Work to renovate St. Joseph Church began on June 26, 2023 with removal of the Blessed Sacrament and a blessing of the building. Work was completed in December 2023 with the Church dedication and first Mass in our new worship space on December 23, 2023.

The Catholic Church has a provision for re-dedicating churches that have been standing for a long time when there is something new or greatly changed with respect to the building, such as a complete restoration. In addition to dedicating our newly renovated church on December 23, 2023, our Diocesan Bishop Michael C. Barber, S. J. dedicated our new altar as a principal part of the rite of dedicating a church.

Indeed, the altar is central to the rite, just as it is central to the church. Everything begins at the altar. The altar was anointed with Holy oil, incensed, and illuminated.  Then the people and church were incensed, the rest of the church is illuminated, and the walls of the church anointed with Holy oil. After the Eucharist was made present on the altar and given in Holy Communion, the Eucharist was placed for the first time in our new tabernacle and the red sanctuary light replaced and lit.

Through his Death and Resurrection, Christ became the true and perfect temple of the New Covenant and gathered a people to be his own. Moreover, this holy people, made one by the unity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, is the Church, that is, the temple of God built of living stones, where the Father is worshiped in Spirit and in truth. Rightly, therefore, from ancient times the name “church” has also been given to the building in which the Christian community is gathered to hear the Word of God, to pray together, to take part in the Sacraments, and to celebrate the Eucharist.

Because the church is a visible building, it is a special sign of the pilgrim Church on earth and an image of the Church dwelling in heaven. A church, as its nature requires, must be suitable for sacred celebrations, dignified, and evincing a noble beauty; not mere costly display, and it should truly be a sign and symbol of heavenly realities.

Our parish church was built in 1965 and was intended to be a temporary structure. By the grace of God and in the spirit of better aligning our mission with our resources, we rejoice in the gift of our renovated church, which will serve many generations to come. The simplicity and beauty of the church reflect the silent yet strong demeanor of the man St. Joseph and the stewardship of our day.

We are grateful for the leadership of our Pastor, Father Anthony Huong Le, our volunteer project manager and parishioner Bill Utic, our volunteer designers, architect, engineers, and craftsmen, and our dedicated contractor and  subcontractors. Thanks to their efforts this ambitious project was completed on time and within budget.  We are especially grateful for our generous parishioners, those who made additional contributions for the renovation, furnishings, and artwork and those who repurposed their former capital campaign contributions to enable the parish to renovate our church and parish hall.

Included in the 2023 renovation were larger, fully accessible men’s and women’s restrooms, barrier-free entry ramps into the church and hall, enclosed entry vestibules on both sides of the church, a stationary, sound-insulated wall to separate the worship space from the parish hall, new flooring and lighting, conversion of the former music office adjacent to the sanctuary into an enclosed viewing room for families with small children, a remodeled kitchen for the parish hall, new sound and video systems for the worship space and parish hall, an audio-visual control room to support live-streaming, sacristy renovation, new tables and chairs for the parish hall, a larger food pantry for our St Vincent de Paul ministry, and creating a walled exterior area at the back of the hall to house the building’s new heating and air conditioning equipment.

In addition, numerous security enhancements were completed, including replacing all exterior windows with energy-efficient security glass, replacing the exterior doors, installing interior and exterior security cameras and interior motion detectors, adding a 24 hour monitored alarm system, new exterior security lights, and replacing all locks with centrally-controlled digital locks.

Please enjoy the following pictures of the church renovation: