About Our Lady of Guadalupe · El Centro, California
Our Lady of Guadalupe is a Catholic parish in El Centro, California, in the Diocese of San Diego. Founded in 1946, it is part of the unified El Centro Catholic parish community — since 2022 also known as 'Our Lady of the Valley Parish' — which serves over 2,000 families across two church campuses (Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Mary) and one parish school (St. Mary's School). The parish is predominantly bilingual (English and Spanish), reflecting the demographics of California's Imperial Valley, and offers Mass in both languages throughout the week.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- Our Lady of Guadalupe
- Rector
- Rev. Mark Edney
- Diocese
- Diocese of San Diego
Why belong here
Our Lady of Guadalupe offers one of the largest bilingual Catholic presences in California's Imperial Valley, with regular Sunday and Friday Masses in English and Spanish, a robust faith formation program for grades 1–8, an active RCIA process for adults preparing for the sacraments, and close to a dozen lay groups — from the Knights of Columbus and Legion of Mary to a Homeless Ministry, Youth Group, Boy Scouts, Vacation Bible School, and the Thursday Men's Rosary. Worship is supported by weekday Eucharistic Adoration and Confession every Saturday, and families share one pastorate with St. Mary's School — meaning that if you join here you plug into a connected community of more than 2,000 households, across two welcoming campuses a few miles apart.
Mass times at Our Lady of Guadalupe
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 11:00 AM – 1:00 PM at the Parish Center
Adoration times
- Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament (one of the parish lay groups)
Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish
Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church is located at 153 E. Brighton Avenue in El Centro, California 92243, and is part of the El Centro Catholic / Our Lady of the Valley Parish community, which also includes St. Mary Church (795 S. La Brucherie Rd.) and St. Mary's School. The parish belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego. The church serves a bilingual population of more than 2,000 households in the Imperial Valley, offering Mass in English and Spanish, faith formation for children and youth, RCIA for adults, sacramental preparation, and a wide range of parish and lay groups.
Our History
Our Lady of Guadalupe Catholic Church was founded in 1946 and has grown into a large parish community in the Imperial Valley. For many years it shared faith formation, RCIA, confirmations, and First Communion classes with neighboring St. Mary's (itself founded in 1907). In May 2022 the two churches were officially merged into one parish under the new name 'Our Lady of the Valley Parish.' Father Mark Edney, who became pastor of 'El Centro Catholic' in 2015 and shepherded the merger, said the change 'gives the Catholic people of El Centro a stronger identity and mission' while keeping both church buildings open and Mass schedules unchanged.
- 1946 — Our Lady of Guadalupe founded
- 1907 — St. Mary parish founded (shared parish history)
- 1957 — St. Mary's School opened
- 2013–2015 — joint faith formation, RCIA, and sacramental preparation shared between the two parishes
- 2022 — official merger of St. Mary and Our Lady of Guadalupe into Our Lady of the Valley Parish
Mass and Worship Schedule
Our Lady of Guadalupe offers a bilingual Sunday and Friday schedule: three Sunday Masses — 7:30 AM (English), 10:00 AM (Spanish), and 12:00 PM (English) — plus a 5:00 PM bilingual Sunday Mass, and a 5:30 PM Spanish-language Mass on Fridays. Confessions are heard Saturdays from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM at the Parish Center. Eucharistic Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament is one of the parish's listed ministries.
- Sunday 7:30 AM — English
- Sunday 10:00 AM — Spanish
- Sunday 12:00 PM — English
- Sunday 5:00 PM — Bilingual
- Friday 5:30 PM — Spanish
- Saturday 11:00 AM–1:00 PM — Confessions (Parish Center)
Faith Formation and Youth Ministry
The parish runs Faith Formation classes for Grades 1 through 8, meeting on Tuesdays and Thursdays, plus a Junior High Youth Group (7th and 8th graders) also on Tuesdays. A separate High School Youth Ministry is coordinated by Alejandra Galindo. The Faith Formation office can be reached at (760) 353-8260.
- Faith Formation for Grades 1–8 (Tuesdays and Thursdays)
- Junior High Youth Group — 7th and 8th grade (Tuesdays)
- High School Youth Ministry (Life Teen)
- Vacation Bible School (summer)
- Faith Formation Director: Eddie Madueno
RCIA and Adult Formation
The RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) is for adults who have not yet received the sacraments, or who simply want to grow in their knowledge of the Catholic Faith. RCIA, along with Confirmation and First Communion preparation, has been jointly run between Our Lady of Guadalupe and St. Mary for nearly a decade.
- RCIA for Adults
- Adult Sacramental Prep Packet (English; bilingual parish-wide process)
- Confirmation and First Communion preparation for adults and older teens
Sacramental Preparation
All seven Catholic sacraments are supported at the parish: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist (First Holy Communion), Penance, Anointing of the Sick, Holy Orders, and Matrimony. Baptism and RCIA packets are available online in English and Spanish; sacramental prep materials for First Communion and Confirmation (including sponsor eligibility forms and service project log sheets) can be downloaded from the parish Forms page.
- Baptism (English/Spanish packet available)
- Confirmation (sponsor eligibility + service project forms)
- First Holy Communion (via Faith Formation)
- Penance — Saturday 11 AM–1 PM
- Anointing of the Sick
- Holy Orders (vocations supported)
- Matrimony — couples must contact parish 9 months in advance; marriage prep classes offered by Fr. Mark
- Quinceañera — requires enrollment in Faith Formation first
Marriage Preparation
Couples who wish to marry in the church are asked to contact the parish office at least nine (9) months before the desired wedding date so they can meet with a priest or deacon and take the parish's marriage classes. A full set of bilingual documents — Affidavit Concerning the Freedom to Marry, Prenuptial Examination, Dispensation for Mixed Religion, Dispensation from Disparity of Worship, Presentación Matrimonial, and a Marriage Reading Selections binder — is published on the Forms page, along with Annulment packets (Formal Petition for Declaration of Nullity and supporting documents).
- 9-month advance contact with parish office
- Fr. Mark's Marriage Class (call office for next session)
- Bilingual prenuptial documents available as PDF downloads
- Annulment (Formal Petition for Declaration of Nullity) forms online
Parish and Lay Groups (Community Life)
The parish maintains more than a dozen groups and ministries that new members are invited to join. These range from traditional Catholic organizations (Knights of Columbus, Legion of Mary, Altar Servers) to neighborhood and family-oriented groups (Boy Scouts, Quinceañera prep, Vacation Bible School) and direct-service apostolates (Homeless Ministry).
- Safe Environment
- Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament
- Boy Scouts of America
- Confederación Guadalupana
- Homeless Ministry
- Knights of Columbus
- Pasos de Amor Support Group
- St. Junipero Serra Altar Server Guild
- Thursday Men's Rosary
- Vacation Bible School
- Youth Group
- Legion of Mary
Our Lady of Guadalupe School and Parish School
Through the Our Lady of the Valley merger, the parish shares St. Mary's School (founded 1957 with the original 'dream of building a school') as its parish school, with Father Allan White, OP serving as Principal and Priest in Residence. School offices share the same parish campuses in El Centro.
- St. Mary's School — parish school founded 1957
- Fr. Allan White, OP — Principal of St. Mary's School and Priest in Residence
Pastoral and Parish Staff
The parish is led by a team of three priests, two deacons, and a parish staff handling office administration, facilities, IT, the bulletin, and faith formation.
- Fr. Mark Edney — Pastor
- Fr. Edward Horning — Associate Pastor
- Fr. Kizito Uzoma Ndugbu — Associate Pastor
- Fr. Allan White, OP — Priest in Residence & Principal of St. Mary's School
- Deacon Domingo Enriquez
- Deacon Sergio Hernandez
- Sandy Enriquez — Office Manager
- Eric McCormack — Administrative Assistant, I.T., Bulletin Editor, Live Streaming
- Blanca Barela — Parish Facilities Coordinator
- Eddie Madueno — Faith Formation Director
- Margie Madueno — Faith Formation Director
- Alejandra Galindo — High School Youth Ministry
Visit, Giving, and Staying Connected
Parish office hours at Our Lady of Guadalupe are Tuesday–Friday, 10:00 AM – 2:00 PM (closed Mondays). The parish uses Flocknote and an official El Centro Catholic mobile app (iOS/Android) to keep parishioners connected; it offers online giving, an online Mass archive, and weekly bulletin information. Visitors are warned not to contribute to any unauthorized GoFundMe pages that may falsely claim to support the parish or school.
- Parish Office Hours: Tue–Fri 10 AM–2 PM (closed Monday)
- Phone: (760) 352-5535
- Faith Formation line: (760) 353-8260
- Fax: (760) 352-8003
- Online giving via parish website
- Flocknote parish communication system
- El Centro Catholic mobile app (Google Play)
- Online Mass archive and Live Streaming (Eric McCormack, 760-352-4211)
- Warning posted on site about fraudulent GoFundMe pages