About Our Lady of the Desert · Dolan Springs, Arizona
Our Lady of the Desert is a small Roman Catholic mission church in the desert community of Dolan Springs, Mohave County, Arizona. It sits on Pierce Ferry Road (Mohave County Highway 25) in the northwest corner of the state and is administratively linked to St. Mary Parish in Kingman, which supplies its priests and parish office support. As one of the farthest-flung Catholic worship sites in the Diocese of Phoenix, it brings weekend Mass — including a celebrated Spanish-language Sunday Mass — to a scattered rural and retirement community along historic Route 66. The mission's care was reassigned in the diocesan 2025 appointments, bringing a new pastor and parochial vicar to serve both St. Mary in Kingman and Our Lady of the Desert.
- Patron
- Our Lady of the Desert (a title of the Blessed Virgin Mary, evoking the desert landscape of the Arizona Mojave)
- Rector
- Rev. Christopher (Chris) Axline (Pastor of St. Mary Parish, Kingman, with pastoral care of Our Lady of the Desert Mission; appointed July 1, 2025)
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix
Why belong here
Our Lady of the Desert Mission brings the Eucharist to one of Arizona's most rural corners — a place where the nearest Catholic parish might otherwise be an hour's drive away. Weekend Catholics and travelling visitors in Dolan Springs, White Hills, and the surrounding desert communities are welcomed at the Saturday Vigil Mass in English and the Sunday Mass in Spanish, with confession available by appointment through the St. Mary Parish office in Kingman. As part of the Diocese of Phoenix, the mission also connects parishioners to the wider sacramental, faith-formation, and charitable life of St. Mary Parish in Kingman — including bulletins, religious education, OCIA (formerly RCIA), and youth programs. For snowbirds, full-time desert residents, and visitors exploring the Lake Mead and Grand Canyon West region, it is a faithful home in the heart of the Arizona desert.
Mass times at Our Lady of the Desert
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- By appointment — call the Parish Office at (928) 377-3435
About Our Lady of the Desert Mission
Our Lady of the Desert is a designated Catholic mission in the Diocese of Phoenix, located on Pierce Ferry Road in the small community of Dolan Springs, Arizona. It is administered through St. Mary Parish in Kingman, which provides resident priests, sacramental records, and parish office support. The mission exists to bring the sacraments — especially Sunday Mass and confession — to Catholics living in or travelling through the rural northwest Arizona desert, including communities around White Hills, Meadview, and the Lake Mead / Grand Canyon West corridor. Because it is a mission rather than an independent parish, it shares staff and resources with its partner parish in Kingman and follows a streamlined weekend Mass schedule.
- Diocese of Phoenix
- Mission administered by St. Mary Parish, Kingman
- Mojave Desert setting, ~3,162 ft elevation
- Pierce Ferry Road / Mohave County Highway 25
Clergy
Following the Diocese of Phoenix 2025 clergy appointments, two priests were assigned to share pastoral care of St. Mary Parish in Kingman and Our Lady of the Desert Mission in Dolan Springs, effective July 1, 2025. The mission benefits from both a pastor who sets the overall pastoral vision and a parochial vicar who provides additional sacramental and liturgical coverage.
- Pastor: Rev. Christopher (Chris) Axline — St. Mary Parish, Kingman / Our Lady of the Desert Mission
- Parochial Vicar: Rev. Sylvester Modebei — St. Mary Parish, Kingman / Our Lady of the Desert Mission
- Appointments effective July 1, 2025
Languages & Cultural Life
Our Lady of the Desert Mission is officially bilingual. The Saturday Vigil Mass is celebrated in English, and the Sunday Mass is celebrated in Spanish — reflecting the significant Hispanic Catholic population of the region, many of whom work in ranching, tourism, and the Lake Mead service economy. Bilingual ministry is a hallmark of Dolan Springs Catholic life, with bulletin inserts and announcements also routinely appearing in both languages through the St. Mary Parish bulletins.
- English — Saturday Vigil Mass
- Spanish — Sunday Mass
Contact & Parish Resources
Because Our Lady of the Desert is a mission of St. Mary Parish in Kingman, most administrative needs (sacramental certificates, faith-formation enrollment, bulletins, Mass intentions, etc.) are handled through the Kingman parish office. The mission page on the St. Mary website provides Mass times and links to current Sunday bulletins covering both St. Mary Kingman and Our Lady of the Desert.
- Mission phone line: (928) 767-3154
- Parish Office (Kingman): (928) 377-3435
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://stmarykingman.com/ourladyofthedesert
- Weekly bulletins published through St. Mary Parish, Kingman