St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church -- Grapevine TX
N 32° 56.886 W 097° 04.160
14S E 680474 N 3647187
St. Francis Catholic Church in Grapevine serves a vibrant community of Catholics in this growing city
Waymark Code: WMRBQ4
Location: Texas, United States
Date Posted: 06/05/2016
Views: 2
The new sanctuary for this growing parish replaced the original mission church that was built to serve this community in 1949. St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church is located at 861 Wildwood Lane in Grapevine TX.
From the church website:
"PARISH HISTORY
St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Grapevine, TX, was established as a parish in 1949. We are a member of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth, which is home to over 700,000 Catholics. Our pastor is Rev. James Flynn.
The mission of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church is to enable all the members of our community to live in accordance with the teachings of Jesus Christ to attain eternal salvation.
The Church and administration facility, which is situated on 8 acres of land near Lake Grapevine, is a 39,000 sq. feet building with church seating for over 1,100, 10 classrooms, meeting room, conference room, office space, and a Parish Hall. Stained glass windows from the original mission church were used in the parish hall to bring forward our past.
Fr. Baltasar Szarka, affectionately called Fr. B, was our first pastor and a native of Hungary. He was ordained in France in 1949. In 1952, Fr. B joined other Cistercians from Hungary who settled in Wisconsin. The group moved to Irving in 1956, and Fr. B began his ministry at St. Francis in 1961.
He was a wonderful listener and loved children. He was a loving pastor to the growing community at St. Francis. Fr. B retired as pastor in August of 1997 due to failing health and was honored with a special mass and reception. Fr. B died on April 1, 2000. Fr. B left us with a legacy of love of the Eucharist and sense of community.
Fr. Ken Robinson, our second pastor, was born in Austria, the second of four children in an Air Force family. His father served several assignments in Europe before returning to the Texas.
Fr. Ken was raised in a Protestant tradition, but as a teenager entered the Catholic Church. Fr. Ken has a rich educational and work background. He has a B.A. in secondary education with specialization in history, English, and microbiology and a master’s degree in history. Before entering the seminary, he worked as a teacher and as a medical technologist. He completed his Master of Divinity degree at Oblate School of Theology in San Antonio. He was ordained a priest on May 16, 1992 at his home parish of St. Rita in Fort Worth.
Fr. Ken served as associate pastor at St. Michael’s Church in Bedford and later as pastor of St. George’s Church in Fort Worth, before being named pastor of St. Francis in August 1997. Fr. Ken was assigned pastor of Sacred Heart in Muenster, TX, effective January 1, 2007.
church-outsideFr. Anh Tran, our third pastor was born and baptized in Saigon, Viet Nam in 1963. As a teenager he moved with his parents and siblings to Fort Worth, Texas in 1975. He became a citizen of the United States of America in 1992.
He attended St. Rita Catholic School and Eastern Hills High School in East Fort Worth. He received a B.A. from Conception seminary College in Missouri in 1985, a Master of Divinity from St. Mary’s Seminary in Houston in 1990, and Licentiate in Canon Law from Catholic University of America in 1996.
Fr. Anh was ordained by Bishop Joseph Delaney at St. Matthew Church in Arlington on May 26, 1990. His first assignment was at St. Michael’s Church in Bedford. In 1996, Fr. Anh was appointed pastor of Sacred Heart Church in Breckenridge, Texas with its four mission churches in Shackelford, Throckmorton and Palo Pinot counties. In 1999, Fr. Anh was appointed Diocesan Director for Vocations and served in that position until December 2006. Bishop Kevin Vann appointed Fr. Anh pastor of St Francis of Assisi church on May 1, 2007.
Fr. James Flynn became pastor of St. Francis of Assisi in the summer of 2013. Fr. Flynn was raised in Arlington, Texas and graduated from Granbury High School in Granbury, Texas. He spent 4 years on active duty the U.S. Army and was stationed in Kentucky, Germany, California and North Carolina.
After his service in the Army, he went to Texas A&M and received a degree in Engineering and played Rugby for Texas A&M. Upon graduation he worked in the commodities for Cargill Incorporated for three years and at the age of 29 started his seminary formation with the Dominican Friars in Denver and St. Louis.
In 2000, he was accepted as a seminarian for the Diocese of Ft. Worth and finished his theology studies at Assumption Seminary in San Antonio. Fr Flynn was ordained to the priesthood on May 13, 2006. He served as an associate pastor at Immaculate Conception in Denton and St. John the Apostle in North Richland Hills before becoming the pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas in Pilot Point. On August 1, 2013, he was assigned as the pastor of St. Francis of Assisi."
Type of Church: Church
Status of Building: Actively in use for worship
Date of organization: 01/01/1949
Date of building construction: 01/01/1980
Dominant Architectural Style: Spanish Mission Revival-ish
Associated Shrines, Art, etc.: Shoenstatt Shrine
Archdiocese: Archdiocese of San Antonio
Diocese: Diocese of Fort Worth
Address/Location:
816 Wildwood Ln
Grapevine, TX
Relvant Web Site: [Web Link]
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