About Saint Kateri Tekakwitha · Lakeside, California
Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish is a National Indian Parish of the Diocese of San Diego, headquartered at 1054 Barona Road in Lakeside, California. Established in 1982, it is unique in that it spans three separate Native American reservations — Barona, Viejas, and Sycuan — each separated by roughly 22 miles, and ministers to all Native Americans within the diocese regardless of tribal affiliation. The parish is led by Father Herman Manuel, SVD (Society of the Divine Word), and serves the spiritual life of the Kumeyaay and Mission Indian communities of inland San Diego County.
- Established
- 1982
- Patron
- Saint Kateri Tekakwitha
- Rector
- Father Herman Manuel, SVD
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of San Diego
Why belong here
Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish is the only Catholic parish in the United States specifically designated as a National Indian Parish under the patronage of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha — the first Native American canonized saint (2012). It is one of very few Catholic communities serving three separate Native American reservations from a single parish and is a place where Native Catholic identity, the Mass, OCIA, marriage and baptism preparation, and religious education for children are intentionally woven together. Worship is offered five days a week at three different reservation locations, and parish musicians such as Charles "Beaver" Curo and Shirley Curo carry on a decades-long tradition of Catholic-Kumeyaay liturgical life.
Mass times at Saint Kateri Tekakwitha
Weekly Mass schedule
Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish — Overview
Saint Kateri Tekakwitha Parish is a National Indian Parish of the Diocese of San Diego, established in 1982 and dedicated under the patronage of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, the 'Lily of the Mohawks' and first Native American saint. The parish is composed of three unique Native American reservations — Barona, Sycuan, and Viejas — each about 22 miles apart. As a National Parish it ministers to all Native Americans within the Diocese of San Diego regardless of geographic location or tribal affiliation. The mailing address, parish office, and principal church are at 1054 Barona Road in Lakeside, California. Each reservation is still known by its original name.
History and Founding
The parish was canonically erected in 1982 when Bishop Leo Maher of San Diego declared three Indian reservations — Barona, Sycuan, and Viejas — to be a single parish under the patronage of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. The trigger was a routine 1982 visit by La Salette Missionary Father Alain Beauregard and Brother Edward Nolan, who realized the reservations had never been formally constituted as a parish. Mission church buildings, however, go back much further: Barona's church, dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on August 15, 1934, was designed by architect Irving J. Gill and built by tribal elders on land purchased by Kumeyaay families displaced from the Capitan Grande Reservation. The 35th anniversary of the parish (2017) was marked by an extensive refurbishment of the Sycuan church and blessing by Bishop Robert W. McElroy.
- 1932 — Kumeyaay families displaced from Capitan Grande purchase Barona and Viejas valleys
- 1934 — Barona church dedicated Aug 15, designed by Irving J. Gill
- 1982 — Parish canonically erected by Bishop Leo Maher under St. Kateri's patronage
- 2012 — Saint Kateri Tekakwitha canonized by Pope John Paul II
- 2017 — 35th anniversary; Sycuan church refurbished and blessed by Bishop McElroy
- 2024 — 90th anniversary of the Barona church
The Three Reservations
The parish serves three federally recognized tribes across three distinct reservations — each still called by its original Kumeyaay name. The Barona Band of Mission Indians lives on a reservation near Lakeside, about 30 miles northeast of San Diego. The Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians resides on a 1,600-acre reservation in the Viejas Valley east of Alpine. The Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation lives on a 640-acre reservation in the Dehesa Valley. All three share ancestral roots among the Southern Diegueño / Kumeyaay peoples, who have inhabited San Diego County for more than 12,000 years.
- Barona Band of Mission Indians — Lakeside (parish office/church address)
- Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians — Viejas Valley, east of Alpine
- Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation — Dehesa Valley
- All three tribes share a joint-trust patent over 15,000 remaining acres of the original Capitan Grande Reservation
Barona Church (1934)
The principal worship site of the parish is the Barona church on the Barona Indian Reservation near Lakeside. Built within two years of the Kumeyaay families' 1932 arrival in the Barona Valley, it was funded by tribal elders and designed with the help of notable San Diego architect Irving J. Gill. It was dedicated to the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary on August 15, 1934, and celebrated its 90th anniversary in 2024. Daily Masses Tuesday through Friday and the 8:00 a.m. Sunday Mass are celebrated here.
Viejas Mission Church
The Viejas church, located on the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians reservation in the Viejas Valley east of Alpine, hosts the Sunday 10:30 a.m. Mass. It marked its 80th anniversary in the parish's celebrations.
Sycuan Church
The Sycuan church, on the Sycuan Band of the Kumeyaay Nation reservation in the Dehesa Valley, hosts the Sunday 12:30 p.m. Mass. In July 2017, on the 35th anniversary of the parish's founding, the church underwent extensive interior and exterior refurbishment and was blessed by Bishop Robert W. McElroy.
Clergy and Pastoral Staff
The parish is led by Father Herman Manuel, SVD, a member of the Society of the Divine Word (SVD) missionary congregation, with Brother Edward Nolan serving as pastoral associate and longtime institutional memory of the reservations' Catholic life (he has been present on the reservations for over forty years). Father Alain Beauregard of the Missionaries of Our Lady of La Salette (MS) was the founding-era priest; for roughly the first decade-and-a-half after 1982 the parish was under La Salette care, after which it transitioned to its current Divine Word pastor.
- Fr. Herman Manuel, SVD — Pastor
- Edward Nolan — Pastoral Associate
- Fr. Alain Beauregard, MS — founding La Salette priest (1982)
Parish Staff and Coordinators
The parish staff listed on bktparish.com includes a wide range of lay and music ministers who keep the three-site parish running.
- Judy Oyos — RCIA Director
- Joseph Yeats — Altar Server Trainer
- Beth Glasco — Infant Baptism Preparation Coordinator
- Alyssa Parada — Religious Education Teacher (Elementary, K–8) and Marriage Coordinator — (619) 990-1036, [email protected]
- Mark Price — OCIA instructor (Sunday sessions at Barona and Viejas)
- Judy Robinson — Adult OCIA instructor (Barona, Wednesdays 6:00 PM)
- Delia Villa — Parish Housekeeper (Barona)
- Robbie Welch — Grounds Keeper (Barona) — Shrine, cemetery, church grounds
- Sandy Welch — Executive Secretary & Accountant
- Charles "Beaver" Curo and Shirley Curo — Musicians, Barona 8:00 AM Sunday Mass
Religious Education and OCIA
Faith formation for children and adults is split across all three reservations and held at varied times so that families across the 22-mile spread can attend. OCIA (Order of Christian Initiation of Adults) sessions are offered for both adults and children.
- Youth Religious Education (K–8, Barona) with Alyssa Parada — Fridays 4:00 PM
- Adult OCIA (ages 18+, Barona) with Judy Robinson — Wednesdays 6:00 PM
- OCIA (Barona) with Mark Price — Sundays 9:00 AM
- OCIA (Viejas) with Mark Price — Sundays 11:30 AM
- Judy Oyos — RCIA Director
Sacraments
Information on the website points parishioners to specific coordinators for baptism and marriage preparation. Anyone interested in arranging a wedding or baptizing an infant should contact the parish office directly.
- Infant Baptism — preparation coordinated by Beth Glasco
- Marriage — preparation and scheduling coordinated by Alyssa Parada, (619) 990-1036, [email protected]
- OCIA / RCIA — Judy Oyos, Director
Music and Liturgical Ministries
Music at the Barona 8:00 a.m. Sunday Mass is led by Charles "Beaver" Curo and Shirley Curo. Joseph Yeats trains the parish's altar servers. Delia Villa serves as parish housekeeper at Barona, and Robbie Welch maintains the Shrine, cemetery, and church grounds at Barona.
Cemetery
The parish grounds at Barona include a cemetery, the care of which is part of the groundskeeper Robbie Welch's responsibility.
Contact and Parish Office
The parish office is open at the Barona Reservation address. Sandy Welch serves as the executive secretary and accountant. The preferred channels for getting in touch are by phone or email; the parish notes that live Masses are visible via the pastor's personal Facebook account.
- Mailing address: 1054 Barona Road, Lakeside, CA 92040-1502
- Phone: (619) 443-3412
- General email: [email protected]
- Marriage coordinator email: [email protected]
- Live Masses: facebook.com/herman.manuel.71
- Diocese of San Diego reporting line for sexual misconduct: Mary Acosta, (858) 490-8353, [email protected], www.safeinourdiocese.org
Safety and Reporting
In keeping with the Diocese of San Diego's safe-environment policies, the parish site publishes the diocesan reporting line for allegations of sexual misconduct by clergy or church personnel, directing anyone with knowledge of recent or ongoing abuse to contact local law enforcement as well.
- Diocesan Victim Assistance Coordinator: Mary Acosta, (858) 490-8353
- Email: [email protected]
- Web: www.safeinourdiocese.org
Getting Involved
Because the parish stretches across three reservations, parishioners can serve in a wide range of roles — liturgical (altar servers, musicians), catechetical (religious education, OCIA, baptism and marriage prep), and operational (housekeeping, grounds, finance). The parish staff page lists coordinators by name; the parish phone number and email above is the best way to volunteer.
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Alain Beauregard, MS (La Salette Missionary)around 1982 founding
La Salette priest who, with Brother Edward Nolan, brought the three reservations' lack of canonical status to Bishop Leo Maher's attention in 1982, leading directly to the parish's erection.
- Father Herman Manuel, SVD (Society of the Divine Word)present
Current pastor; Divine Word Missionary who has served the parish for roughly two decades as of 2026.