About Sacred Heart · Whiteville, North Carolina
Sacred Heart Catholic Church (formally Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church) is a bilingual Catholic parish serving Columbus County from its home at 302 North Lee Street in downtown Whiteville, North Carolina. It belongs to the Diocese of Raleigh and is one of the historic mission-rooted parishes of southeastern North Carolina, having served as the mother church from which the diocesan missionary priest Father Frank J. Howard launched mission churches in Southport, Elizabethtown, Tabor City and Chadbourn in the late 1920s and 1930s. Today it is a multicultural community offering Mass in both English and Spanish, weekly Eucharistic Adoration, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation, currently shepherded by Reverend G. Fernando Meléndez, a Peruvian-born priest of the Diocese of Chimbote who was appointed by Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama in 2022.
- Established
- circa 1924–1929 (served as diocesan mission church under Father Frank J. Howard by 1929; became a canonical parish in 1964)
- Patron
- Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Rector
- Reverend G. Fernando Meléndez
- Diocese
- Diocese of Raleigh
Why belong here
Sacred Heart is a warm, bilingual Catholic home in the heart of Columbus County, where Mass is offered in both English and Spanish every Sunday and on a rotating weekday schedule. The parish provides regular opportunities for the Sacrament of Reconciliation, Friday evening Eucharistic Adoration, and an Advent/Lent Reconciliation service, making it easy to keep the rhythms of Catholic life. With an accessible downtown location, an active deacon welcoming new parishioners, and a pastor who serves both Sacred Heart and the neighboring Our Lady of the Snows Mission in Elizabethtown, it is a place where Catholics of every background can plug into a longstanding faith community with deep roots in the Diocese of Raleigh.
Mass times at Sacred Heart
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Friday 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM (also by appointment; please call or email the office)
- Reconciliation Service: Thursday, March 12, 2026, 7:00 PM – 8:30 PM
Adoration times
- Friday 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
About Sacred Heart Catholic Church
Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church is a bilingual Catholic parish in Whiteville, North Carolina, in the Diocese of Raleigh. It serves Catholics in Columbus County and beyond from its downtown location at 302 North Lee Street, offering Mass in English and Spanish, Eucharistic Adoration, and the Sacrament of Reconciliation on a regular weekly cadence.
History of the Parish
The parish dates to the early missionary era of the Diocese of Raleigh, which was established in 1924. By 1929 Father Frank J. Howard was pastor of Sacred Heart in Whiteville and served as the diocesan missionary priest for Brunswick and Columbus Counties, founding mission churches in Southport, Elizabethtown, Tabor City and Chadbourn from this parish. In 1964 the parish was formally constituted as a canonical parish under its first full-time resident pastor, Father Louis E. Morton. In the 1980s the parish continued to plant new communities, including the South Brunswick County mission that became St. Brendan the Navigator Catholic Church in Shallotte.
- 1929–1939: Father Frank J. Howard serves as pastor and diocesan missionary
- 1940: parish population listed at 114 Catholics
- 1954: Father Thomas Williams succeeds Monsignor Howard
- 1964: Sacred Heart becomes a canonical parish; Father Louis E. Morton is first resident pastor
- 1983: Father Jeffrey Ingham celebrates the first Mass of the South Brunswick County mission
- 2022: Bishop Zarama names Father Fernando Meléndez pastor effective June 28
Parish Clergy & Staff
Sacred Heart is currently served by a pastor and a deacon. New parishioners are asked to register through the deacon.
- Pastor: Reverend G. Fernando Meléndez (Diocese of Chimbote, Peru; appointed 2022)
- Deacon: Dave McDowell — phone 302-542-9254, [email protected]
Becoming a New Parishioner
New parishioners are invited to register so the parish can welcome them, communicate parish news, and plan for their sacramental needs. Registration is coordinated through the deacon.
- Contact Deacon Dave McDowell (302-542-9254, [email protected]) to register
Parish Identity & Languages
Sacred Heart's formal name is the Church of the Sacred Heart / Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church. It is a bilingual community, with Spanish-speaking Catholics forming a substantial part of Sunday worship — two of the three Sunday Masses are celebrated in Spanish, and one Friday evening Mass is bilingual.
- Patron: Sacred Heart of Jesus
- Liturgical languages: English and Spanish
- Bilingual Friday evening Mass at 6:30 PM
Pastor & Pope Leo XIV Connection
The parish's current pastor has a notable personal connection to Pope Leo XIV. Reverend G. Fernando Meléndez met the future pope — then Father Robert Prevost — in the late 1980s while studying for the priesthood at a seminary in Trujillo, Peru, where Prevost was one of his instructors. The two reconnected in 2022 when Prevost, then Bishop of Chiclayo, invited Meléndez to teach at his seminary, and Prevost later intervened to help extend Meléndez's visa so he could continue serving in North Carolina.
- Father Meléndez is a priest of the Diocese of Chimbote, Peru
- Bishop Zarama appointed him effective June 28, 2022
- He also serves Our Lady of the Snows Mission in Elizabethtown
- Friendship with Pope Leo XIV spans 37+ years
Contact & Visiting
Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish office by phone or email, and can connect online through the parish website, its diocesan listing, and its official Facebook page. The mailing and physical addresses are both on North Lee Street in downtown Whiteville.
- Phone: (910) 642-3895
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://www.sacredheartwhiteville.org/
- Diocesal listing: https://dioceseofraleigh.org/parish/sacred-heart-whiteville
- Facebook: Sacred Heart of Jesus Roman Catholic Church of Whiteville, NC
- Address: 302 North Lee Street, Whiteville, NC 28472
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Frank J. Howard1929–1939 (approx.)
Diocesan missionary priest for Brunswick and Columbus Counties; founded missions in Southport, Elizabethtown, Tabor City and Chadbourn from Whiteville; later titled Monsignor.
- Father Thomas Williams1954–
Succeeded Monsignor Howard in Whiteville and continued oversight of the Southport mission.
- Father Louis E. Morton1964–
First full-time resident pastor after Sacred Heart was raised to canonical-parish status.
- Father Jeffrey Inghamearly 1980s
Pastor of Sacred Heart-Whiteville; in 1983 celebrated the first Mass of the South Brunswick County mission that became St. Brendan the Navigator. Later became diocesan chancellor.
- Father John Richardson1983–
Succeeded Father Ingham at Sacred Heart and the South Brunswick mission; became first resident pastor of the new St. Brendan the Navigator Parish in 1984/1987.
- Father Joseph Yaegerpre-2022
Listed in the Diocese of Raleigh appointment announcement that preceded Father Meléndez's assignment.
- Reverend G. Fernando Meléndez2022–present
Priest of the Diocese of Chimbote, Peru; appointed by Bishop Luis Rafael Zarama effective June 28, 2022, as pastor of Sacred Heart Parish in Whiteville and Our Lady of the Snows Mission in Elizabethtown.