[Congressional Record Volume 165, Number 140 (Friday, August 30, 2019)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1083]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 RECOGNIZING ST. JOSEPH CATHOLIC PARISH

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. TIM WALBERG

                              of michigan

                    in the house of representatives

                        Friday, August 30, 2019

  Mr. WALBERG. Madam Speaker, I rise today to recognize St. Joseph 
Catholic Parish of Erie, Michigan as it celebrates its 200th 
anniversary.
  St. Joseph Catholic Parish, the second oldest Catholic church in 
Monroe County, and the third oldest Catholic church in the Archdiocese 
of Detroit, has a rich history of service to the community.
  The parish began in 1819 as a log building in a community called Bay 
Creek, where worshippers were primarily hunters and trappers. In its 
early days, the church depended upon traveling Jesuit priests who 
ministered to the congregants, followed by occasional visits by Father 
Gabriel Richard. In 1826, a new wood-frame building was constructed to 
replace the earlier log structure, and in 1833, Father John Debruyn 
became its first resident pastor.
  Around 1850, the Bay Creek settlement area was renamed Vienna, and 
today is known as Erie. As the parish continued to grow in number, it 
became necessary to build a new facility. The present building was 
completed under the leadership of Father Peter Warlop and consecrated 
in 1852 by Bishop Peter Paul LeFever. The magnificent structure, still 
used today as St. Joseph's place of worship, is a testimony to many 
years of faithful ministry.
  Over the years, the church provided an elementary school for 
parishioners and added a new activities center to better serve the 
church body. Today, St. Joseph Parish continues to enrich hundreds of 
individuals and families in Erie as a place of connection, worship, and 
service.
  Madam Speaker, I ask my colleagues to join with me in congratulating 
St. Joseph Catholic Parish on its bicentennial anniversary. May God 
continue to bless the congregation as it shines a bright light in 
Monroe County and beyond.

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