St. Francis of Assisi breaks ground for bigger church

By the time the Rev. Robert Boyle was assigned as pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Parish in Finleyville, Washington County in 2000, parishioners already had waited nearly three decades to replace their tiny, aging church.

"They built a multipurpose building in 1972 to have fund-raisers for the new church," Boyle said. "But by 1974, they already outgrew the old church and had to use the new (building) for weekend Mass.

"It's taken a while for us to get around to starting on a new church building, so we're pretty happy to finally get things moving," he said.

The parish held a groundbreaking ceremony on Aug. 9 for its new church, a prefabricated building expected to cost about $1.7 million and take about nine months to construct. So far, parishioners have pledged about $1 million, Boyle said.

The pastor said the old church, which was built in 1907, only has room for 150 to 175 people and is "showing its age." The parish has 650 active members.

The old church is only used for daily Mass and services that attract relatively few people, such as weddings, funerals and baptisms.

Even though Boyle has been a priest for 46 years, this is the first church construction project in which he has been involved.

"I've learned quite a bit about the whole process, but the most interesting thing I've discovered has to do with the congregation itself," Boyle said.

"From plumbers and electricians to landscapers and engineers, we've got many skilled craftsmen who have offered to invest their time and talent in this project," he said. "Having them involved, and seeing the generosity of the people who are pledging financial support, is quite a blessing."