History of Mary, Seat of Wisdom Parish, Park Ridge,
Il.
In 1903 the Passionist Religious Order built a monastery
at Harlem and Talcott. While this was not a parish
church, neighboring families were able to attend
Mass at the monastery. Mother Frances Cabrini had
a 160 acre farm in Park Ridge in the area of Northwest
Highway and Potter. She invited the Passionist priests
to say Mass on her grounds in exchange for fresh
vegetables. In 1911, Father Augustine, a Passionist,
was commissioned to found a mission church, which
became St. Paul of the Cross. (Mother Cabrini often
attended Mass in the old frame church.) The Catholic
population of Park Ridge continued to grow, leading
to construction of the present St. Paul of the Cross
church (built in 1953) and the eventual splitting-off
of a new parish south of Belle Plaine, to be named
Mary, Seat of Wisdom.
The parish of Mary, Seat of Wisdom was established
as a separate parish from St. Paul of the Cross
in October 1955 by His Eminence, Cardinal Stritch.
Fr. Edward Dowling, who had been an associate pastor
at St. Paul of the Cross since 1942, was named Pastor
of the new parish.
From the start, work on all the buildings and organizations
associated with parish life began e.g. a parish
council, a new church, a parish school, religious
education, CCW, CFM, Holy Name Society, Youth Club
and many others. Sunday Mass was celebrated in the
(local public elementary) Merrill School at Glenlake
and Brophy (Brickton Park), and daily mass was celebrated
in the old frame residence on the southwest corner
of Granville and Cumberland, which had been purchased
as a temporary Rectory in January 1956. Neither
of these buildings exists today.
In contrast to the start of many parishes, Father
Dowling worked to have both church and school facilities
provided from the start. The new parish school opened
for classes in Sept. 1957 (grades 1 thru 6 initially,
staffed by four Sisters of Mercy and five lay teachers),
the new church was dedicated in Sept. 1958 and the
convent and rectory buildings were ready for occupancy
in the Fall of 1959. Fr. Dowling’s vision
was met and the parish was underway as a fully functioning
faith community. As the population of the school
grew to nearly 1000, three additions were constructed:
8 classrooms (immediately north of Wisdom Hall)
in 1958; 2 (balcony) classrooms in 1962; and the
Junior High wing in 1964.
Various associate pastors came and went, as did
seminary deacons who did their deaconate fieldwork
at Mary, Seat of Wisdom. One of these deacons was
Wilton Gregory, Bishop of Belleville, Il., and President
of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB),
Nov. 2001 to Nov. 2004.
The founding pastor, Fr. Dowling, suffered a stroke
in 1962 but remained pastor till 1968 when he became
pastor emeritus and was succeeded by Fr. William
(Bill) Clark, the parish’s second pastor.
Fr. Clark continued to develop the communitarian
spirit of the parish, encouraging parishioners to
be involved in as many ministries as possible. He
also invited many outside speakers to continue to
foster lay involvement in parish life.
Fr. Dowling died in 1969.
In 1972 a minor renovation of the sanctuary was
made to implement changes called for by Vatican
II. The altar was pulled away from the curved “reredos”
and was turned toward the assembly, a new backdrop
was fashioned and lighting changes were made.
Parish life continued vibrantly. Ms. Carol Kolberg,
our first lay principal was appointed in 1978. Fr.
Bill (Clark) became pastor emeritus in 1981 and
Fr. Ronald Kalas was appointed to succeed him as
third pastor of Mary, Seat of Wisdom.
Fr. Clark passed away in October 1995 after a number
of years in an intensive care nursing home.
While the School and the School of Religion populations
continued to be vibrant, the need for a renovation
of the church building became evident (last modification
was in 1972). Dedicated parishioners worked hard
and diligently for many years on this endeavor and
groundbreaking for a major renovation, which included
the addition of the Gathering Space, Annex, School
of Religion office space and music room was held
in April 1996. The renovated building was rededicated
on Dec. 1, 1996. All are grateful to all the parishioners
who so readily supported and financed this capital
project.
Now it was time to address the space and equipment
needs in the school. Extra-curricular athletics
(especially in the form of basketball and volley-ball),
and computer science had become staples of the educational
experience. Thus, plans were developed for construction
of a “full” gymnasium and additional
classroom space (including a fully equipped computer
lab and a new “wired” library) for the
school facility. Groundbreaking for this significant
addition occurred on May 17, 1998 culminating in
its blessing and dedication by Francis Cardinal
George on Nov. 19, 1999.
Mary, Seat of Wisdom continues to enjoy and benefit
from its history and its updated facilities, facilities,
which provide an on-going service to the community.
Other significant milestones in the history of
the parish include the celebration of the 40th anniversary
of ordination to the priesthood of Fr. Ron Kalas
in May 1999.
Fr. Kalas became pastor emeritus in July 2002 and
was succeeded by Fr. Robert (Bob) McLaughlin as
fourth pastor of Mary, Seat of Wisdom (Check “Red’s
Square” on our website homepage).
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