Rapid growth forces Greenwood parish to expand quickly

Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein leads members of SS. Francis and Clare of Assisi Parish in Greenwood in applauding the parish’s pastor, Father Vincent Lampert, on Aug. 8 for his hard work and ministry in leading the faith community during its rapid expansion over the past four years. Standing behind Archbishop Buechlein, from left, deacons Stephen Hodges and Ronald Reimer join in the applause. (Photo by Sean Gallagher)

By Sean Gallagher

GREENWOOD—SS. Francis and Clare of Assisi Parish in Greenwood is young and growing quickly.

Founded in 1993, the parish now has approximately 1,300 households among its members. And it has more than doubled in size since 2003 when its current pastor, Father Vincent Lampert, was assigned to minister there.

A growing number of children in the parish has forced SS. Francis and Clare to move quickly in developing its school, which was founded in 2006.

Last year, the school had 118 students in kindergarten through fourth grade. This year, 183 students will be enrolled in kindergarten through fifth grade. The plan is eventually to offer a Catholic education at the parish school through the eighth grade.

Because of the phenomenal growth of the parish, it planned a major expansion of its facilities. On Oct. 4, 2009—the feast of parish co-patron St. Francis of Assisi—ground was broken on a building project to add 14 classrooms, a cafeteria and an athletic facility.

On Aug. 8, the Sunday before the feast of St. Clare of Assisi, the parish’s other co-patron, the $6.1 million expansion project was blessed and dedicated by Archbishop Daniel M. Buechlein. (See a photo gallery from this event)

SS. Francis and Clare now has nearly 109,000 square feet of building space on its 27-acre campus. At 55,000 square feet, the parish’s newest expansion nearly doubles the size of its physical plant.

The parish’s school now has the room to meet its growing needs. The school will eventually be able to accommodate 450 students and have classroom space for two sections of each grade.

As Archbishop Buechlein turned a corner in the building then faced a long, wide hallway that opened into several classrooms and restrooms, he saw it and said, “Oh, my heavens.”

For Father Lampert, getting the children and adults who will use the parish’s new buildings to heaven is ultimately what the expansion is all about.

“We’re not just building buildings for the sake of building them,” said Father Lampert in a telephone interview a few days before the dedication and blessing ceremony. “We’re building facilities that we need to hand on our faith. It’s not really investing in buildings. It’s investing in future generations, and their Catholic faith and their Catholic identity.”

Archbishop Buechlein spoke about these future generations at the start of his homily during a Mass that he celebrated in the parish’s church before the blessing and dedication ceremony.

“I, of course, am aware that you all are a very young parish,” he said while looking out on the church filled with many young families. “And I believe it even more now. What a wonderful thing to see so many young people.”

One of those young people, Jeremy Keusch, will be a member of SS. Francis and Clare School’s first fifth-grade class when school starts later this month.

“I think it’s pretty cool to have the archbishop come here and bless it,” said 10-year-old Jeremy about the parish’s new buildings. “I think it’s pretty cool that the whole parish is [supporting] the school and the new facilities.”

Amy Keusch, Jeremy’s mother, echoed her son’s excitement.

“It’s fabulous. It’s beautiful. It’s even better than what I thought it would be,” she said of the expanded facilities. “What I love is that the kids are excited about it. They have an investment in their own future, which I think is wonderful.”

Amid the physical construction, Keusch was well aware, however, of the spiritual work underlying it all.

“There’s been a lot of prayer,” she said.

“Everybody has had faith in this project being guided by the Holy Spirit.”

Betty Popp will soon start her first year as SS. Francis and Clare School’s principal. She is as excited about the expansion as her students are.

“It’s a thrill,” she said. “It’s sort of a dream that I’ve always had to be [in] on the beginning of a new facility. With the technology that we’re going to have, we’re going to be cutting edge. We hope to be a leading school in the archdiocese.”

At 70, SS. Francis and Clare parishioner James Ruane is one of the older members of his parish. As the president of its pastoral council several years ago, he helped spearhead the move to develop a master plan that culminated in the parish’s latest expansion.

On Aug. 8, he was busy making sure that the approximately 800 people attending the blessing and dedication ceremony had enough to eat at the luncheon which followed.

“I think it’s fantastic,” Ruane said. “It speaks to the spirit of this community. We couldn’t feel any better about it.”

(To learn more about SS. Francis and Clare of Assisi Parish in Greenwood, log on to www.francisandclare.org.) †