About St. Clair Mission · Three Rivers, California
St. Clair Mission is a small Catholic mission church serving the mountain community of Three Rivers, California, in Tulare County near the entrance to Sequoia National Park. It operates as a mission of St. Frances Cabrini Parish in Woodlake, within the Diocese of Fresno's Tulare Vicariate, and shares its pastor and contact information with that parish. The mission was established in 1963 and today offers a single weekly Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m. for local residents and visitors to the area.
- Established
- 1963
- Patron
- St. Clare of Assisi
- Rector
- Rev. Jesse Venzor
- Diocese
- Diocese of Fresno
Why belong here
St. Clair Mission offers Catholics in the remote Three Rivers community a dedicated Sunday Mass and a familiar gathering place in the Sierra foothills. As a mission of St. Frances Cabrini in Woodlake, it shares pastoral staff with the larger parish while still giving local residents their own worship community. Visitors passing through on the way to Sequoia National Park are welcomed to join the small congregation for 9:00 a.m. Sunday Mass.
Mass times at St. Clair Mission
Weekly Mass schedule
Overview of St. Clair Mission
St. Clair Mission is a small Catholic mission church located on Alta Acres Drive in Three Rivers, California, in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada just south of Sequoia National Park. It is listed in the Diocese of Fresno's official parish directory as a mission of St. Frances Cabrini Parish in nearby Woodlake. The mission was founded in 1963 and continues to serve a small year-round population as well as visitors to the Three Rivers area.
- Founded in 1963
- Mission of St. Frances Cabrini Parish, Woodlake
- Diocese of Fresno, Tulare Vicariate
- Address: Alta Acres Dr., Three Rivers, CA 93271
Patron: St. Clare of Assisi
The mission is named for St. Clare of Assisi (often written 'St. Clair' or 'St. Claire' in older sources), the 13th-century Italian foundress of the Order of Poor Ladies (Poor Clares) and a close follower of St. Francis of Assisi. Her feast day is celebrated on August 11. St. Clare is the patron saint of television, laundry workers, and those with eye disease, and is venerated as one of the great Franciscan saints.
- Patron: St. Clare of Assisi
- Feast day: August 11
Mass and Worship Schedule
St. Clair Mission offers one weekly Mass, celebrated in English. Because the mission is small and remote, the Sunday schedule is the regular weekly liturgical gathering for the local Catholic community. Visitors traveling through Three Rivers toward Sequoia National Park are welcome to attend.
- Sunday Mass: 9:00 AM (English)
Clergy and Staff
The mission does not have its own resident priest; pastoral care is provided through St. Frances Cabrini Parish in Woodlake, whose pastor also serves St. Clair Mission and the mission of San Felipe de Jesús in Ivanhoe. The Diocese of Fresno's Health Ministries program assigns a Faith Community Nurse to support the mission's parishioners.
- Pastor: Rev. Jesse Venzor (also pastor of St. Frances Cabrini, Woodlake)
- Faith Community Nurse: Nancy Smith, RN
- Shared phone: (559) 564-2647
Connection to St. Frances Cabrini, Woodlake
As a mission church, St. Clair falls under St. Frances Cabrini Parish, located at 198 North Pepper Street, Woodlake, CA 93286. St. Frances Cabrini was itself founded in 1963 — the same year as St. Clair Mission — and oversees two missions: San Felipe de Jesús in Ivanhoe and St. Clair in Three Rivers. The Woodlake parish operates with the same mailing address and phone line as its missions, allowing residents of smaller outlying communities like Three Rivers to access sacramental records, registration, and pastoral support through one central office.
- Parent parish: St. Frances Cabrini, 198 N. Pepper St., Woodlake, CA 93286
- Sister mission: San Felipe de Jesús, Ivanhoe
- Shared phone and sacramental records with Woodlake parish
Ministries and Outreach
As a small mission, St. Clair relies largely on the broader diocesan structure for programming. The Diocese of Fresno's Health Ministries initiative places a registered nurse, Nancy Smith, with the mission to provide faith-based health support and parish nursing outreach to the Three Rivers community.
- Diocesan Health Ministry / Faith Community Nursing
Visiting Three Rivers and Sequoia
Three Rivers sits at the southern entrance to Sequoia National Park along the Kaweah River, attracting hikers, campers, and tourists throughout the year. Catholic visitors passing through are welcome to join the Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m. Mass-goers are encouraged to confirm current schedules by phone before traveling, especially during winter weather or summer fire season.
- Gateway community to Sequoia National Park
- Sunday Mass at 9:00 AM
- Call (559) 564-2647 to confirm schedule