About Our Lady of the Visitation · Cincinnati, Ohio
Our Lady of the Visitation is a Roman Catholic parish in the Bridgetown/Mack neighborhood of western Cincinnati, Ohio, belonging to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. The parish was formed in 1946 in the post-World War II suburban boom and is now part of the Divine Mercy Family of Parishes along with St. Joseph (North Bend) and St. Jude (Bridgetown). The parish campus at 3172 South Road includes the church and an elementary school (preschool through 8th grade) that has grown from 140 students in 1950 to roughly 770 today, winning a 2007 U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon award.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- Our Lady of the Visitation (the Blessed Virgin Mary's visit to her cousin Elizabeth)
- Rector
- Rev. Donald E. Siciliano (Pastor of the Divine Mercy Family of Parishes)
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Cincinnati (Metropolitan Archdiocese of Cincinnati)
Why belong here
Our Lady of the Visitation is a long-established Bridgetown parish with deep roots — 60 founding families in 1946 to a thriving multi-generational community today — anchored by an in-house parish school (preschool through 8th grade) that integrates faith, academics, and service. Worship is supported by daily Mass, weekly Eucharistic Adoration on Thursdays, Saturday confession, active youth ministry for both junior high and high school teens, and a Catholic school that won a U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon award in 2007. As part of the Divine Mercy Family of Parishes, the parish also shares its priests, faith formation, and school programming with neighboring St. Jude and St. Joseph, giving families the resources of three parishes while keeping a single, tight-knit community.
Mass times at Our Lady of the Visitation
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM (or by appointment)
Adoration times
- Thursday 12:45 PM – 6:00 PM (following the 12:00 noon Mass)
Parish History & Founding
Our Lady of the Visitation was created in 1946 by Archbishop John T. McNicholas to serve Catholic families flooding into Bridgetown and Mack after World War II. The Archbishop purchased a 23-acre farm between South and Werk roads for $21,000 and appointed Father VonderBrink as founding pastor. With no church on the property, an army barrack was trucked in three sections from the Wright Plant in Lockland and reassembled by parishioners, who added plaster walls, a concrete entrance, white siding, and forty-six hand-built benches. The first Mass was celebrated February 2, 1947 — the Feast of the Presentation — by 60 founding families in a building with eight-foot ceilings and seating for 275. The parish grew so quickly that by 1959 Archbishop Karl J. Alter authorized a new church; it was dedicated in November 1962, seating 700 in a unique cruciform design by architect Elmer Schmidt. The parish marked its 60th anniversary in 2006 and, as part of the Archdiocese's Beacons of Light initiative, became a founding member of the Divine Mercy Family of Parishes on July 1, 2022.
- 1946: Parish organized; 23-acre farm purchased on South/Werk roads for $21,000
- 1947 (Feb 2): First Mass in converted army barrack (Feast of the Presentation)
- 1950 (Jan): Parish school opens with 140 students
- 1959: Construction begins on the current cruciform church
- 1962 (Nov): New church dedicated; seating for 700
- 2006: 60th anniversary celebrated
- 2022 (Jul 1): Joins Divine Mercy Family of Parishes under Beacons of Light
Divine Mercy Family of Parishes
Since July 1, 2022, Our Lady of the Visitation has been joined with St. Joseph (North Bend) and St. Jude (Bridgetown) to form the Divine Mercy Family of Parishes under the Archdiocese of Cincinnati's Beacons of Light pastoral planning initiative. The three parishes share a pastor and parochial vicar and are currently moving toward formal merger as 'Divine Mercy Parish' — one parish family across three churches and two schools, while retaining each church's own worship schedule and traditions.
- Pastor: Rev. Donald E. Siciliano
- Parochial Vicar: Rev. Jonathan M. Jergens
- Member parishes: Our Lady of the Visitation (Cincinnati), St. Joseph (North Bend), St. Jude (Bridgetown)
- Shared school campuses and faith-formation programming across the three parishes
Our Lady of the Visitation School
Our Lady of the Visitation School is a diocesan Roman Catholic elementary school offering Preschool through 8th grade, fully accredited by the Ohio Catholic School Accrediting Association (OCSAA) and operated under the policies of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Opened in January 1950 with 140 students, it has expanded multiple times — 1955 (four classrooms + basement), 1959 (basement classrooms under the new church), 1967 (eight classrooms, kitchen, multipurpose room), the 1990s (music/art/computer rooms, auditorium with stage and bleachers, junior high wing in 1997, pavilion in 1998), and most recently in 2018 when the church itself was expanded to house Preschool and Kindergarten classrooms. The school won the U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon Schools award in 2007 and currently serves roughly 770 students from preschool through 8th grade.
- Motto: 'There are different gifts, but the same Spirit'
- Accreditation: Ohio Catholic School Accrediting Association (OCSAA)
- 2007 U.S. Department of Education Blue Ribbon School
- Principal: Mrs. Holly M. Aug
- Assistant Principal: Mrs. Leah Cook
- Director of Schools: Mr. Josh Agnew
- Preschool Director: Mrs. Janie McDonald
- Religious Education / PSR Director: Mr. Brock Japsen
- School Office: 513-347-2222
- Religious Education Office: 513-347-2228
Religious Education & Youth Ministry
Faith formation for parish children not enrolled in the parish school is coordinated through the Parish School of Religion (PSR), overseen by Director of Religious Education Mr. Brock Japsen. Teens are served through a two-track Youth Ministry: a Junior High program that meets roughly once a month for social activities with a Christian focus, and a High School program that gathers monthly in the parish library ('Sunday @ 7') and hosts the annual Visi Retreat each February.
- Parish School of Religion (PSR) for school-age children
- Junior High Youth Ministry — monthly meetings with Christian social focus
- High School Youth Ministry — monthly 'Sunday @ 7' + annual Visi Retreat (February)
- Contact for Youth Ministry: Laura Hampel (via the parish office)
Parish Campus & Facilities
The Our Lady of the Visitation campus sits on South Road between South and Werk roads in Bridgetown and integrates the church and school into a single, ever-growing complex. The school has been expanded five times since 1950, with the most recent 2018 project converting part of the church into preschool and kindergarten classrooms — a striking integration of worship and school life that makes Visitation a uniquely 'campus-style' parish.
- 3172 South Road, Cincinnati, OH 45248-2998
- Parish Rectory: 513-922-2056
- School address: 3180 South Road
- Parish office hours: Monday–Friday 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
- Eucharistic Adoration Chapel (Thursday afternoons)
Getting Involved
Visitation encourages parishioners to engage through its ministries, school volunteer opportunities, and the parish PTO. The parish runs programs and ministries that offer opportunities to learn and to serve both the parish family and the wider community, and parishioners can sign up for weekly updates and emergency notifications through the parish's Evangelus communication system.
- Parent Teacher Organization (PTO) — President Mrs. Beth Cebula
- School Choir and Music Ministry
- Service and mission projects across all school grade levels
- Evangelus parish communication system for weekly updates
Contact & Visit
Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish office by phone, email, or in person during office hours. Mass and confession schedules, school information, and family news are kept current at olvisitation.org and the family-of-parishes site divinemercyfam.org.
- Parish phone: (513) 922-2056
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: olvisitation.org / divinemercyfam.org
- Parish office: Monday–Friday 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Donald E. Sicilianocurrent
Pastor of Divine Mercy Family of Parishes (Visitation, St. Joseph North Bend, St. Jude Bridgetown) under the Beacons of Light initiative implemented July 1, 2022
- Father VonderBrink1946–
First pastor; appointed by Archbishop McNicholas to organize the new parish; helped plan and run the parish bus routes