About St. Augustine · Saint Cloud, Minnesota
The Church of St. Augustine is a Roman Catholic parish located at 442 2nd Street SE in Saint Cloud, Minnesota, part of the Diocese of Saint Cloud. Founded in 1919 as a small 'basement' church built in 1920, St. Augustine grew into a blue-collar, working-class parish that was led by diocesan priests until 1937, when Benedictine monks from Saint John's Abbey in Collegeville took over pastoral leadership for seventy years. Since 2007 diocesan clergy have again served as pastors, and the parish today is part of the six-parish All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community (ACC) in central Saint Cloud. The parish celebrates Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m. and a weekday Mass on Thursday morning, along with regular reconciliation, adoration, and a robust schedule of lay ministries including the famous Men's Breakfast and the St. Augustine Christian Women.
- Established
- 1919
- Patron
- St. Augustine
- Rector
- Rev. Scott Pogatchnik (also Vicar General of the Diocese of Saint Cloud and Rector of Saint Mary's Cathedral)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Saint Cloud
Why belong here
St. Augustine is a tight-knit, historic east-side Saint Cloud parish with deep roots — celebrating its centennial in 2019 — where the warmth of a small community meets the richness of the wider All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community. Parishioners can join the famous St. Aug's Men's Breakfast, serve through the St. Augustine Christian Women (organized since 1920), pray with the Prayer Warriors phone line, attend Thursday adoration and weekday Mass, enroll children in faith formation and the parish school, and walk alongside their neighbors in ministries like Elevate Pregnancy and Family Resource Center support and funeral luncheons. If you are looking for a parish with a strong sacramental life — daily Mass, weekly reconciliation, adoration, and a parish nurse — and an active lay apostolate rooted in Benedictine hospitality, St. Augustine welcomes you.
Mass times at St. Augustine
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Thursday 7:30 AM – 7:50 AM
Adoration times
- Thursday 9:00 AM – 4:00 PM
History of St. Augustine Parish
St. Augustine Parish was established in 1919 on Saint Cloud's east side as a working-class, blue-collar community. A 'basement' church was built in 1920 with the intention of replacing it once funds allowed — but the Depression and World War II intervened, and the parish remarkably paid off the debt on the original basement church during the Depression itself. From its founding the parish was served by diocesan priests; in 1937, when Saint Mary's Cathedral became the cathedral of the newly named Diocese of Saint Cloud, Benedictine monks from Saint John's Abbey in Collegeville took over as pastors for seventy years. Their Benedictine character shaped the parish's liturgy, music, hospitality, and even the dark-wood, straight-line architecture of the church. In 2007 diocesan clergy returned, and the parish marked its centennial in 2019 with a year of celebrations that included a chili cook-off, a December parish retreat on the history of the parish, a Benedictine prayer service, Mayfest, a 'Faster than the Pastor' fun run, and a closing on Christ the King Sunday.
- Founded 1919
- Original 'basement' church built 1920
- Diocesan pastors 1919–1937
- Benedictine pastors from Saint John's Abbey 1937–2007
- Diocesan pastors again from 2007
- Centennial celebrated 2019
Parish Staff
Beyond the priests and deacon, St. Augustine is served by a small but dedicated staff that includes Stacy Preusser as Office Manager, Joseph Ackerman as Business Manager, Joan Spring as Director of Faith Formation, Erin Hatlestad as Principal of the parish school, Donna Fromm directing music and liturgy, and Mary Jo LeGare-Hoffman serving as the parish nurse — a distinctive parish-nurse ministry that the parish has highlighted on its website for years.
- Office Manager: Stacy Preusser
- Business Manager: Joseph Ackerman
- Director of Faith Formation: Joan Spring
- Principal: Erin Hatlestad
- Music/Liturgy: Donna Fromm
- Parish Nurse: Mary Jo LeGare-Hoffman
St. Augustine Christian Women
St. Augustine Christian Women is a ministry of service to the parish and spiritual support to its members, formally organized in 1920 and affiliated with the Diocesan, National, and World Catholic Women's Councils. Members support, empower and educate Catholic women in spirituality, leadership and service through fundraising, scholarships for Catholic education, providing hosts and wine for Mass, serving funeral luncheons, supporting Elevate Pregnancy and Family Resource Center, hosting hospitality events, and — perhaps most famously — making the donuts served at the St. Aug's Men's Breakfasts.
- Formally organized 1920
- Affiliated with Diocesan, National, and World Catholic Women's Councils
- Membership open to all parish women 18+ (women from other parishes welcome)
- Dues $5/year
- Meets second Thursday of the month at 2:30 p.m. (7 times/year; Oct & May at 4:30 p.m. with dinner)
Faith Formation & School
Children and youth at St. Augustine are served both by the parish elementary school (with Erin Hatlestad as principal) and by the wider All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community formation programs. Joan Spring serves as Director of Faith Formation for the parish. Across the ACC, K-5 Family Formation, the SEND middle-school program, First Sacraments preparation (Reconciliation and Eucharist in 2nd grade and above), Confirmation preparation (10th grade and above), Catechesis of the Good Shepherd, and OCIA (Catholic Initiation for adults) are coordinated centrally, with sessions largely hosted at Christ Church Newman Center in Saint Cloud. The parish also connects students to Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton School and Saint Katharine Drexel School, the two Catholic elementary schools serving the ACC.
- Parish school principal: Erin Hatlestad
- Director of Faith Formation: Joan Spring
- First Sacraments Coordinator (ACC): Hannah Shefveland
- Confirmation Coordinator (ACC): Laura Koski
- SEND Coordinator (ACC): Melanie Solland
- K-5 Family Formation (ACC): Philip Shefveland
- Youth & Family Ministry (ACC): Andrew Tolman
- Catechesis of the Good Shepherd (ACC): Ellen Palmer & Reyne Alishouse
- OCIA (ACC): Deacon Frank Ringsmuth
Outreach & Pastoral Care
St. Augustine parishioners reach out beyond the church walls through several long-standing ministries. The St. Augustine Christian Women raise funds for scholarships and partner with Elevate Pregnancy and Family Resource Center; the parish hosts a prayer line staffed by volunteer Prayer Warriors (call the parish office to request prayers or to join the team). Visitation Ministry brings the Eucharist and the parish's care to the homebound and elderly, and a Parish Nurse (Mary Jo LeGare-Hoffman) connects health concerns with the life of the parish. Peace and Social Justice across the ACC is coordinated by Kevin LaNave, tying St. Augustine into wider corporal-works-of-mercy efforts in Saint Cloud.
- Prayer Warriors prayer line (320-251-8335)
- Elevate Pregnancy and Family Resource Center support
- Visitation Ministry
- Parish Nurse ministry
- Peace and Social Justice (ACC-wide)
- Funeral luncheons
All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community
St. Augustine is one of six parishes in the All Called to Christ Area Catholic Community (ACC), the largest ACC in the Diocese of Saint Cloud with roughly 7,220 Catholics. The other parishes are Saint Anthony of Padua, Christ Church Newman Center, the Church of the Holy Spirit, Saint John Cantius, and Saint Mary's Cathedral. Together they share sacramental scheduling, faith-formation staff, social-justice and outreach initiatives, a combined daily Mass schedule, and a vision for uniting around a single new parish name while keeping each church's individual identity. As the ACC leadership team explains on the parish website, the individual churches' names will remain even as the wider parish family selects a shared name to 'reflect our mission, our faith, and our future together in Christ.'
- Six parishes: St. Anthony, Christ Church Newman Center, Holy Spirit, St. Augustine, St. John Cantius, St. Mary's Cathedral
- Two Catholic elementary schools: St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, St. Katharine Drexel
- Combined daily Mass, faith formation, and social-justice staff
- Largest ACC in the Diocese of Saint Cloud
- Pastoral leader: Fr. Scott Pogatchnik (also Vicar General and Cathedral Rector)
Visit Us & Contact
Parishioners and visitors are warmly invited. The parish office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The church is located at 442 2nd Street SE on Saint Cloud's east side, and the parish is glad to be contacted by phone at (320) 251-8335 or by email at [email protected]. The website (staugs.com) and Flocknote sign-up are the easiest ways to keep up with parish news, ministry schedules, and ACC-wide events. The parish's contact page closes with a simple invitation: 'Visit Us! We'd love to see you!'
- Address: 442 2nd St SE, Saint Cloud, MN 56304
- Phone: (320) 251-8335
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: https://staugs.com
- Office hours: M–F 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Diocesan priests1919–1937
Staffed the parish from its founding through 1937.
- Benedictine priests of Saint John's Abbey, Collegeville1937–2007
Moved from Saint Mary's Cathedral when it became the diocesan cathedral in 1937; gave St. Augustine a distinctly Benedictine liturgical character for seventy years.
- Diocesan priests2007–present
Diocesan clergy resumed serving as pastors in 2007. Rev. Scott Pogatchnik is the current pastor.