About Our Lady of Lourdes · Seaford, Delaware
Our Lady of Lourdes is a Roman Catholic parish in Seaford, Delaware, serving Western Sussex County from its church on East Stein Highway (528 E. Stein Highway, Seaford, DE 19973). Founded as St. Mary's Mission in 1938 and established as a parish in 1945, the current church was dedicated in 1949 and consecrated under the patronage of Our Lady of Lourdes. The parish is bilingual (English and Spanish) and currently ministers to more than 900 registered families spread across roughly 600 square miles. It belongs to the Diocese of Wilmington and has been served by Redemptorist Fathers since 1970, when the Diocese invited them to minister to the growing Hispanic community.
- Established
- 1938
- Patron
- Our Lady of Lourdes
- Diocese
- Diocese of Wilmington
Why belong here
Our Lady of Lourdes is the spiritual home for English- and Spanish-speaking Catholics across more than 600 square miles of western Sussex County, with daily and weekly Masses offered in both languages, weekly Eucharistic Adoration, and a full schedule of Confession times. The parish combines historic small-town roots (it grew out of a Mother's Day Mass in a converted grocery store in 1938) with a robust outreach mission: the Society of St. Vincent de Paul runs a food pantry from the church parking lot, and the Redemptorist Fathers have shepherded the Hispanic community here since 1970. New members can register online with a downloadable parish registration form, and online giving, live-streamed Sunday Mass, and a weekly bulletin keep parishioners connected wherever they live.
Mass times at Our Lady of Lourdes
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Friday 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm (Spanish)
- 1st Friday only 9:30 am
- Saturday 4:00 pm – 4:45 pm
- By appointment
Adoration times
- Friday 2:00 pm – 7:00 pm in Church
- St. John Neumann Chapel open for private prayer Monday–Thursday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Parish Identity & Mission
Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church is a bilingual (English/Spanish) parish of the Diocese of Wilmington, located on East Stein Highway in Seaford, Delaware. Its brief mission statement — 'To know Him, to love Him and to make Him known' — reflects the parish's evangelical and pastoral focus across Western Sussex County.
- Patron: Our Lady of Lourdes (Feast Day February 11)
- Diocese: Diocese of Wilmington
- Mission: 'To know Him, to love Him and to make Him known'
Parish History
The parish has its roots in the 1938 mission Mass celebrated in a Pine Street grocery store in Seaford, after years of Catholics driving to Salisbury, Maryland, and a car accident that prompted a local appeal for a mission church. It was formally established as St. Mary's in 1945, the new church on Stein Highway was dedicated in 1949, and the Redemptorist Fathers arrived in 1970 to serve the growing Hispanic community — a ministry they continue today.
- 1938: First Mass on Mother's Day, May 8, in a vacant grocery store on Pine Street (St. Mary's Mission)
- 1945: Established as an independent parish
- 1948: Ground broken May 11; cornerstone laid by Bishop Edmond J. FitzMaurice on November 28
- 1949: Church dedicated June 5
- 1951–1952: Rectory added; Grotto of Saint Bernadette built
- 1970: Redemptorist Fathers arrive to minister to Hispanic community
- 1984: Parish Hall dedicated December 16
- 2009–2011: Sanctuary renovation and rededication January 16, 2011
- 2014: Church basement renovated into classrooms and meeting space
- 2020: Original 1945 Stations of the Cross restored and erected in the chapel
Devotions & Online Spiritual Resources
Beyond the regular Mass and confession schedule, the parish website links to online devotions including a Virtual Stations of the Cross and a page to Pray the Rosary, allowing parishioners and visitors to keep up traditional devotions from home.
- Virtual Stations of the Cross
- Pray the Rosary
- Live-streamed Sunday 9:00 am Mass via Facebook
St. John Neumann Chapel
Named for St. John Nepomucene Neumann, C.Ss.R. — bishop of Philadelphia from 1852 to 1860, when that diocese included Delaware, and canonized June 19, 1977 — the chapel is open for private prayer Monday through Thursday, 9:00 am to 5:00 pm. The entrance is from the Parish Office Center parking lot near Stein Highway.
- Hours: Monday–Thursday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
- Entrance: Parish Office Center parking lot, near Stein Highway
- Houses the restored original 1945 Stations of the Cross (re-erected 2020)
Outreach: Society of St. Vincent de Paul
The parish is home to a Society of St. Vincent de Paul conference that operates a food pantry and assistance help line. The food pantry is located in the back parking lot of the church, with its entrance on Washington Street, and is open every Saturday from 12:00 to 1:00 PM. A separate Help Line (302-536-7170) assists with other needs; callers must be able to accept calls from blocked numbers.
- Food Pantry — Saturdays 12:00 pm – 1:00 pm
- Pantry entrance on Washington Street (back parking lot)
- Help Line: 302-536-7170 for other assistance needs
Connect & Get Involved
The parish office is open Monday through Friday 9:00 am to 4:00 pm and follows the Seaford School District for inclement-weather closings. New parishioners can register online via a downloadable Parish Registration Form (with a separate Registración Familiar form in Spanish). Online giving (E-Giving) makes ongoing support easy, and the weekly bulletin, parish calendar, parish history (in two parts), and diocesan DIALOG newsletter are linked from the home page.
- Parish Registration Form (English PDF) and Registración Familiar (Spanish PDF) available for download
- Online E-Giving program
- Weekly bulletin, parish calendar, and parish history (Parts 1 and 2) linked from ollseaford.org
- Office Hours: Monday–Friday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
Contact & Visit
Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish office by phone, email, or in person. The church is at 528 E. Stein Highway, Seaford, DE 19973 — easily reached via Stein Highway (U.S. 13), with parking on the church grounds and accessible entrances via the parish office center.
- Address: 528 E. Stein Highway, Seaford, DE 19973
- Phone: (302) 629-3591
- Email: [email protected]
- Office Hours: Monday–Friday 9:00 am – 4:00 pm
- Weather policy: follows the Seaford School District
- Facebook: facebook.com/OLLSeafordDE (live-streamed Sunday Mass)