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PASTORS
OF ST CHRISTOPHER, HOBE SOUND
Fr.
Timothy Geary, Founding Pastor, 1953
Rev. John McKeown, April 1954
Rev.
Jerome Martin, September 1961
Rev.
Patrick Murray, July 1964
Rev.
Charles Stadalinikas, 1971
Rev.
Paul Leo Manning, February 1982
Rev.
Frank Guinan, August 1984
Rev.
Daniel Barrett, September 1987
Rev.
Leslie Cann, July 1989
Rev.
Aidan Hynes, July 1999 – Present
History
of St Christopher, Hobe Sound
St.
Christopher Parish had its beginning in the late 1940’s, when
winter residents, Mr. and Mrs. Christopher Devine, envisioned the
growth to come and offered to build a church to serve the
spiritual needs of the few Catholics in the area, and those yet to
move to Hobe Sound. The
result was the beautiful church we worship in today.
Groundbreaking
took place in 1952 and the attractive Spanish Revival architecture
of St. Christopher Parish, with its impressive bell tower, became
an instant landmark along US1.
Its classic beauty has endured and remains a landmark
today. St.
Christopher Catholic Church was formally dedicated in December
1953 by the Most Reverend Joseph P. Hurley, Archbishop of St.
Augustine.
During
the intervening 50 plus years, St. Christopher Catholic Church has
grown significantly. In
order to meet the spiritual and social needs of this growing
parish family, St. Christopher parish has expanded or been
refurbished numerous times.
The
first was our parish hall, built under the pastoral leadership of
Fr. Charles Stadalinkas. Ground
breaking took place in 1979 and the dedication of the facility was
in 1990, by the Most Reverend Edward McCarthy, the Archbishop of
Miami.
The
Parish Administration Center and Chapel was
built in the mid 1980’s. Ground
breaking was in 1985, led by Fr. Frank Guinan, Pastor and Fr. Paul
Leo Manning, Pastor Emeritus.
Dedication took place in 1986 by the Most Reverend Thomas
Daily, Bishop of the Diocese of Palm Beach.
After the death of Fr. Manning, the building was dedicated
to him and a memorial plaque was put up at the entrance to the
cloister
The
expansion of the Church took place in 1992.
These renovations were under the direction of Fr. Leslie
Cann. The Blessing of
the Renovated St. Christopher Church was January 17, 1993, by the
Most Reverend J. Keith Symons, Bishop of the Diocese of Palm
Beach.
The
Education Center and the Rectory were built in the
late 1990’s. The
concept and design of these buildings, as well as that of the
renovations to the church that had just taken place are a
testament to the vision Fr. Leslie Cann had for the parish.
The dedication of the new facilities took place on March 7,
1999, by the Most Reverend Anthony J. O’Connell, Bishop of the
Diocese of Palm Beach.
The
new kitchen in the
Parish Hall kitchen was completed December 2008. It was
completely refurbished and brought up
to date, under the direction of Fr. Aidan Hynes, in order to
provide a safer and more modern facility to service the parish and
its functions. We had our first use of the new kitchen on
February 7, 2009 when the Knights of Columbus put on a Spaghetti
Dinner.
In
January of 2009, Fr. Hynes turned to the Education Center and
started making modifications and improvements. The entrance
to the Education Center was changed and a much needed conference
room was added.
More
significant than the growth of our parish facilities is the growth
of our parish family. From
our meek beginnings in 1953, we have grown to a vibrant parish of
2,500 registered families. While
this does reflect the population growth in South Florida ,
it more importantly is reflecting the faith, the love, and the
hard work of the clergy and parishioners that have all made St.
Christopher Parish so strong.
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