Saint Charles Lwanga

St. Charles Lwanga parish was established in 1992 as part of the diocese's reorganization and revitalization program.  The parish was formed by the merger of Holy Rosary, Mother of Good Counsel, Corpus Christi, Our Lady Help of Christians, Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament, and Ss. Peter and Paul parishes.  Of the six churches, Ss. Peter and Paul and Our Lady Help of Christians were closed and later sold.  Corpus Christi was converted to a Pastoral Center.  Our Lady of the Most Blessed Sacrament was later closed on February 18, 1996, due to financial considerations.  The building was sold soon afterwards. 

Mother of Good Counsel was founded as an Italian parish in 1907.  The parish was the result of Italian immigration to the Homewood/Brushton area around the turn of the century.  The first Mass in the new parish was celebrated in a rented storeroom on November 25, 1907.  Land for a church was purchased in April of 1908 and in May ground was broken for the church.  The church was completed that year and dedicated on December 20, 1908.  The congregation grew so rapidly that the church had to be enlarged to twice its size in April of 1915. 

The parish continued to grow through the first half of the century.  In the early 1950's plans were drawn up for a new church.  Ground for the church was broken on January 4, 1955.  The cornerstone was laid on June 5, 1955, and the completed church was dedicated on September 25, 1955.  The old church was converted to a parish hall and was later torn down in 1968.  The new church was renovated in the 1960's to reflect the changes mandated by Vatican II.

As the growth of population at the beginning of the century led to the creation of the parish, the loss of population at the end of the century led to its suppression.  In 1992, Mother of Good Counsel merged with five other parishes to form the new St. Charles Lwanga parish.  Mother of Good Counsel Church remains open and continues to serve the new parish.