About Our Lady of Victory · Minneapolis, Minnesota
Our Lady of Victory was a Roman Catholic parish in north Minneapolis, Minnesota, in the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, located at 5155 Emerson Avenue N (zip 55430). Founded in the mid-1940s to serve the growing Catholic population of the city's North Side, the parish built its identity around Catholic education — its parish school opened in 1948 and at its peak enrolled about 1,000 students. After decades of demographic change in the neighborhood, declining Mass attendance, and a long dispute over unpaid rent with a charter-school tenant, the parish suspended regular operations on September 1, 2023, and was canonically merged into nearby St. Bridget Parish in Minneapolis on December 8, 2025. The campus was subsequently sold to a holding company for a Christian ministry, while the parish's name, history and education mission are preserved through an endowment.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- Our Lady of Victory (Blessed Virgin Mary, under the title of Victory)
- Rector
- Father Lawrence Hayes (pastor at the time of suspension); Father Michael Tix served as parochial administrator from January 2023. The parish has since merged into St. Bridget, Minneapolis (Dec. 8, 2025).
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis
Why belong here
Our Lady of Victory was a community-centered parish rooted in Catholic education, with a parish school that once served roughly 1,000 students on Minneapolis's North Side. Worship at the parish reflected the Roman Rite in English, with daily morning Masses Monday through Friday, a Saturday vigil, and a Sunday morning Mass, as well as Eucharistic Adoration on Wednesdays. The parish has now merged into nearby St. Bridget, Minneapolis (December 2025); former parishioners are encouraged to worship there, while the parish's education mission continues through the Our Lady of Victory Catholic Education Endowment Fund.
Mass times at Our Lady of Victory
Weekly Mass schedule
Adoration times
- Wednesday 8:00 AM to 3:00 PM (Eucharistic Adoration, as listed in parish directories; parish suspended operations September 1, 2023)
History of Our Lady of Victory Parish
Our Lady of Victory was founded in the mid-1940s as one of eleven new parishes created that year by Archbishop John Murray of the then-Archdiocese of St. Paul — the largest single-year expansion in the archdiocese's history. Like many of those parishes, Our Lady of Victory was begun by a returning World War II chaplain and met first in a movie theatre. A temporary church built from Quonset huts served the parish until the present church building at 5155 Emerson Avenue N was completed in 1953. The parish grew with the north Minneapolis neighborhood through the mid-twentieth century and built a strong identity around Catholic education before the demographic and economic changes of later decades set in. The parish suspended regular operations on September 1, 2023, and was merged into St. Bridget, Minneapolis, on December 8, 2025.
- Founded 1945/1946 as one of eleven parishes established that year by Archbishop John Murray
- First Masses celebrated in a local movie theatre
- Temporary church built of Quonset huts
- Current church completed 1953
- Suspended regular operations September 1, 2023
- Merged into St. Bridget, Minneapolis, December 8, 2025
Parish School & Catholic Education Legacy
Catholic education was central to Our Lady of Victory's identity from its earliest years. The Sisters of St. Benedict of Duluth opened the parish school in 1948, and at its peak it served roughly 1,000 students from the surrounding North Side neighborhood. The school operated independently until 1990, when it consolidated with St. Austin School to form the St. Elizabeth Seton School (at 5140 Fremont). That school grew further in 1995 when the parish schools of St. Anne, St. Bridget, and St. Margaret Mary in Golden Valley joined it. St. Elizabeth Seton closed in 2009, after which the parish school building was leased to Bright Water Montessori (2012) and then to the Legacy of Dr. Josie R. Johnson Montessori School ('JJ Legacy,' from 2020).
- School opened 1948 by the Sisters of St. Benedict of Duluth
- Peak enrollment approximately 1,000 students
- Consolidated in 1990 with St. Austin School into St. Elizabeth Seton School
- In 1995, joined by the parish schools of St. Anne, St. Bridget, and St. Margaret Mary (Golden Valley)
- St. Elizabeth Seton School closed in 2009
- Building leased to Bright Water Montessori (2012) and later to JJ Legacy (2020)
Education Endowment Fund
After the parish campus was sold in late 2025 for $2.8 million, $600,000 of the proceeds was used to establish the Our Lady of Victory Catholic Education Endowment Fund, managed by the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota. The fund was created to memorialize the parish's name, history, and legacy, and to continue its founding mission of caring for children and families in the north Minneapolis community through Catholic education.
- Fund size at establishment: $600,000
- Managed by the Catholic Community Foundation of Minnesota (St. Paul)
- Purpose: memorialize parish legacy and continue Catholic education mission
Suspension of Operations & Merger with St. Bridget
Faced with declining Mass attendance, demographic change in the neighborhood, and serious financial challenges — compounded by an unresolved rental dispute with the charter school leasing the school building — Pastor Father (Lawrence) Hayes and Parochial Administrator Father Michael Tix announced in an August 1, 2023 letter to parishioners that Our Lady of Victory would suspend regular operations effective September 1, 2023. The church building remained available for baptisms, weddings, funerals and other special celebrations during the transition. On December 8, 2025, the parish was formally merged into nearby St. Bridget Parish in Minneapolis, with St. Bridget receiving all sacramental records.
- Announcement date: August 1, 2023
- Suspension of regular Masses and operations: September 1, 2023
- Parochial Administrator appointed January 2023: Father Michael Tix
- Merged into St. Bridget Parish, Minneapolis, December 8, 2025
- Sacramental records transferred to St. Bridget
Sale of the Parish Campus
More than two years after suspending operations, Our Lady of Victory's campus at 5155 Emerson Avenue N was sold for $2.8 million to a holding company representing Family Life Church, a Christian evangelical congregation serving north Minneapolis. According to Father Michael Tix, the archdiocese's vicar general, the property needed a buyer whose use aligned with a Christian mission for the neighborhood. After paying off the parish's $1.8 million debt, $600,000 was placed in the Our Lady of Victory Catholic Education Endowment Fund and $400,000 was directed to St. Bridget Parish as the receiving parish of the merger.
- Sale price: $2.8 million
- Buyer: a holding company for Family Life Church (Christian evangelical)
- Debt paid: $1.8 million
- $600,000 to the Our Lady of Victory Catholic Education Endowment Fund
- $400,000 to St. Bridget Parish
Worship & Schedule (pre-suspension)
Before suspending regular operations, Our Lady of Victory celebrated the Mass in English in the Roman Rite, with a Saturday evening vigil, one Sunday morning Mass, and a daily morning weekday Mass Monday through Friday. Eucharistic Adoration was held on Wednesdays.
- Saturday Vigil: 5:00 PM
- Sunday: 9:30 AM
- Weekday Masses: Monday–Friday at 8:00 AM
- Holy Days: 5:30 PM and 10:00 AM
- Eucharistic Adoration: Wednesday 8:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Location & Contact
The parish was located on the North Side of Minneapolis in Hennepin County, in the 55430 ZIP code. The published parish phone number continued to be answered or forwarded for sacramental record inquiries following the merger with St. Bridget.
- Address: 5155 Emerson Avenue N, Minneapolis, MN 55430
- Phone: (612) 529-7788
- Diocese: Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis
- Parish status (as of December 2025): merged into St. Bridget, Minneapolis
Clergy
Father Lawrence Hayes was pastor of Our Lady of Victory at the time parish operations were suspended. In January 2023, Father Michael Tix — a vicar general of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and episcopal vicar for clergy and parish services — was appointed parochial administrator to assist Father Hayes during his knee-replacement recovery and as the parish's financial difficulties deepened. Both priests signed the August 2023 letter to parishioners announcing the suspension of operations.
- Father Lawrence Hayes — pastor (serving at time of suspension)
- Father Michael Tix — parochial administrator (appointed January 2023); vicar general of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis and episcopal vicar for clergy and parish services
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Founding pastor (returned WWII chaplain, c. 1945–1946)1945/1946
Archbishop John Murray assigned returning military chaplains to found new parishes in this era; Our Lady of Victory was one of eleven established that year.