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| Front view of parish Main sanctuary |
| Dearly Beloved, A parish, like a family, has a beginning and a history. Early in March, 1979, Bishop Stephen Leven asked me to develop a new parish in Midland on seven acres made available from a recent sale of land in north Midland bought in the early fifties. The land was to be used as the site of a new parish whenever Midland was ready. I didn't know what to say. At the time I was very happy in my Abilene pastorate. I begged time to pray about it. The next day I called Father Cliff Blackburn, pastor of St. Ann's. He assured me of his complete support and St. Ann's backing. With that I said, "Yes." The parish was named after the Bishop. We had our first organizational meeting at St. Ann's School cafeteria. The next morning came the unhappy announcement of Bishop Leven's resignation because of poor health. I held meetings with many Catholics wonderfully excited about giving birth to a new parish. We celebrated Sunday Mass in the chapel of Trinity School. In one month, Sunday attendance grew to some two hundred. I was painfully saddened to learn not everyone in Midland was happy about this explosive growth. Our last Sunday Mass was Pentecost Sunday. The Nuncio in Washington asked me to put everything on hold until a new Bishop could respond to some serious questions about the advisability of having a new parish in Midland. When Bishop Fiorenza came, he not only affirmed the formation of St. Stephen's, but also established Our Lady of San Juan as another new parish for Midland. I became Superintendent of Schools and pastor of St. Mary's, Odessa. In two years I became the founding pastor of a new parish in Odessa. God can build out of ruins! Odessa's beautiful St. Elizabeth Ann Seton would never have happened if Midland's St. Stephen's had not been temporarily stopped. Father Robert Kelly was given the formidable task of resuscitating St. Stephen's. He began celebrating the Holy Eucharist on Sundays at Alamo Junior High School and weekdays at St. Nicholas Episcopal Church. With a loan of $750,000, Father built the present multipurpose building in order to have a space for worship, and to accommodate as many other parish needs as possible until building a church was affordable. Without warning, the Permian Basin suffered one of the sharpest and most prolonged economic downturns ever. The loan had to be refinanced several times. All this took a heavy toll on Father Kelly's health. In 1985, after he had retired, Father Charles Vogel began coming to St. Stephen's to help in the care of souls from time to time. To this day he continues to do so. Father Kelly retired in 1991 for medial reasons. As interim-pastor, Father Dan McCaffrey formed active Pastoral and Financial Councils. In 1992 Father John Waldron's ready smile and easy-going personality continued Father Kelly's Work. After the sudden and unexpected death of Fr. Waldron, I returned as pastor on July 1, 1996. I found some three hundred families deeply focused on the Eucharist, Mary, Pro-life, and other traditional teachings of the Church. I continued the work begun by Father Waldron of making the worship space look and feel more like a church. With the firm belief that if we take care of the poor, God will take care of us, Helping Hands was founded as our way of responding to the poor in Midland. After the membership of the parish almost doubled, I initiated a campaign to retire the $266,000 debt so we could move toward building a church. The "Arise, Build, Rejoice" campaign was initiated to raise funds for the construction of a new church. Sunday, June 30, 2002 the parish community gathered with Midland's Mayor Mike Canon for groundbreaking. To quote Bishop Michael Pfeifer, "This is a long awaited moment, and we need to celebrate this event with a spirit of gratitude and hope. All of us together thank the Good Lord for letting us arrive at this important and historical date!" There is something very courageous about the 600 families who have chosen St. Stephen's as their church home. At a time when economic conditions are less than favorable, their sacrifices built, for the honor and glory of God, one of the most beautiful churches in Midland. "May God bless them richly." -- Cheerfully yours in the Lord, Father James P. Bridges  The mission of St. Stephen's Catholic Church is to provide an atmosphere for the spiritual nurturing of our parish community in a way that realizes the God-given potential in each of us. 4601 Neely Ave., Midland, TX 79707 Mass Times | Education | Youth | Music | Councils Service | Pastors & Staff | Lay Ministries ©2005-2008 St. Stephen's Catholic Church  |
