About Saint Andrew · Moore, Oklahoma
St. Andrew the Apostle Catholic Church is a Roman-Latin rite parish in Moore, Oklahoma, part of the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City. Founded in 1962 as a mission of St. Joseph Parish in Norman to serve Catholics living in the growing Moore area, the parish began with just 45 families and now welcomes roughly 1,200 worshippers each weekend across three Sunday/Saturday vigil Masses. Located at 800 NW 5th Street, the parish operates a large campus including the main church, the Joyce Center (parish hall), a youth center, classrooms, and child-care areas. St. Andrew's is led by Father Francis Nguyen, pastor since 2022, with two permanent deacons and a full lay staff, offering daily Mass in St. Francis Chapel, faith formation for children and teens, youth ministry, liturgical and music ministries, and a community outreach commission that serves the poor and marginalized.
- Established
- 1962
- Patron
- St. Andrew the Apostle
- Rector
- Father Francis Nguyen
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Oklahoma City
Why belong here
St. Andrew's is a large, active suburban parish with three weekend Masses, daily Mass in the St. Francis Chapel, and a Reconciliation schedule that makes weekly confession easy to fit in. Parish life is anchored by a full faith-formation program for children and teens (including sacramental prep, RCIA inquiry, and Vacation Bible School), a youth and young-adult ministry, and a robust liturgical life with choir, contemporary ensemble, altar servers, Eucharistic ministers, lectors, greeters, and gift bearers. The parish has also built a strong community-outreach identity through its Street People Ministry, Pac-A-Sac, and St. Vincent de Paul conference — and the campus includes the Joyce Center (for wedding receptions and parish events), a youth center, child-care for infants through 4-year-olds during Sunday Masses, and ball fields available for rent.
Mass times at Saint Andrew
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 4:00–4:30 PM
- Monday, Tuesday, Thursday 9:40–9:50 AM
Parish History
St. Andrew's grew from a 1962 mission of St. Joseph in Norman into a 1,200-person-per-weekend parish. Read the full chronological story of its five pastors, its first permanent deacon (Victor Galier, 1983), the 1979 church, the 2004–2005 expansion, and the 1999 tornado that shaped its outreach identity.
- 1962 — Father Jack Joyce appointed first resident pastor over 45 families
- February 1965 — Parish Activities Center dedicated; parish had grown to 140 families
- 1969 — Father David Jones succeeds Father Joyce; first DRE hired
- 1974 — Third pastor expands parish from 280 to 600+ families; classrooms (1976), rectory (1979), church (1979)
- 1983 — Victor Galier ordained first permanent deacon
- 1984 — Father George Pupius appointed fourth pastor
- 1984–1994 — Permanent deacons ordained: Barton, Schott, Watford, Leal, Knight, Keene
- 1997 — Father Jack Feehily appointed fifth pastor
- 1999 — Tornado damages/destroys homes of 100+ families; Caryl Prati hired as first Parish Nurse
- 2001 — Comprehensive Parish Development Plan finalized
- 2004–2005 — 16,000 sq ft expansion, new main entrance, PAC renamed Joyce Center
- 2017 — Deacon George (Angeline) Fombe ordained
- 2021 — Deacon Thai (Tina) Pham ordained
- 2022 — Father Francis Nguyen assigned as current pastor
Clergy & Staff
St. Andrew's is led by Father Francis Nguyen, pastor since 2022. He is assisted by two permanent deacon associates — Deacon George Fombe (ordained 2017) and Deacon Thai Pham (ordained 2021) — and by a full lay staff handling administration, faith formation, liturgy, youth, maintenance, and bookkeeping.
Priests & Deacons
- Father Francis Nguyen — Pastor ([email protected], 405-914-5101)
- Deacon George (Angeline) Fombe — Deacon Associate ([email protected])
- Deacon Thai (Tina) Pham — Deacon Associate ([email protected])
Lay Staff
- Jane Mitchell — Administrative Assistant ([email protected], 405-754-5301)
- Rolando Benites — Director of Faith Formation ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Janet Windsor — Parish Secretary & Receptionist ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Nancy Lyle — Liturgical Ministries ([email protected], 405-754-5305)
- Ruben Castillo — Maintenance ([email protected], 405-754-5308)
- Lynn Grant-Yingling — Youth and Young Adult Coordinator ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Mary Johnson — Bookkeeper ([email protected], 405-754-5304)
- Parish Nurse — position currently vacant (contact office: 405-799-3334)
Faith Formation & Religious Education
St. Andrew's runs a full faith formation program for parish children and teens with sacramental preparation, an RCIA inquiry path for adults, Vacation Bible School in summer, and Small Disciple Groups. Discipleship-formation sessions for children and teens are offered during the school year; child care for infants through 4-year-olds is offered during Sunday morning Masses. The director, Rolando Benites, is also the first point of contact for anyone — adult or parent — interested in joining the Catholic Church.
Children, Youth & Young Adults
- Religious Education and Sacramental Prep (Baptism, First Communion, Confirmation)
- Faith Formation for grades 6–12 (Lynn Grant-Yingling, Youth and Young Adult Coordinator)
- RCIA — inquiry into becoming Catholic (contact Rolando Benites)
- Vacation Bible School
- Small Disciple Groups
- Youth Retreats
- Life Teen tradition for junior and senior high (founded under Father Feehily)
- Life Kids (grades 1–6) and Life Tots (pre-school) — historical programs
- Young Adult Ministry
Liturgical & Music Ministry
St. Andrew's has a broad liturgical-ministry program open to men, women, boys and girls (altar servers from fourth grade up) with appointments by the Archbishop of Oklahoma City. The Music Ministry supports both a traditional Adult Choir at the 9:00 AM Sunday Mass and a Contemporary Ensemble at the 11:30 AM Sunday Mass, with weekly Tuesday rehearsals and one-hour warm-up before each Sunday Mass. Instrumentalists of all kinds — keyboards, brass, reeds, woodwinds, strings, percussion — are welcomed; ability to read music is not required.
Liturgical Ministries at Mass
- Eucharistic Ministers (Communion Ministers) — three-year renewable Archbishop appointments; also bring Communion to homebound
- Scripture Readers (Lectors)
- Altar Servers (4th grade and older; men, women, boys, girls)
- Greeters and Ushers — 'Hospitality is job one'
- Mass Coordinators and Sacristans
- Gift Bearers
- Sacristy Care — refilling candles in the sanctuary
- Environment Care — plants and flowers in the church
Music & Choir
- Adult Choir — ministers at 9:00 AM Sunday Mass during the school year
- Contemporary Ensemble — ministers at 11:30 AM Sunday Mass
- Children's Choir
- Rehearsals — Tuesdays plus one hour before each Sunday Mass
- Instrumentalists welcomed for keyboards, brass, reeds, woodwinds, strings, percussion
Community Outreach & Charity
St. Andrew's Community Outreach Commission is charged with helping the parish 'become a Poor Church that serves the poor and marginalized.' Many of its members come from existing parish ministries — the Street People Ministry, Pac-A-Sac, and St. Vincent de Paul — and the commission coordinates with the wider community through additional service opportunities. The parish's longstanding tradition of outreach traces partly to the 1999 tornado, in which the parish partnered closely with Catholic Charities to recover.
Outreach Ministries & Committees
- Street People Ministry
- Pac-A-Sac
- St. Vincent de Paul Conference
- Greater-community service opportunities listed on the parish service opportunities page
- Parish Health Ministries Committee (Blood Pressure Screenings, health-related events; Parish Nurse position currently vacant)
- Homebound Communion — training offered to active Communion Ministers to bring Communion to the infirm
Parish Health & Pastoral Care
St. Andrew's pioneered Parish Nursing in 1999, hiring Caryl Prati after she volunteered as a Catholic Charities liaison following the 1999 tornado. The Parish Nurse program continues with monthly Blood Pressure Screenings, health-related events, and training Communion Ministers to bring the Eucharist to the homebound. The position is currently vacant, with contact routed through the parish office.
Sacraments & Pastoral Services
Baptisms, weddings, and Mass intentions are coordinated through the parish office; Nancy Lyle is the staff lead for planning weddings and Baptisms, and Janet Windsor takes Mass-intention requests for loved ones living or deceased. Sacramental preparation for First Communion and Confirmation runs through the Faith Formation office under Rolando Benites. RCIA inquiries — whether adult candidates, parents enrolling children, or those just curious — all begin with Rolando.
Contact by Need
- Baptism or Wedding planning → Nancy Lyle ([email protected], 405-754-5305)
- Children's Religious Education / Sacramental prep / RCIA / Vacation Bible School / Small Disciple Groups → Rolando Benites ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Youth Ministry (grades 6–12) / Youth Retreats → Lynn Grant-Yingling ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Bulletin submissions / Mass intentions / Prayer requests / Parish Calendar → Janet Windsor ([email protected], 405-799-3334)
- Volunteer for parish picnics, pot-lucks, receptions; rent the Joyce Center; rent ball fields → Jane Mitchell ([email protected], 405-754-5301)
- Online Giving / Electronic Funds Transfer → Mary Johnson ([email protected], 405-754-5304)
- Maintenance / repairs → Ruben Castillo ([email protected], 405-754-5308)
- Parish Nurse / Health Ministry inquiries → parish office (405-799-3334)
Facility & Campus
Since the 2004–2005 Parish Development Plan, the St. Andrew campus unifies the church, the Joyce Center (the remodeled Parish Activities Center), a large Commons, a youth center, a parish kitchen, child-care areas, restrooms, and a beautiful new main entrance. The Joyce Center — renamed on the parish's 40th anniversary — is a first-class venue for wedding receptions and parish events and can be rented through the office; ball fields on or near the property are also available to rent. Weekly Mass on weekdays takes place in the St. Francis Chapel, while weekend Masses use the main church.
Planning a Visit or Event
Newcomers are asked to fill out a Newcomer Registration Card (available in the pew racks) and turn it in at the Welcome Center in the Commons; the parish takes your photo and adds you to the parish directory. Free child care for infants through 4-year-olds is offered during Sunday morning Masses, and parents with small children also have the option of sitting in the Commons area to view Mass. Wedding receptions and other parish functions can be held in the Joyce Center by contacting Jane Mitchell.
- Newcomer Registration — Welcome Center in the Commons
- Child care during Sunday morning Masses — infants through 4-year-olds
- Commons area viewing option for parents of small children
- Joyce Center rentals — wedding receptions, parish events
- Ball-field rentals — contact Jane Mitchell
Getting Involved
St. Andrew's whole identity is built around lay involvement. The official 'Where Do I Start?' page on the website outlines a clear path: join weekend worship (Saturday 5 PM or Sunday 9 / 11:30 AM), fill out a Newcomer Registration card, enroll children in faith formation with Rolando Benites, sign up for a liturgical or outreach ministry, or step into a leadership role on the Parish Pastoral Council or Finance Council.
Ways to Get Connected
- Attend weekend Mass (Sat 5 PM, Sun 9 or 11:30 AM)
- Newcomer Registration Card — Welcome Center in the Commons
- Enroll children in Religious Education / Sacramental prep
- Join a Small Disciple Group
- Volunteer as a Liturgical Minister (Communion Minister, Lector, Server, Greeter, Usher, Sacristan, Gift Bearer)
- Sing or play in the Choir / Contemporary Ensemble / Children's Choir
- Volunteer with the Street People Ministry, Pac-A-Sac, or St. Vincent de Paul
- Serve on the Community Outreach Commission
- Help with Parish Health Ministries (Blood Pressure Screenings, homebound Communion)
- Join the Parish Pastoral Council or Finance Council
- Help keep the church and grounds clean as a maintenance volunteer
About This Profile
Data in this profile is drawn directly from the parish's official website (standrewmoore.com), the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City priest directory, and aggregators that mirror the parish's own published schedule. Always check the parish bulletin or call the parish office at 405-799-3334 for the latest Mass-time changes.
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Jack Joyce1962–1969
First resident pastor; editor of the diocesan newspaper; appointed by Bishop Victor J. Reed over 45 families; oversaw dedication of the Parish Activities Center in February 1965.
- Father David Jones1969–1974
Second pastor; emphasized catechetics; hired first Director of Religious Education and added a 3,600 sq ft educational wing.
- (unnamed third pastor)1974–c.1984
Parish grew from 280 to over 600 families; oversaw 10 new classrooms (1976), new rectory (1979), and new parish church (Nov 1979); Victor Galier ordained as first permanent deacon in 1983.
- Father George Pupius1984–1997
Fourth pastor, appointed by Archbishop Charles Salatka; staff expanded to include associate DRE, RCIA coordinator, youth ministry director, and music director; multiple deacons ordained (Barton, Schott, Watford, Leal, Knight, Keene).
- Father Jack Feehily1997–c.2022
Fifth pastor, appointed by Archbishop Beltran; born and raised in Boston, of Irish descent; moved to Oklahoma in 1966; ordained deacon 1971 and priest 1973; M.Div. from St. Meinrad School of Theology 1972; previously associate at St. Philip Neri (Midwest City), St. Charles Borromeo (OKC), St. Mary's (Ponca City); pastor at Sacred Heart (Mangum), Our Lady of Guadalupe (Hollis), St. Philip Neri before St. Andrew's; oversaw 2004–2005 expansion and renaming of the PAC to the Joyce Center.
- Father Francis Nguyen2022–present
Current pastor.