About Notre Dame/ Visitation · Schuylerville, New York
Notre Dame-Visitation Parish is a small, rural Roman Catholic parish located at 18 Pearl Street in the village of Schuylerville, New York, in the Diocese of Albany. It is the product of a 1987 merger of two Schuylerville churches — the French-Canadian parish of Notre Dame des Lourdes (founded 1889) and the Irish-heritage Our Lady of the Visitation Church — and is today grouped into the Catholic Community of The Holy Family with St. Clement's Church in Saratoga Springs and St. Joseph's Church in Greenwich. The parish welcomes English-speaking and Spanish-speaking worshippers, with a weekly Saturday Vigil, Sunday morning, and Sunday afternoon Spanish Mass, and is led by Very Rev. James Ebert with parochial vicar Fr. Kyle Gorenski.
- Established
- 1889
- Rector
- Very Rev. James Ebert
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany
Why belong here
Notre Dame-Visitation is a tight-knit, rural parish where many members have known one another for years, offering a personal welcome to newcomers and visitors. It is the only parish in Schuylerville and serves a richly multicultural worshipping community, with both English and Spanish weekend Masses. Through its Catholic Community of The Holy Family network with St. Joseph's in Greenwich and St. Clement's in Saratoga Springs, parishioners also benefit from wider sacramental and formation opportunities while still belonging to a small-town parish home.
Mass times at Notre Dame/ Visitation
Weekly Mass schedule
About the Parish
Notre Dame-Visitation Parish describes Schuylerville as a quintessential 'small town' where 'familiar faces' greet one another at local stores and where neighbors help neighbors. The parish itself is a small, rural community of longtime Catholic families, now welcoming new members and Spanish-speaking neighbors through its bilingual Mass schedule. The parish is part of the Catholic Community of The Holy Family, a pastoral network that also includes St. Clement's Church in Saratoga Springs and St. Joseph's Church in Greenwich.
- Parish Mission Statement: 'What God requires: …to do right, and to love goodness, and to walk humbly with your God' (Micah 6:8).
- Goal: 'Let Notre Dame-Visitation parish serve as a font of nourishment for mind, body and soul, so that we become at peace with God, self, and others.'
History & Heritage
The parish's roots run to 1889, when French-Canadian Catholics in Schuylerville established Notre Dame des Lourdes to serve the mill workers and families of the upper Hudson Valley. For nearly a century this French-heritage parish coexisted with the neighboring Irish-heritage parish of Our Lady of the Visitation Church in Schuylerville. In 1987, as part of diocesan restructuring under the Diocese of Albany, Visitation was suppressed and merged with Notre Dame to form the combined Notre Dame-Visitation Parish, with worship continuing at the Pearl Street church.
- 1889 — Notre Dame des Lourdes Church founded for French-Canadian parishioners in Schuylerville.
- 1987 — Merger of Notre Dame des Lourdes and Our Lady of the Visitation forms Notre Dame-Visitation Parish.
- The Visitation church building was closed and its worshipping community absorbed into Notre Dame.
- Today the parish serves the combined French-Canadian, Irish, and wider Catholic community of Schuylerville.
Pastoral Network: Catholic Community of The Holy Family
Notre Dame-Visitation is one of three parishes that together form the Catholic Community of The Holy Family, sharing pastoral leadership and resources. This network allows the small Schuylerville parish to be served by both a pastor and a parochial vicar.
- St. Clement's Church, Saratoga Springs — Mass Mon–Fri 8:00 AM, Sat Vigil 4:00 PM, Sun 8:00, 10:00, 11:30 AM and 5:00 PM.
- St. Joseph's Church, Greenwich — Sunday Mass 10:00 AM.
- St. Therese Chapel, Gansevoort — Sunday Mass 10:00 AM.
Clergy & Staff
The parish is served by a pastor and parochial vicar, both of whom also serve the wider Catholic Community of The Holy Family. A retired assisting priest helps with coverage, and the parish welcomed a transitional deacon in 2023. Day-to-day parish operations are run by an office manager, with faith formation coordinated by a co-facilitator and lay trustees.
- Pastor — Very Rev. James Ebert (appointed effective July 1, 2021)
- Parochial Vicar — Fr. Kyle Gorenski
- Assisting Priest (Retired) — Fr. Randal (Randy) Patterson
- Transitional Deacon — Deacon Paul McDonald (effective Nov. 18, 2023)
- Office Manager — Juliana Bodensieck
- Faith Formation Co-Facilitator — Dawn Desjardins
- Lay Trustees — Anne Cadwallader and Tim Healy
Parish Ministries & Groups
Notre Dame-Visitation runs the classic set of small-parish liturgical and pastoral ministries, with named lay leaders coordinating each. After summer break, ministries 'get back in working order' in September with new lector and Communion Minister schedules and the return of altar servers.
- Sacristan — Chuck Cadwallader
- Ministers of Hospitality (Greeters/Ushers) — Patti Patrick, Lois Patrick
- Altar Servers — Karla Buettner, Kerry Lawson
- Lectors — Anne Cadwallader
- Eucharistic Ministers — Darlene Bolduc
- Music Director — Barbara Elcox
- Arts and Environment — Marilyn Park, Tim Healy
- Pastoral Care Ministry — Tracie Priest
- Bereavement Ministry — Anne Cadwallader, Anne Petersen
- Wedding Ministry — Anne Petersen
- Cleaning Teams (lead needed)
- Fundraising — Lois Patrick, Tim Healy, Patti Patrick
- Parish Council — Tim Healy
- Knights of Columbus — Robert Cutler
- Catholic Daughters of the Americas — Patti Patrick
- Ladies of St. Anne Rosary Society — Darlene Bolduc
Faith Formation & Religious Education
The parish runs a Faith Formation program for children, currently being transitioned to a new facilitator. Registration and fees are handled online, and the parish has expressed appreciation for parishioners' patience during the changeover.
- Faith Formation Co-Facilitator — Dawn Desjardins
- Online registration for the program year
- Connected with the broader Catholic Community of The Holy Family formation network
Parish Life & Fundraising
Notre Dame-Visitation's signature community fundraiser is its bi-annual pie sale, drawing on the rural, farm-country character of the Schuylerville area. Volunteers coordinate a drive-thru pickup day at the church parking lot, with homebound delivery for those who cannot attend.
- Bi-annual pie sale (fall and spring editions)
- Drive-thru pickup at the church parking lot, 18 Pearl Street
- Homebound delivery available
- Fundraising committee led by Lois Patrick, Tim Healy, and Patti Patrick
Sacraments
The parish prepares members for the sacraments through dedicated lay ministries. Baptism Preparation is coordinated by volunteers, weddings are supported by a wedding ministry, and Communion is distributed by trained Eucharistic Ministers at every Mass.
- Baptism Preparation (leadership volunteers needed at last notice)
- Wedding Ministry led by Anne Petersen
- Eucharistic Ministry to the homebound coordinated through the Pastoral Care Ministry
Visit, Contact & Office Hours
Notre Dame-Visitation welcomes visitors and new parishioners at its historic church at 18 Pearl Street in Schuylerville. The parish office is staffed part-time during the week for inquiries, sacramental requests, and faith formation registration.
- Address: 18 Pearl Street, Schuylerville, NY 12871
- Phone: (518) 695-3391
- Email: [email protected]
- Parish Office Hours: Monday–Thursday 9:00 AM–2:00 PM; Friday 9:00 AM–12:00 noon
- Diocesan affiliation: Roman Catholic Diocese of Albany (rcda.org)
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Very Rev. James Ebert2021–present
Appointed pastor of St. Joseph's, Greenwich and Notre Dame-Visitation, Schuylerville by Bishop Scharfenberger, effective July 1, 2021, while remaining pastor of St. Clement's, Saratoga Springs.