Coup." From a fellow priest, Father Doheny learned that the Catholic parish in Gilroy was building a new church and would sell its old pews and some other items for $500, provided the buyer picked them up. When informed of the terms, Jim Noss, a parishioner who operated a trucking company, volunteered a rig to pick up the pews. Several parishioners, among them Ben Arellano, Francis Conrad, Felix Leier, Mike Scardello, and Joe Zentner, volunteered to help load the pews on the truck in Gilroy and unload them once they arrived at the new church site.
Other thrifty moves included the bargain purchase of the altar from Holy Spirit Parish in Sacramento and the continued use of the statues and Stations of the Cross from the old church. Then, as now, the statues of Mary and Joseph, which had adorned the first St. Paul parish, were repainted and moved to the new church. In addition, the small, bas-relief Stations of the Cross in the old church were repainted by members of the Villapando family and then reframed so that the scale was appropriate for the new, larger church.
Parishioners also helped with the finish work on the church. Clifford Lyons did the tile work, and several men from the parish mounted the large crucifix and corpus on the sanctuary wall.
Although this new church was designed to accommodate a greatly expanded congregation and, in fact, served as the home for the St. Paul community for over 25 years, it was originally intended as an interim structure which would eventually become a church hall.
The need to pay off the debt for the new church and property spawned a series of fund-raising social events, one of which is still held today. In August 1966, St. Paul Parish held the first Florin Fun Festival at the site of the new church, the precursor of today's St. Paul Festival. The coordinating committee for the event was headed by Margaret McKeknie and Mrs. Frank Calcagno, and many members of the St. Paul community pitched in to make the event a success. Another popular event was a fashion show which was originally organized by Mary Scardello. Those events were held for several years, with the last occurring in 1971.
Completing the Parish Facilities
After the construction of the church, Father Doheny, with the assistance of the parishioners, assembled the rest of the parish facilities. As with the church, economy was the watch word. For example, the current church hall was purchased in the late 1960's from Sacramento State college (now CSUS) for two dollars plus the cost of moving. Much of the labor and materials for converting it to a hall were contributed by parishioners. Similarly, the CCD classrooms and CYO Hall were relocated from other sites and then refurbished with the help of parishioners.
The final addition occurred around 1973 when the current rectory was moved to the parish site from a location new El Camino Boulevard in Carmichael, an event which made the local newspapers and television news. With the addition of the rectory, Father Doheny was finally able to move from the old church site and convey it to St. Patrick's for a day care center.
In the midst of the construction of parish facilities, social events and regular liturgical services, St. Paul's during this period also had organizations and events, which focused primarily on the community's spiritual life. The Legion of Mary met weekly for prayer and recitation of the rosary, missions and retreats were held by visiting Passionist priests, and the Virgin Mary was hoored by the annual May crowning. Saturday catechism classes continued under the direction of various parishioners and with the assistance of the Sisters of Mercy from St. Patrick's. And others, including Kay Corcoran continued to train the altar boys to assist at Mass.
In 1976, Father Doheny's tenure as pastor of St. Paul's ended when he accepted the appointment as pastor of St. Mel's parish in Fair Oaks. As one of his last duties, Father Doehny saw to it that St. Paul parish was on a firm financial bases. On the day they came to help with the packing for his move to Fair Oaks, Father Doheny asked Mrs.
Lucretia Balovich and Mrs. Benedict DeLeon to mail two envelopes. Only after they had returned from the post office did Father Doheny inform them that the envelopes contained the last payment on all outstanding parish debts.
The Second Pastor - Father John Hannan
On September 23, 1976, the Catholic Herald announced the appointment of Father John Hannan as new pastor of St. Paul Parish. Father Hannan, a native of Ireland, had served previously as a pastor in Susanville and Alturas.
In contrast to the preceding years, Father Hannan's stay at St. Paul was maarked by a slow-down in the growth of the parish, the improvements of existing parish facilities, and the greater involvement and participation of the laity in the governance of the parish and the planning of liturgical services.
The slower parish growth was primarily attributed to a lull in the construction of major subdivisions within the boundaries of the parish as developers moved to other areas; Greenhaven, the Pocket, Natomas, and Elk Grove. In addition, a slowdown in the economy and high interest rates also affected new home sales.
With this slower growth, the need to expand our parish facilities, including the church, became less pressing. Instead, the emphasis turned to the improvement and remodeling of existing facilities. As a safety measure Gardner Avenue was widened, and culverts, sidewalks, and curbs put in. The church was remodeled with the addition of the vestibule, choir loft, and reconciliation rooms. And, in 1980, the rectory was extensively remodeled after the unfortunate occurrence of a fire.
The most lasting legacy of Father Hannan's tenure, however, was the greater inclusion of the laity in parish governance and liturgical preparation. Growing out of the Second Vatican Council, reemphasis on the church members as "the people of God" and suggested innovations in the operations of church and parish organizations this trend was furthered by the unfortunate reality of the increasing shortage of priests and religious who had formally guided many of these organizations.
As with the faltering steps of any new venture, some of the steps were successful and others were not. The attempt to form a parish council, for example, was unsuccessful. An unwieldy number of subcommittees and differences among council members led to its disbandment after two years.
Other innovations, however, were more successful and became an integral part of parish life. It was during Father Hannan's time that a small group of interested parishioners began meeting periodically - in the early days, as often as every two weeks - to be trained in and to implement liturgy planning. Father Hannan also added the liturgy coordinator to the St. Paul staff.
These two events led to the formation of a liturgy committee. The success of this venture can be seen in the continuation of this commttee today. While its membership has changed, it continues to meet each month to plan the liturgical celebrations of the parish and to coordinate the assignment and training of servers and lay ministers of music, hospitality, the liturgical environment, the Eucharist, and the Word.
This period also saw the greater participation of girls and women in the formal ministries with the inclusion in service at the altar, distribution of the Eucharist, and lectoring.
In 1986, Father Hannan ended his stay at St. Paul parish when he was appointed pastor of Corpus Christi parish in Tahoe City.
The Third Pastor - Father Nicholas Duggan
On March 31, 1986, the Catholic Herald announced the appointment of Father Nicholas Duggan as the new pastor of St. Paul Parish. Father Duggan, a native of Ireland, came to the parish from St. Anne's, Sacramento where he had been pastor for 12 years. Previously, he had served in a variety of parishes including St. Thomas More in Paradise.
Father Duggan's arrival coincided with another explosion of building within the boundaries of St. Paul parish. In early 1986, rapid development began in the area south of Gerber Road. Land which had been used for grazing cattle and keeping horses quickly became subdivisions of homes. This growth had the inevitable effect of increasing the size of St. Paul parish community to the current 1,500 families.
The Third Church
With this growth, it became quickly apparent that the current church would no longer be adequate to serve the congregation. With this in mind, Father Duggan and members of the community organized a series of fund drives. The first of these served to put the parish on a firmer financial basis for its ongoing operations. The following fund drives raised funds specifically for the building of the new church which began in 1992. Although slowed by one of the wettest winters in decades, the building was essentially completed for its dedication on April 23, 1993.
The Growth in Parish Life
The growth in the St. Paul parish community, however, has not been limited only to its growth in numbers. Besides those activities, such as catechism, which has always been integral to the community, parish life continued to grow under Father Duggan with the addition of liturgical, spiritual and social events which enhance the life of a viable Christian community. Liturgical events include communal penance services and special liturgies for the ill and lay ministers. The spiritual life of the community has been enriched with the bible study, Catholic update, and prayer groups. Comfort and help has been extended through the formation of the Bereavement Committee and the carrying of the Eucharist to the sick. And the social life has been active with the institutioin of Sunday breakfasts sponsored and organized by the CYO and Friendship Club. The Knights of Columbus have also been very active in sponsoring dinners, dances and other events and in providing St. Paul parish with much needed equipment.
The growth of St. Paul parish has also moved beyond the geographical boundaries of the parish. In keeping with the Christian message of the Social Gospel, the St. Paul community has extended its helping hand to the less fortunate in the larger community of which St. Paul is a part. Groups of parishioners now volunteer regularly at the Loaves and Fishes dining room. Recently, others have begun helping the California Emergency Food Link. By these actions, the parish follows the prayer of St. Paul that "faith will give rise to a sense of fellowship that will show ... all the good things that we are able to do for Christ."
Fourth Pastor - Father Rey Bersabal (Fr. Rey)
Father Rey Bersabal came to St. Paul parish in October 2003, from St. Anthony Parish in Sacramento, and was our fourth pastor. With the increase in numbers of families in our parish additional Masses were added: 7:30 am in English and 12:30 pm in Spanish. Father Rey introduced the International Food Festival (IFF) to the parish in response to Synod Initiatives regarding cultural diversity and shared responsibilities. The parish library was established under his direction as well as the parish's Social Justice Ministry. He was also instrumental in establishing a Family Catechesis program, following the philosophy that family is the first and most important teacher of children. Father Rey began the planning for the development of a new religious education center for the parish.
Fifth Pastor - Father Vicente Teneza (Fr. Vic)
Father Vicente Teneza came to St. Paul parish in August 2008, from St. Basil Parish in Vallejo. He was our fifth pastor. Father Vic began the Capital Campaign for the planning and building of a new religious education center and parish center. During his tenure he has developed new ministries to address the synod initiatives of collaborative ministries and shared responsibilities, social services and social justice, and has increased parish involvement in culturally diverse activities and events. He has also led parishioners on international religious pilgrimages and established regularly scheduled faith-formation recollections, retreats and missions for parishioners. Father Vic led the parish in securing a Diocesan loan for the new classrooms, added substantial parking areas, removed old buildings, and finished the construction, furnishing, and consecration of the Religious Education Building for St. Paul Parish.
Sixth Pastor - Father Joyle Martinez (Fr. Joyle)
Father Joyle Martinez came to St. Paul parish in 2014, from Sacred Heart Parish in Red Bluff, California. He is our sixth and present pastor.