About Our Lady of Perpetual Help (St. Anthony's Parish) · Windham, Maine
Our Lady of Perpetual Help (OLPH) is a Roman Catholic parish located at 919 Roosevelt Trail in Windham, Maine, within the Diocese of Portland. The community was designated a mission of St. Anne Parish in Gorham in 1967, built its own church in 1970, and became an independent parish in June 1974 with Msgr. Robert Lavoie as its first pastor. In 2021, OLPH was canonically merged with St. Anne (Gorham), St. Anthony of Padua (Westbrook) and St. Hyacinth (Westbrook) to form the new St. Anthony of Padua Parish, and OLPH continues as one of the four worship sites of that combined parish.
- Established
- 1974
- Patron
- Our Lady of Perpetual Help
- Rector
- Rev. Louis Phillips
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Portland (Maine)
Why belong here
Our Lady of Perpetual Help offers one of the most active weekday Mass schedules in the greater Portland area, with daily 8:00 AM Mass Monday through Saturday in addition to a Saturday Vigil and two Sunday morning Masses. The parish is grounded in long-standing lay organizations — the Knights of Columbus Msgr. William G. Cunneen Council #10020, the Daughters of Isabella, Our Lady's Guild, and the Maine Council of Catholic Women — and is part of the merged St. Anthony of Padua Parish, which has pooled clergy, finances, and ministries to strengthen faith formation, social outreach, and stewardship for future generations of Catholics in the Sebago Lake region.
Mass times at Our Lady of Perpetual Help (St. Anthony's Parish)
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM (or by appointment)
Adoration times
- First Friday of the month: 3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
- Third Friday of the month: 8:30 AM – 9:30 AM (after the 8:00 AM Mass)
Parish History
Our Lady of Perpetual Help began in 1967 as a mission of St. Anne Parish in Gorham for the growing North Windham community. Masses were first celebrated in the Lakeland Dance Hall, the Windham Union Parish Hall, and even a vacant Federal Supermarket before a dedicated church was built in 1970. The mission grew so quickly that Bishop of Portland elevated it to parish status in June 1974, with Msgr. Robert Lavoie as its first pastor.
Growth and Expansion (1974–1990s)
Under Msgr. Lavoie the parish quickly organized itself: a Parish Council and six commissions were formed, the rectory was completed in 1975, and formal religious education began in 1976 under the Sisters of Mercy. By 1980 the parish served more than 500 families. The church was physically enlarged in 1980–81, with the building moved back from Route 302, wings extended to add 200 seats, and a parish hall, sacristy, workroom, three offices, and a connecting narthex added. The 1980s and 1990s brought further building: the Pirozzi Chapel with basement and classrooms, paved parking lots, a Mary Garden from Our Lady's Guild, and a 1997 kitchen renovation dedicated to Dr. Anita Violette.
- Rectory completed: spring 1975
- Religious education began: 1976 (Sisters of Mercy — Sr. Pauline Dionne, later Sr. Carmelle Poutre)
- Major expansion completed: winter 1981 (+200 seats, parish hall, offices, narthex)
- Our Lady's Guild formed: 1986
- Knights of Columbus Msgr. William G. Cunneen Council #10020 established: 1989
- Pirozzi Chapel and Mary Garden built: 1990s
- Kitchen renovation dedicated to Dr. Anita Violette: 1997
Formation of St. Anthony of Padua Parish (2021)
On July 1, 2021, Bishop Robert P. Deeley canonically merged Our Lady of Perpetual Help with St. Anne (Gorham), St. Anthony of Padua (Westbrook), and St. Hyacinth (Westbrook) into the new St. Anthony of Padua Parish. Our Lady of Perpetual Help continues as one of four worship sites (alongside Our Lady of Sebago, the summer chapel in East Sebago). A Mass of Celebration was held at OLPH on July 16, 2021, followed by a procession of a statue of St. Anthony to an outdoor shrine and the inaugural St. Anthony Festival on the parish grounds.
- Merger effective: July 1, 2021
- Name chosen by parishioners: St. Anthony of Padua
- Approved by: Bishop Robert P. Deeley
- Pastor of new parish: Fr. Louis Phillips
- Worship sites: OLPH (Windham), St. Anne (Gorham), St. Hyacinth (Westbrook), Our Lady of Sebago (seasonal)
Parish Ministries and Organizations
Lay organizations have been part of OLPH since the 1980s, building a strong tradition of fellowship, service, and Catholic identity. These groups continue alongside the religious education program that has been running since 1976.
- Knights of Columbus Msgr. William G. Cunneen Council #10020 (est. 1989)
- Daughters of Isabella
- Our Lady's Guild (est. 1986)
- Maine Council of Catholic Women (MDCCW)
- Maine Right to Life
- Religious education / faith formation for children and families
Faith Formation
Formal religious education at OLPH dates to 1976, when the parish contracted the Sisters of Mercy — beginning with Sr. Pauline Dionne and continued by Sr. Carmelle Poutre — to run faith formation for the parish's children. Programs have continued ever since and today are coordinated across the merged St. Anthony of Padua Parish, utilizing the classrooms in the Pirozzi Chapel and parish hall.
Sacraments and Devotions
In addition to daily and Sunday Mass, OLPH celebrates the Sacrament of Reconciliation every Saturday before the Vigil Mass and by appointment. Eucharistic Adoration is offered twice monthly on First and Third Fridays, in keeping with a broader diocesan push to foster adoration prayer across Maine parishes.
St. Anthony Festival and Parish Life
The inaugural St. Anthony Festival was held at Our Lady of Perpetual Help on July 16–17, 2021, marking the canonical merger into St. Anthony of Padua Parish. The festival featured food, crafts, baked goods, a yard sale, kids' activities, live music, an outdoor Mass, and a barbecue, with parishioners from Windham, Gorham, and Westbrook all pitching in. The festival has continued as an annual parish-wide celebration of the merged community's identity.
Visiting and Contact Information
Our Lady of Perpetual Help is located on Roosevelt Trail (Route 302) in Windham, just a short drive from the Sebago Lake region and the greater Portland area. The parish office can be reached by phone or email, and bulletins, schedule updates, and announcements are shared through the official website and Facebook page.
- Address: 919 Roosevelt Trail, Windham, ME 04062
- Phone: (207) 892-8288
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: ourladymaine.com
- Facebook: facebook.com/OLPHWindhamME
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Msgr. Robert Lavoie1974–
First pastor; welcomed June 1974; established Parish Council, six commissions; completed rectory in 1975.
- Rev. Leo Goudreau
Past pastor; commemorated on the narthex photo wall.
- Rev. Donald Proulx
Past pastor; commemorated on the narthex photo wall.
- Fr. Normand Carpentier
Past pastor; commemorated on the narthex photo wall.
- Fr. Joseph Koury
Past pastor; commemorated on the narthex photo wall.
- Fr. Louis Phillips2015–present
Pastoral leader of the three parishes prior to merger; pastor of the new St. Anthony of Padua Parish from 2021.