About St. Andrew the Apostle · Reidsville, Georgia
St. Andrew the Apostle is a Catholic mission church located in Reidsville, Georgia, in Tattnall County. It operates as a mission of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in nearby Vidalia, about 20 miles to the northwest, and is part of the Diocese of Savannah. The mission serves a predominantly Hispanic congregation of agricultural and working families from the surrounding rural area of southeast Georgia. Its Sunday Mass is celebrated in Spanish at 8:30 AM, reflecting the bilingual character of its parent parish.
- Patron
- St. Andrew the Apostle
- Rector
- Fr. Gordian Iwuji
- Diocese
- Diocese of Savannah (Statesboro Deanery)
Why belong here
St. Andrew the Apostle offers a deeply faithful, family-centered Catholic community where Hispanic agricultural and working families of rural southeast Georgia gather for the Eucharist in their own language. The mission is served by priests of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Vidalia, which provides a full bilingual Catholic life — three weekend Masses (English and Spanish), Catholic school and faith formation through the Catholic Center, prison ministry, a Knights of Columbus council, and parish societies. Visitors and newcomers will find a welcoming community committed to worship, education, service, and stewardship of the Gospel.
Mass times at St. Andrew the Apostle
Weekly Mass schedule
About St. Andrew the Apostle
St. Andrew the Apostle is a Catholic mission church of Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Vidalia, serving the small city of Reidsville in Tattnall County, Georgia. As a mission, it is staffed and administered by the priests of Sacred Heart, sharing the same parish phone line and office. The mission exists to bring the Sacraments — especially the Sunday Eucharist — to the Hispanic, agricultural, and working families of rural southeast Georgia, and its sole weekly Mass is celebrated in Spanish.
- Type: Mission (a mission of Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Vidalia)
- Diocese: Diocese of Savannah
- Deanery: Statesboro
- County: Tattnall
- Weekend Mass: Sunday 8:30 AM (Spanish)
History of the Parish
The mission is rooted in the same GlenMary missionary activity that founded Sacred Heart in 1959 and grew as Latin American migrant families began attending Mass at Sacred Heart in the early 1980s. The current church building sits on Industrial Drive on the outskirts of Reidsville, nestled in a pine grove with a brick facade, a tidy white steeple, and a small grotto sheltering a statue of the Virgin Mary. In 2015, Father Ben Dallas launched an 18-month, volunteer-driven sanctuary renovation that would be rededicated on March 6, 2017 by Bishop Gregory Hartmeyer.
- First Mass in the broader region: Easter Sunday, March 29, 1959, in the Toombs County Courtroom in Lyons (Father Mathis)
- Latin American migrants begin attending Mass at Sacred Heart in the early 1980s; a Spanish Mass is established and later moved to the St. Andrew's mission
- 2015–2017: 18-month sanctuary remodel led by Father Ben Dallas with parish volunteers and local craftsmen
- March 6, 2017: Rededication of the remodeled sanctuary by Bishop Gregory Hartmeyer
The Sanctuary Remodel
What had been a small, unassuming brick sanctuary was gutted and rebuilt into a richly appointed worship space. Volunteers stripped the industrial carpeting and drop ceiling, then installed stonework around the altar, a sky-blue tray ceiling with massive mahogany-stained beams trimmed in gilt and burgundy, colossal wooden columns, recessed lighting, stained glass windows, a redesigned altar and pulpit, a hand-painted back-altar crucifix, refurbished original pews, and statues of the Virgin of Guadalupe and St. Andrew flanking the crucifix and tabernacle.
- Interior art: Carl G. Fougerousse, Red Fern Studio, Savannah (stained glass windows and hand-painted crucifix)
- Construction: Jeff Stanley and crew (local contractor, gave price breaks and extra details)
- Funding: Largely the parish's own Hispanic, agricultural, and low-income families — a 'giving tree' plaque in the back of the church lists donors
Architecture and Setting
From the road, the church presents itself as a modest brick building with a white steeple, sitting in a pine grove typical of small Southern churches. A small grotto on the grounds shelters a statue of the Virgin Mary. Inside, however, the 2017 remodel introduced soaring wooden columns, stained glass, a sky-blue tray ceiling with mahogany-stained beams trimmed in gilt and burgundy, and a hand-crafted altar area — a visual style Father Dallas has described as a 'labor of love' by church volunteers and skilled craftsmen from surrounding communities.
- Exterior: brick facade, white steeple, pine-grove setting
- Grounds: Virgin Mary grotto
- Interior features: sky-blue tray ceiling, mahogany-stained beams, colossal wooden columns, stained glass, recessed lighting, crown molding, stone altar area, hand-painted crucifix, refurbished original pews
Mass and Worship
The mission celebrates one Mass each week, on Sunday morning at 8:30 AM in Spanish. It is part of the wider Sacred Heart, Vidalia weekend Mass schedule, which also offers an English Mass at 11:00 AM and a Spanish Mass at 1:00 PM at the main church in Vidalia. A 5:00 PM Saturday vigil Mass and 4:00 PM Saturday confessions are offered at Sacred Heart, Vidalia.
- Sunday 8:30 AM — Spanish (St. Andrew the Apostle, Reidsville)
- Sunday 11:00 AM — English (Sacred Heart, Vidalia, with full choir and more traditional music)
- Sunday 1:00 PM — Spanish (Sacred Heart, Vidalia, with cry room available)
- Saturday 5:00 PM Vigil — Sacred Heart, Vidalia
- Saturday 4:00 PM Confessions — Sacred Heart, Vidalia
Clergy
The mission is currently served by Father Gordian Iwuji, pastor of Sacred Heart, Vidalia, and the broader Sacred Heart community continues to be served by Permanent Deacon Joe Claroni, ordained in May 1985.
- Fr. Gordian Iwuji — Pastor (2020–present)
- Deacon Joe Claroni — Permanent Deacon (ordained May 1985)
Parent Parish: Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Vidalia
Sacred Heart, Vidalia is a warm, vibrant, bilingual Roman Catholic Church serving Toombs, Treutlen, and Montgomery counties. With about 230 active families representing a rich diversity of ethnic, cultural and economic backgrounds, it celebrates three weekend Masses and serves as the hub from which St. Andrew the Apostle mission is administered. The parish offices are open Monday and Tuesday 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM and Wednesday and Thursday 9:00 AM – noon, and are reached at (912) 537-7709.
- Address: 3119 North Street East, Vidalia, GA 30474
- Phone: (912) 537-7709 — Fax: (912) 537-4691
- Office Hours: Mon & Tue 9 AM–4 PM; Wed & Thu 9 AM–noon; closed Friday
- Founded: 1961; served by GlenMary priests until 1984, when it became a parish of the Diocese of Savannah
Visiting, Location, and Contact
St. Andrew the Apostle is located at 138 Industrial Drive, Reidsville, GA 30453. Travelers should take either GA Highway 147 or GA Highway 56 south into Reidsville and turn onto Industrial Drive. The mission shares the Sacred Heart, Vidalia parish office and phone line; all calls and parish business are directed there.
- Address: 138 Industrial Drive, Reidsville, GA 30453
- Phone: (912) 537-7709
- Fax: (912) 537-4691
- Website: http://www.sacredheartvidalia.org
- Diocese page: https://diosav.org/en/parishes-directory/item/st-andrew-the-apostle
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. Mathis1959–1965
GlenMary missionary who began mission work in the area from his home base in Claxton; offered the first Mass in the Toombs County Courtroom in Lyons on Easter Sunday, March 29, 1959.
- Fr. Paul Ackerman1961
Joined Father Mathis in serving the parish.
- Fr. Will Steinbacher1961–1965
- Fr. Richard Steinkamp1965–1967
- Fr. Jim Hite1965–1967
- Fr. Del Holmes1967–1969
First 'Pastor of Sacred Heart Catholic Church'; also served as prison chaplain, implementing reforms at the Georgia State Prison.
- Fr. Francis Schenk1969–1971
- Fr. Clem Borchers1971–1979
Parish grew to ~30 Catholic families, mostly in Vidalia. Led the move of the church to a more central location between Lyons and Vidalia; became chaplain of the Georgia State Prison in 1972; CCD classes scheduled with lay ministers.
- Fr. John Jennings1979
- Fr. John Marquardt1979–1982
- Fr. Frank Korzinek1982–1984
Discovered he had cancer and was called back to GlenMary Headquarters for treatment, where he eventually died.
- Fr. John Loftus1984–1985
Came out of retirement to be acting pastor. During his tenure the parish was turned over from a GlenMary mission to a parish in the Diocese of Savannah.
- Fr. Frank Higgins1985–1988
First Diocesan Pastor of Sacred Heart. Organized the first parish office, placed new pews and carpet in the sanctuary, and began a third Mass in Spanish.
- Fr. Frank Patterson1988–1993
Created a Parish Hall where the Day Care Center had been; had the parking lots paved.
- Fr. Raul Perez1993
Began ministering to the growing Hispanic community; continued the Sunday evening Mass in Spanish.
- Fr. Juan Lopez1994–1996
Continued ministry to the Hispanic community. Brought the tabernacle into the main multi-purpose room, making the room strictly a sanctuary; added a CCD wing onto the Catholic Center.
- Fr. Mark Ross1996–2003
Started a Pro-Life Holy Hour on Wednesday evenings; refurbished the Catholic Center; added lights, ceiling fans, stained glass windows and wooden pews; donated marble and carpet; had a new altar and ambo built by parishioner Ed Wonn. Enlarged the playground and parish hall in 1999; raised the ceiling over the altar and added skylights; visited local prisons at least twice weekly.
- Fr. Raul Perez2003–2004
Relocated the sacristry, confessional and cry room; painted the interior of the rectory, office areas and Burke Educational Building.
- Fr. Wes Lamb2004–2006
Parochial Administrator; active member of the Toombs Area Ministerial Association.
- Fr. Steven Angell2006–2011
Added new outdoor benches to the campus, erected a pro-life billboard, and began online giving for parishioners.
- Fr. Ben Dallas2011–2020
Appointed Parochial Administrator in February 2011 and Pastor in June 2012. Led the 18-month volunteer remodel of St. Andrew the Apostle sanctuary rededicated by Bishop Hartmeyer on March 6, 2017. Renovated the rectory, parish offices and Burke Educational Building; reinstituted Adoration and Holy Hour on Wednesdays; began First Friday Healing Masses.
- Fr. Gordian Iwuji2020–present
Current pastor of Sacred Heart and so of the St. Andrew the Apostle mission.