Holy Redeemer by The Sea - Parish History
spanish Spanish Translations

HOLY REDEEMER
BY THE SEA

OUR HISTORY
After the building of the Naval Station in Buxton, the number of Catholic families grew and Fr. James Jones came, in 1955, to minister to them. He lived in a small room behind the tiny church and in 1956 built the rectory which later became the parish offices. In 1957, Bishop Waters appointed Fr. Denges as resident pastor. He remained here for 8 years and was here during the infamous Ash Wednesday storm...

PROGRAMS & ACTIVITIES

Holy Redeemer by the Sea
(252) 261-4700
PO Box 510
301 W. Kitty Hawk Rd
Kitty Hawk, NC 27949

 

A BRIEF HISTORY OF Holy Redeemer by the Sea Catholic Parish
In the early 1930's, Mass was celebrated , once a month for the two Catholic families living here on the Outer Banks, by Fr. Howard Lane, in the home of Mr. And Mrs. Harry Lawrence.

Holy Redeemer by the Sea Catholic Parish was established in 1937 on land given to the Diocese by Rosemary Dunford’s father, Harry Lawrence. The priest in charge, Fr. Thomas F. Carney, lived in Elizabeth City and traveled down to Kill Devil Hills, weekly during the Summer and monthly in the off season, to celebrate Mass with the small number of Catholic families that lived here and the tourists vacationing here.

After the building of the Naval Station in Buxton, the number of Catholic families grew and Fr. James Jones came, in 1955, to minister to them. He lived in a small room behind the tiny church and in 1956 built the rectory which later became the parish offices. In 1957, Bishop Waters appointed Fr. Denges as resident pastor. He remained here for 8 years and was here during the infamous Ash Wednesday storm.

God is good, and in subsequent years the parish experienced great growth under the expert leadership of fine pastors and dedicated parishioners. Fr. Joseph Klaus, (1965 - 1973), purchased land in Southern Shores, Whalebone Junction and Buxton for future growth. There were 134 resident Catholics in 1970. Fr. Leo McIlrath (1973 - 1976), built a large addition to the church designed by Don Olivola. Fr.Frost, (1976 - 1981), added a porch to the rectory and enlarged the offices. In 1986, there were 485 resident Catholics and Fr. Joseph Bauman, (1981 - 1987), renovated the interior of the church to provide more seating.

Fr. Terrence Collins came in 1987 and before he was transferred in 1999, the number of parishioners grew to 1,850. Currently, the physical size of our parish is 4,000 square miles of land and water. Also, Ms. Terri Niland was appointed the first pastoral administrator of our mission church, Our Lady Of The Seas in Buxton. Fr. Andre Izac, (retired Naval Chaplain from the diocese of Washington), is currently ministering to the 150 Catholic households located there. In 1998 Fr. Roch Drozdzik was appointed parochial vicar to address the needs of the growing Spanish-speaking community in the Parish.

On June 11, 1998 the church building in Kill Devil Hills burned and plans to build a new church complex in Kitty Hawk were actualized and building is in process with a projected completion date of February 2001. Fr. Michael Butler was appointed pastor by Bishop Joseph Gossman in July of 1999.

On April 29, 2001 after a long and sometimes painful process we dedicated the new Holy Redeemer Church.

Our current pastor Father Bill Walsh joined us in July 2003.

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Copyright © 2005 Holy Redeemer by the Sea  Revised: 02/02/08.

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