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The History of St. Francis of Assisi ChurchBy Fr. Peter Fritz The history of St. Francis of Assisi Church in Calhoun, LA begins in the spring of 1954. Mrs. Louis Rolleigh, having just returned from visiting Italy and the church of St. Francis in Assisi, dreamed of having a church of St. Francis of Assisi near her home in Calhoun. She gathered and organized six Catholic families living in the area to petition Bishop Greco of Alexandria to establish a Catholic Church at Calhoun on a piece of land that she owned. The bishop favored the idea of starting a church in the area, but was in no hurry to approve any plan without funding and without a priest to serve as pastor. However, Fr. Vitus Duschinsky, the pastor at St. Paschal in West Monroe, and his assistant, Fr. Finian McMullin encouraged the group to grow by holding a Mass for the early families each Sunday at Mrs. Rolleigh’s home. Fr. Finian celebrated the first Mass on Sunday April 24, 1955. And soon, the original six families of Mrs. Louis Rolleigh, Mr. and Mrs. Berlin Heck, Mr. and Mrs. Wilkinson, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Stone, Mr. and Mrs. Otto Thompson and Mr. Pipes were joined by eight other families in the area who were interested in a church at Calhoun. Among the new families to join them were the Bernard Willardsen family, Pat Marnell family, Irwin McDaniel family, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Haury, Mrs. Helen Windham, Mr. and Mrs. Frank Carney, Mrs. Reagan, and Mrs. Otto Thompson. The Franciscan Provincial, Fr. Pius Barth, was visiting in the area at the time and approved the plans to establish a church and name it for St. Francis of Assisi. He offered to provide the new church with a Franciscan priest as pastor. The people then started collecting money in various ways to build the church. Mrs. Rolleigh donated an acre of her land on a hillside above highway 80 East of Calhoun as the site for the church. There was some difference of opinion between Mrs. Rolleigh and Fr. Finian about the site. The matter was referred to Fr. Pius Barth, the Provincial, who decided the site on Mrs. Rolleigh’s property was the best site for the church. And so on May 19, 1955 a deed of donation to the Diocese of Alexandria for the acre of land was drawn up and accepted by Bishop Charles Greco. With the seal of approval by the Bishop and the Franciscan Provincial, the work of planning and building a church began. The plans were drawn up and ground was broken in June 1955. The Catholic Extension Society made a grant of $5,000. A loan of $4,000 was taken out probably from a bank in Farmerville. Moreover, fund-raisers and collections raised $3,276.88. The total cost of the church was$12,276.88. The masonry work on the church was completed on June 29, 1955. The first Sunday Mass in the church was held on July 31, 1955. Many items in the church were obtained by donations from parishioners. Mrs. Kathleen Rolleigh donated the beautiful alter crucifix that she brought from Italy, and relics of St. Francis and St. Ann. St. Mathew’s Church of Monroe gave the marble baptismal font. The statues in the church and hall also were donated by various members of the parish and by friends from Monroe. The dedication and blessing of the church by Bishop Greco was held on Sunday September 18, 1955. Besides the people of St. Francis, many of the local clergy and religious were present for the occasion. The first baptism in the church was Mary Charlotte McDaniel on October 30, 1956. The first First Communion class of George Johnson, Margarette Willardsen, Maureen Willardsen, and Kay Ann Heck received their First Communion on May 6, 1956. The first Confirmation in the church was on April 30, 1973. The first Marriage in the church was between Edwin Norton and Dorothy Harrell on August 1, 1956 Fr. Finian remained the pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church until the summer of 1961. The church prospered and paid off all debts on the building before his term as pastor was over. The congregation, however, remained small as is evident from the financial and spiritual reports made to the diocese during these years Mrs. Rolleigh purchased an additional acre and a half of adjoining land and donated it to the church on December 8, 1965. This property was purchased to provide adequate parking space for the church members and to provide room for future expansion. A survey of the church property was made at the time that each of the two tracts were acquired and donated to the church. A copy of these two surveys, made in 1974 at the request of the bishop, exists in the church records under the date of August 13, 1974. The number of families and members grew slowly during the 1960’s as the notes and reports of the pastors, Fr. Method Wilson and Fr. Walbert Galerno indicate. There were 27 total members from 16 families on the parish census in 1962, when Fr. Method took over. The debt of $4,000 incurred on building the church had been paid off. But there were little funds on hand. Fr. Method worked not only at building up the faith by securing a Greenbriar bus to transport children to catechism, but also worked on driveways, parking lots, sidewalks, and planted some pine trees to improve the church grounds. Finances were a challenge. Yearly income was at the $3,000 level. To help make ends meet, various members of the church adopted certain expenses and paid for them out of their own pocket. Mrs. Rolleigh and her church Custodian Committee of six ladies took care of the church and altar supplies. They cleaned the church every week and washed the altar linens. And they brought flowers during the spring and summer from their home gardens, and bought the flowers for Christmas and Easter. Mr. and Mrs. Grady V. Brown paid the electric utility bill for the church for many years. The early pastors worked without salary. In 1968 the first pastor’s salary was paid – $360 per year. The Franciscan pastors never lived in Calhoun, but commuted from either West Monroe or Farmerville where they resided. Other people outside St. Francis Parish contributed financially to the church. Prominent among these were John and Beverly Storm, Marie Ship and Francis Rearden. When Fr. Walbert became pastor in 1967, the parish was still small, about 30 members in 17 families. In 1975, he reported 57 members in the parish from 27 families. Fr. Normand Bieklicke was the next pastor, arriving in August of 1976. The first directive that the bishop gave to Fr. Normand was “establish a Parish Council at St. Francis”. After giving it some thought, Fr. Normand called together eight members of the church and made them the Parish Council. From among them, Bill Forbito was elected President, John Storm – Vice President, and Carol Boudreau – Secretary. Kathleen Rolleigh – Custodian with a committee of six helpers; Gordon Bowie - Maintenance; Laura Thompson – CCD; Pat Bannister – Liturgy-Music; John Storm – Liturgy-Mass and Finance; and Gloria Bowie – Social. Almost immediately, the need for a church hall and space for CCD classes came up. Mrs. Rolleigh’s home had always be the meeting place for the early Parish Council meetings. At the February 14th meeting of the Parish Council in 1977, the plans for the parish hall were approved by the council. The cost of the 32’ X 40’ addition to the church building on its north side was estimated at $18,000. A loan of $5,000 was subsequently sought and obtained from the Franciscan Missionary Union. A sum of $13,000 was on hand in a savings account. Construction of the hall began in May of 1977, and with it’s furnishing was completed in December 1977. The hall was officially opened and blessed by Msgr. George Martinez on February 4th, 1978 Fr. Normand remained as pastor until April 1980. The church debt that was incurred in building the hall was paid off in 1981. The church census continued to grow. 31 children were enrolled in the CCD classed in September 1981. The number of registered families at this time was 43. St. Francis received a new pastor in August 1980 in the person of Fr. Bob Leonhardt. The parish had been without a regular pastor for four months after Fr. Normand left. Fr. Bob was very interested in the renewal of the parish in accord with the guidelines of the Vatican II Council and the diocesan directives. He made many suggestions and proposed many goals. He introduced the system of weekly church envelopes to increase the church finances. The need for more adequate classroom facilities, separate from the parish hall became apparent in 1981. On September 21, 1981, the Parish Council authorized the purchase of the first of two Eason Metal Buildings at a cost of $4,545. Each of the Eason buildings contained three rooms, each 12’ x 12’. The second Eason building was purchased in February 1988, also having three classrooms of the same dimensions. By 1986, it became evident that some kind of remodeling and expansion of the church was needed. The relocation of the tabernacle and the installation of some added pews was the initial cause of some concern. This led to a discussion of building a new church. In July, Fr. Bob reported that the bishop’s office in Shreveport estimated the cost of a new church to seat 300 – 350 would be about $385,000. This report immediately tabled any further plans for a new church. Mrs. Kathleen Rolleigh, the founding patron of St. Francis Church, died on January 7, 1987. The church was deeply saddened by her passing. A plaque honoring her generosity, leadership and memory was engraved and placed in the church hall by the church members A new Parish Council was elected in early 1987. On June 22, 1987, a building committee was appointed to wrestle with the question of church expansion. The members of the committee were Chuck Cambre, John Storm, Benjie Bratton, Joe Wiggins and Bill Laws. They worked long and hard at coming up with a new plan for a larger church. In August 1987, Fr. Bob Leonhardt received a new assignment in Michigan and Fr. Kevin Domas became the new pastor. At the same time, the church received a grant of $10,000 from the Keller Trust. This helpful donation was put into the building fund. Fr. Kevin encouraged the building committee to continue its work of planning the expansion of the church, and of raising the funds for this project. In the fall of 1987, John and Beverly Storm invited the members of Liberty Baptist Church and the St. Francis of Assisi Church to a combined picnic on the grounds of their rustic Red Rock Store. This ecumenical picnic was the beginning of an annual celebration that was named “HANDS ACROSS 80”. It was held every October from then on. In February of 1988, the building committee met with the architect to set down some ideas about the church renewal project. The first estimate set the cost at about $9,000. In June of 1988, the Parish Council approved some preliminary drafts drawn up by the architect. In August 1988, the final plans still were not ready, but the general notion was – build an addition to the front of the church which would then become the sanctuary of the church. The interior of the church, with the altar, the doors and windows, and the lighting, together with the addition of more pews were all part of the remodeling. The final architect’s plans for the church were completed somewhere between September and October 1988. It was realized then that the remodeling, renovation and addition to the church would be much more expensive than originally thought. The bishop was contacted at this time about authorizing a loan for $20,000. A contract for the church-remodeling project was signed with Mike Clark, the contractor and a parishioner, on November 2, 1988. No work began at that time though because the bishop kept delaying his approval. He did finally approve and a loan of $20,000 was obtained from St. Matthew’s Church in Monroe to start the work. The remodeling work began on January 1, 1989. The old entrance to the church facing Highway 80 was removed and a new brick addition was built to house the sanctuary. A rose window designed by Marlene Gremillion and donated by the Gremillions was set in the front wall of the church. A new altar and tabernacle repository were fashioned by Mike Clark. Mike and Brenda Clark and Brenda’s father, Harold Ruffino, donated a church steeple, built by Mike and Harold and erected a little later on September 27, 1989 on the roof of the sanctuary. A new entrance was provided on the west side of the church. Several new pews, new carpets, new lighting, new windows and a repainting of the entire interior were included. The original church had rose-colored walls, a touch Mrs. Rolleigh had picked up from the church of St. Francis in Assisi. The new interior of the church in 1989 was painted celestial white. The newly remodeled St. Francis of Assisi Church was dedicated and blessed by Bishop William B. Friend on May 11, 1989, when he came to confer the sacrament of Confirmation. In July 1991, the Ouachita Council of Aging contacted St. Francis of Assisi Church about leasing the parish hall for its daily Senior Citizen Luncheon. After a one-year trial period, the Ouachita Council for Aging established St. Francis Church Hall as the permanent base for its weekday Senior Lunch. On December 16,1992 the church lost their beloved pastor, Fr. Kevin Domas, to a fatal heart attack. For several weeks, Fr. Franz Graef filled in on Sundays. Then in mid January 1993, Fr. Paul Gallagher was appointed pastor. He came from Ruston on Sundays to shepherd the flock at St. Francis. Fr. Paul remained until July 1993, when he received a new assignment as a campus minister at the University of Houston in Texas. Fr. Peter Fritz was appointed pastor of St. Francis of Assisi Church on July 20, 1993. He arrived on July 28, 1993. In the spring of 1994, Joe and Lauren Wiggins donated a canopy for the church and hall entrances. In the fall of 1994 the church and hall received a new roof, partly paid for by a Catholic Extension Society “Wish List” gift.
On September 18, 1995, the church reached the 40th anniversary of its erection and dedication. The Parish Council and the members decided they wished to celebrate this 40th Anniversary by thanking God with a Mass of thanksgiving, a homecoming program and a dinner on October 1, 1995. It is their hope this celebration will renew their mission” “Of being a loving, caring family in Jesus, living His word.” Pastors, Council & Society PresidentsOf St. Francis of Assisi
Church The nine Franciscan priests who served as pastors of St. Francis of Assisi:
The Parish Council Presidents since the start in November 1976:
Finance Council Presidents
since the start in November of 1976:
Altar Society Presidents
since the start in January of 1993:
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