About St. Elizabeth Ann Seton · Cairo, Georgia
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is a Roman Catholic mission church serving the small city of Cairo in Grady County, southwest Georgia. It is administered as a mission of St. Augustine Catholic Church in nearby Thomasville and falls within the Diocese of Savannah, in the Albany Deanery. The parish provides a bilingual Catholic presence — English and Spanish — for a community that includes a growing Hispanic Catholic population in rural south Georgia, with weekly Sunday Masses in both languages and a Thursday evening Spanish Mass. Named for America's first native-born Catholic saint, the mission reflects the wider southwest Georgia parish family gathered around St. Augustine, Thomasville.
- Patron
- St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
- Rector
- Father Godfred Boachie-Yiadom
- Diocese
- Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah
Why belong here
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton offers a small, bilingual Catholic home in Cairo where English- and Spanish-speaking families can worship together under the same roof — a rare gift in rural southwest Georgia. The mission is served by Father Godfred Boachie-Yiadom, pastor of the larger St. Augustine parish family in Thomasville, and offers a full weekly schedule (Thursday evening Spanish Mass, plus English and Spanish Sunday Masses) along with Reconciliation before each Sunday Mass. Faith Formation for children, RCIA for adults exploring the Catholic faith, and the Knights of Columbus council connect Cairo-area parishioners to the broader parish family.
Mass times at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Sunday 11:00–11:30 AM (Cairo)
- Sunday 1:15–1:45 PM (Cairo)
- By appointment — (229) 226-3624
- Friday 11:00–11:45 AM (at St. Augustine, Thomasville)
- Saturday 3:45–4:45 PM (at St. Augustine, Thomasville)
About St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Mission
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is a Roman Catholic mission church at 1500 11th Avenue NW, Cairo, Georgia, in Grady County. It belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah (Albany Deanery) and is administered as a mission of St. Augustine Catholic Church in Thomasville. The mission exists to bring the Mass and the sacraments to Catholics in the Cairo area, and is celebrated in both English and Spanish to reflect the area's growing Hispanic Catholic population.
- Type: Mission (of St. Augustine Catholic Church, Thomasville)
- Diocese: Diocese of Savannah
- Deanery: Albany
- County: Grady, Georgia
Parish Staff
As a mission, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is shepherded by the pastor of St. Augustine, Thomasville. The current pastor, Father Godfred Boachie-Yiadom, came from Ghana and has led the parish family since June 2017.
- Father Godfred Boachie-Yiadom — Pastor (since June 2017)
Faith Formation & Religious Education
Children's Faith Formation for grades K–8 is offered through the parish family. Classes are held twice a month at St. Augustine, Thomasville, following the 9:00 AM Sunday Mass — a model that brings Cairo-mission families together with Thomasville parishioners for shared catechesis.
- Faith Formation Program — grades K–8
- Meets twice a month at St. Augustine following the 9:00 AM Sunday Mass
- Contact: parish office at (229) 226-3624
RCIA / OCIA — Becoming Catholic
Adults interested in entering the full communion of the Catholic Church begin by meeting with Father Godfred. RCIA (also called OCIA, the Order of Christian Initiation of Adults) classes are scheduled annually; those interested should contact the parish office to register for the next year's cohort.
- Contact: Father Godfred Boachie-Yiadom
- Register through the parish office: (229) 226-3624
Knights of Columbus
The parish Knights of Columbus council serves the St. Augustine / St. Elizabeth Ann Seton family. It meets once a month on the first Monday and welcomes adult Catholic men interested in faith, fraternity and service.
- Meets the first Monday of each month
- Contact: Jim Ladner — [email protected]
Safe Environment — VIRTUS Training
In keeping with the Diocese of Savannah's safe-environment requirements, all parish volunteers and employees are required to complete VIRTUS training. Details and registration are coordinated through the parish office.
- VIRTUS training required for all volunteers and employees
Parent Parish — St. Augustine, Thomasville
Because St. Elizabeth Ann Seton is a mission rather than an independent parish, much of its sacramental and formational life is shared with St. Augustine Catholic Church in Thomasville, GA, about 15 miles northeast. St. Augustine, founded in the 1870s–1880s, is the mother church of southwest Georgia Catholicism in this corner of the Diocese of Savannah, and has been served by Franciscan friars and diocesan priests over its history.
- Parent parish: St. Augustine Catholic Church, Thomasville, GA
- St. Augustine pastorate share: Sunday English Mass at 9:00 AM; Sunday Spanish Mass at 5:00 PM
- Weekday Masses at St. Augustine: Tuesday 6:00 PM; Wednesday 9:00 AM; Thursday 9:00 AM; Friday 12:00 noon; Saturday Vigil 5:00 PM
Diocesan & Reporting Information
The mission falls under the care of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah. The diocese publishes the parish in its official directory under the Albany Deanery and lists the parish as a mission of St. Augustine, Thomasville.
- Diocese: Roman Catholic Diocese of Savannah
- Deanery: Albany
- Diocesan 24-hour Child Abuse Reporting Hotline: 888-357-5330
- Bishop abuse reporting: https://reportbishopabuse.org or (800) 276-1562
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Godfred Boachie-YiadomJune 2017–present
From Ghana; pastor of St. Augustine Thomasville and its mission St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Cairo; oversaw re-roofing of Seton, Adoration room, columbarium at St. Augustine, and remodeling.
- Father Dawid Kwiatkowski2016–2017
Originally from Poland; ordained in Savannah in 2011; first pastorate here.
- Father David Kotter2013–2016
Three-year assignment before transfer to Holy Spirit, Macon.
- Father Ray Levreault2012–2013
One-year assignment.
- Father Mark Van Alstine2011–2012
Ordained 2005; previously Assistant Vocation Director.
- Father Jacek Szuster2004–2011
From Poland; transferred to Most Holy Trinity, Augusta.
- Father Thomas J. Murphy2000–2004
Completed the stained-glass window campaign.
- Father Victor Seidel, S.T.1993–2000
Missionary Servants of the Most Holy Trinity.