Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Terre Haute marks 100 years as ‘home’

Deacon Steven Gretencord, left, and Archbishop Charles C. Thompson lift the chalice and paten during a Mass in Sacred Heart of Jesus Church in Terre Haute celebrating the faith community’s 100th anniversary on June 8. Deacon Gretencord, a son of the parish, was a member of the first class of deacons ordained in the archdiocese in 2008. Father Stephen Giannini, second from right, served as pastor of the parish from 1997-2002 and as its priest moderator from 2010-2013. Father Darvin Winters, right, served as the parish’s pastor from 2005-2010 and now serves as its sacramental minister. (Photo by Natalie Hoefer)

By Natalie Hoefer

TERRE HAUTE—June is a special month for members of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish in Terre Haute. Since 1856, the Catholic Church has dedicated that month to the parish’s namesake, the Sacred Heart of Jesus.

But this particular June was especially memorable as the parish marked its 100th anniversary with a special Mass celebrated by Archbishop Charles C. Thompson on June 8.

In his homily, he noted historical hallmarks from 1924 to present—globally, nationally, locally, in the Church and in the century-old northern Terre Haute faith community.

“Through it all, the priests, religious, parishioners and now pastoral life coordinator of Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish have remained committed to prayer, worship, Scripture, sacraments and service to those in need,” the archbishop said.

More than ‘brick and mortar’

From the dedication of the combined church/school building in July of 1924, to the dedication of the current church in June of 1956, to producing two of the archdiocese’s first permanent deacons in 2008, to the present, Archbishop Thompson observed that “divine grace has enabled the vibrancy of Sacred Heart [of Jesus] Parish to strive for a century, enabling the faithfulness of the people of God to the baptismal call of holiness and mission.”

He commended “folks like Barbara Black”—Sacred Heart’s parish life coordinator since 2010—“and others [who] have stepped up to taking leadership roles for the parish life and ministry. So many of you have done that. So many before you have done this.”

Referring to 2 Cor 4:18 from the day’s second reading, Archbishop Thompson noted that “the people of the parish have focused with the eyes of faith on that which is eternal rather than transitory, striving to be Christ-centered as a community of believers, relying on the Holy Spirit to fill up what may be lacking in human merit.”

Because members of the parish have been “rooted in seeking to do the will of God,” the archbishop continued, the faith community has “withstood the test of time amid all the ups and downs, ecstasies and turmoil.

“The people of all faiths throughout Terre Haute and Indiana are better for it— not just Catholics, but the many who have been served, Catholic and non-Catholic. More so than brick and mortar, it is the united witness of a Christ-centered community of believers that remains a beacon of hope, comfort, assurance and healing to those overwhelmed by life.”

In closing, Archbishop Thompson offered advice for all Catholics: “In keeping with the parish’s namesake, we would all do well to devote ourselves to the Sacred Heart of Jesus.”

‘Just where we’ve always been’

The celebration of the parish’s 100th anniversary began in June of 2023 with a dinner celebration, Black told The Criterion.

To celebrate the faith community’s century of serving the northern Terre Haute area, the parish participated in a “Thousand Acts of Kindness” project during the last year.

“We asked parishioners to do acts of kindness and write them” on individual paper hearts provided by the parish, Black explained. The hearts were displayed on a decorative tree at a dinner held after the Mass.

Another project undertaken to mark the parish anniversary was the research and writing of a 60-page parish history booklet.

Black credits longtime parishioner Karen Goehl with the effort.

“It took hours and hours of work,” she said. “Karen pored through bulletins and the [archdiocesan] archives and everything. And God bless her, she came up with a wonderful history of the parish.”

While “proud and honored” to have written the booklet, Goehl admitted there were times when, reading the parish’s 2,080 bulletins, she wondered, “Why did I volunteer to do this?”

But she said she learned “so many interesting things” in her research.

One fact that impressed Goehl was the role several women played while the organization of the parish was just beginning.

“This group of women went to [parish founder] Father [Aloysius] Duffy in 1921 and said, ‘You know what? We think you’re going to need some women to help you with the church and growing the church.’ And so, he formed the Altar Society” in 1922, she said.

Skip Lenne might not remember that far back, but as a lifetime Sacred Heart of Jesus parishioner, the 87-year-old has many fond memories of the faith community—festivals, fundraisers, serving as an altar boy, past parish anniversaries, the construction of the current church and more.

He graduated from the parish’s former school when it and the church were in one building.

“We had two grades in each classroom,” he recalled. “We went to Mass first thing every morning.”

Skip married his wife Linda in 1959. The couple raised their five children in a home about two blocks from the church. While most of their children have moved away from the area, one daughter and one grandchild are still members of the parish.

Linda couldn’t imagine being anywhere else: Sacred Heart of Jesus is “just where we’ve always been.”

‘It’s just a sweet parish’

As a new chapter unfolds for the parish, another is ending. Black retired on July 1 from two parish life coordinator positions—at Sacred Heart of Jesus since 2010 and simultaneously at St. Mary-of-the-Woods Parish in St. Mary-of-the-Woods since 2022.

At a dinner following the Mass, she received accolades from Father Darvin Winters, the parish’s pastor from 2005-2010 and its sacramental minister since 2019.

“Barb, you are a blessing in many ways,” he said. “There’s going to be a great void and certainly a kind of a sadness to see you go. … Thank you for all that you’ve done for Sacred Heart.”

Black, who also once served as the parish’s director of religious education in the late 1990s, said she enjoys “looking back and remembering all those people who made this parish so alive and so vibrant.”

When she asked for volunteers to carry the offertory gifts during the anniversary Mass, Janis Shook was happy to help.

“It’s just a sweet parish,” said Shook, a member of the faith community since 1979. “The parish, from my perspective, is family. I know lots and lots of people who have been there for years, as long as I have. And we’ve all been close. It’s just a nice, nice parish.”

Goehl said the faith community is “great at caring for parishioners and taking care of each other.”

She also lauded the parish for its community outreach: helping northern Terre Haute’s Table of the Good Shepherd food pantry, providing brown bag lunches to residents of housing for low-income families and supporting Terre Haute Catholic Charities’ ministries.

“Probably the most important thing is that we are a community of believers, and that it’s not about a building—it’s about us as a community. Everybody works together. There’s a lot of friendships.”

Skip agreed.

When asked what Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish meant to him, he had one word: “Home.” †