Press Releases
St. Joseph Parish of Avon Lake Celebrates 35th Anniversary of Father Tim O’Connor
Murder Mystery Dinner Raises Funds for Sister Parish in the Bahamas
AVON LAKE, Ohio, Aug. 9, 2010 -- Although the Catholic Church’s Year of the Priest recently concluded, St. Joseph Parish of Avon Lake continued the celebration when parishioners gathered to celebrate the 35th anniversary of Father Tim O’Connor’s ordination as a priest.
The pastor of St. Joseph Parish was ordained in 1975; however, it could be said he was almost born a priest as he knew he wanted to enter the priesthood at a very young age. Growing up at St. Jude’s in Elyria, he recalls watching Father John McCaffery celebrating Mass and one day suddenly thinking “I could do that.”
Father O’Connor credits his cradle Catholic father, convert mother, and his grandmother with preparing the foundation of his faith and vocation: “A question that we never asked in our family was, ‘Do we have to go to church today?’ We never asked that. We did it, even on camping trips. My mother and father would call ahead to find a church even when we were camping, so Sunday morning we could go to Mass. My parents prayed and taught us to pray. They led us in prayer.”
With a family life steeped in service and commitment to faith, Father O’Connor learned as a child the importance of the parish as family. This vocation continued through his high school years at Borromeo High School, and into his college seminary and graduate theology studies at St. Mary’s. He would also go on to receive an advanced degree from the University of Notre Dame.
Before serving as pastor of St. Joseph’s, Father O’Connor worked at St. Mary’s Seminary, teaching and serving as their organist and choir master. He also served at the diocesan level by assisting the Bishop. It wasn’t until 1995, when he came to St. Joseph’s, that Father O’Connor was able to realize his childhood declaration of serving a parish family.
For the last fifteen years, he has served St. Joseph’s not only as its pastor but also as its only priest – overseeing and celebrating all of the Masses and sacraments. He has helped grow the parish to over 1,750 families and established a Stewardship Program that encourages involvement in over 75 programs dedicated to spiritual enrichment, community outreach, and parish life.
One of Father O’Connor’s great joys has been in seeing three men from St. Joseph’s parish - John Schneider, Lou Balzer and Scott Goodfellow - now answering their own vocations to priestly life. Father says he has prayed for similar vocations from among the young people of St. Joseph’s Parish, “I truly believe that there are many others in our parish that the Lord is speaking to. If He can call the likes of me, He can call the likes of you.”
To celebrate Father’s anniversary, the St. Joseph Social Committee – part of the Parish’s Stewardship program – hosted a murder mystery dinner at DeLuca’s Place in the Park. The anniversary party not only allowed the parish to honor Father’s commitment to St. Joseph’s, but also raised funds for the church’s sister parish – St. Francis Xavier Cathedral in Nassau, Bahamas.
For more information about St. Joseph Parish of Avon Lake, visit www.stjosephavonlake.org. Father O’Connor’s recent homilies can also be found online.
About St. Joseph Parish Avon Lake
St. Joseph Parish Avon Lake (www.stjosephavonlake.org) is a Catholic community committed to celebrating the Eucharist and encouraging stewardship as a way of life. A member of the Diocese of Cleveland, it was founded in 1949 and has grown to its current enrollment of 1,750 registered families. St. Joseph Parish’s dedication to Catholic education is demonstrated through St. Joseph School, which serves grades K-8 and has been identified as a benchmark school for the Cleveland Diocese. The Parish is the only Catholic Church in Lorain County that currently offers a Sunday evening Mass at 5:00 PM, providing parishioners and the community with more options for attending Sunday Mass.
Father Tim O'Connor, pastor of St. Joseph Parish of Avon Lake
Father O'Connor at 'Life's a Beach' Murder Mystery party in honor of his 35th anniversary