About St. Francis Xavier · Toledo, Washington
St. Francis Xavier is a small Catholic parish church located at 139 Spencer Road, north of Toledo in Lewis County, Washington. Founded on December 16, 1838, when Father François Norbert Blanchet celebrated the first recorded Mass on Cowlitz Prairie in the home of Simon Plomondon, it is the oldest Catholic mission in what is now the State of Washington and the oldest Catholic church still standing in the state. Worship is offered Sunday at 8:30 a.m. and Wednesday at 10:00 a.m. in English, with Reconciliation on Wednesdays before Mass. Today the parish is part of Parish Family 42 of the Archdiocese of Seattle, partnered with St. Joseph (Chehalis), St. Mary (Centralia), and St. Yves (Harmony) under the Partners in the Gospel strategic pastoral plan.
- Established
- 1838
- Patron
- St. Francis Xavier
- Rector
- Rev. Milhton H. Scarpetta
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Seattle (South Sound Deanery, Parish Family 42)
Why belong here
St. Francis Xavier welcomes visitors to a small, mission-rooted Catholic community in rural Lewis County where worship is centered on Sunday and weekday English Mass, weekly Reconciliation, and Eucharistic Adoration. The parish actively shares resources with three neighboring parishes in Parish Family 42 — St. Joseph (Chehalis), St. Mary (Centralia), and St. Yves (Harmony) — opening up faith formation, youth ministry, music, and Spanish-language formation across the family. The mission cemetery on the grounds, the rebuilt 1917/1932 brick church, and the wooden reproduction of Blanchet's Catholic Ladder give the parish a tangible link to the earliest days of Catholicism in the Pacific Northwest.
Mass times at St. Francis Xavier
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Wednesday 9:30 AM – 9:50 AM
- One half hour before each weekday Mass
- Saturday 3:00 – 4:30 PM at St. Joseph, Chehalis (Parish Family 42)
Adoration times
- Wednesday 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM (Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament)
Welcome and Parish Overview
St. Francis Xavier is a small Catholic mission parish in rural Lewis County, Washington, with Mass on Sundays at 8:30 a.m. and Wednesdays at 10:00 a.m. Its identity is shaped by its 1838 founding — the first Catholic mission in what became Washington State — and by its present-day role as one of four parishes in the Archdiocese of Seattle's Parish Family 42. The parish's website is shared with the rest of Parish Family 42, giving visitors a single front door to Mass times, staff, faith formation, and small-group opportunities across Chehalis, Centralia, Toledo, and Harmony.
- Slogan on the parish-family site: 'Developing deep rooted relationships with God and each other.'
- Part of the South Sound Deanery, Archdiocese of Seattle.
- Parish Family 42 partner parishes: St. Joseph (Chehalis), St. Mary (Centralia), St. Francis Xavier (Toledo), St. Yves (Harmony).
Mission History (1838–Today)
St. Francis Xavier was founded in December 1838 on Cowlitz Prairie, in what was then Oregon Territory, by Father François Norbert Blanchet, who celebrated the first recorded Mass on December 16, 1838, in the home of Simon Bonaparte Plomondon. Father Modeste Demers, arriving in 1839, directed construction of the log church, installed a 50-pound bell in a 40-foot tower, and laid out the original mission cemetery. The mission once encompassed 640 acres and served as the hub of multiple southwest Washington parishes, most of which have since closed. The current brick church is a 1932 rebuilding of a 1917 structure that itself replaced earlier churches lost to fire.
- Dec. 16, 1838 — First Mass celebrated by Fr. Blanchet in Simon Plomondon's home.
- 1839 — Log church erected under Fr. Demers; 50-pound bell hung on a 40-foot tower; mission cemetery laid out.
- July 21, 1839 — Fr. Blanchet dedicates the chapel to St. Francis Xavier.
- 1879 — Larger church built on the site of the original log chapel.
- 1901 — Church destroyed by fire; all parish records lost; Fr. Van Holdebeke dies trying to save them.
- 1916 — Rebuilt church destroyed by fire a second time.
- 1917 — New brick church built and dedicated by Bishop O'Dea.
- 1923 — Parish hall completed largely by volunteer labor.
- Feb. 10, 1932 (Ash Wednesday) — Fire in the sacristy destroys the interior of the 1917 brick church.
- End of 1932 — Church rebuilt under Father Aegidius; today's brick exterior shows where old and new masonry meet.
Buildings, Grounds, and the Mission Cemetery
The mission grounds preserve a tangible chain of buildings and artifacts from the parish's 1838 origins. The present-day church is the rebuilt 1917/1932 brick structure, and the grounds retain the original 1839 log-era cemetery laid out by Father Demers. A wooden reproduction of the 'Catholic Ladder' devised by Father Blanchet remains on site as a reminder of the mission's pioneering catechetical work.
- St. Francis Xavier Catholic Cemetery — ~1 acre, est. 1838, ~840 indexed names, believed to be the second-oldest continuously operating cemetery in Washington State.
- Wooden reproduction of the 'Catholic Ladder' (Blanchet's notched-stick catechetical tool).
- Parish also maintains St. Urban Catholic Cemetery, Winlock, and Vader Catholic Cemetery.
Lenten and Holy Week Devotions
During Lent the parish family gathers for traditional devotions including the Divine Mercy Chaplet, Stations of the Cross, parish Soup Suppers, and a bilingual Live Stations of the Cross on Good Friday. The Friday schedule rotates among the parishes, with St. Francis Xavier typically hosting a Soup Supper at 5:30 p.m. and Stations of the Cross at 6:00 p.m. on its turn.
- Divine Mercy Chaplet — Fridays 3:00 PM at St. Yves
- Stations of the Cross — Fridays at various parish-family churches
- Soup Suppers preceding Stations of the Cross in Lent
- Good Friday 5:00 PM — Live bilingual Stations of the Cross outside at St. Mary, Centralia
Clergy, Staff, and Pastoral Leadership
St. Francis Xavier is pastored together with its three Parish Family 42 partner parishes under the Archdiocese of Seattle's Partners in the Gospel plan. A pastor and a parochial vicar serve the family, supported by a shared team of deacons, pastoral assistants, faith-formation staff, a music director, and administrative assistants.
- Pastor — Rev. Milhton H. Scarpetta
- Parochial Vicar — Rev. Thomas Selvaraj Anthony Muthu, H.G.N.
- Deacon Loren Lane
- Deacon Arturo
- Pastoral Assistant for Administration / Volunteer Coordinator — Gay Lynn Moneymaker ([email protected])
- Administrative Assistant / St. Francis Xavier Secretary — Jeanette Brewer ([email protected])
- Pastoral Assistant for Youth Ministry — Wendy Werner
- Pastoral Assistant for Faith Formation, Spanish — Adriana Garibay
- Pastoral Assistant for Faith Formation, English — Melody Smith (also Bookkeeper)
- Music Director — Melody Smith
- Pastoral Assistant for Faith Formation — Sarah Clyde ([email protected])
- Website Editor — Jeanette Brewer
- Mailing address: 157 SW 6th Street, Chehalis, WA 98532
Faith Formation, Youth, and Small Groups
Across Parish Family 42, faith formation is offered in both English and Spanish, with a dedicated youth ministry and small-group study opportunities. St. Francis Xavier families participate alongside neighboring parishes in these programs.
- Faith Formation (English) — Melody Smith
- Faith Formation (Spanish) — Adriana Garibay
- Youth Ministry — Wendy Werner
- Small Study Groups across the four Lewis County parishes
Parish Family 42 and Partners in the Gospel
In 2024 the Archdiocese of Seattle promulgated parish families under Partners in the Gospel, a strategic pastoral-planning process placing several parishes under the leadership of one pastor. St. Francis Xavier was grouped with St. Joseph (Chehalis), St. Mary (Centralia), and St. Yves (Harmony) as Parish Family 42. Over roughly three years the family is expected to share staff, ministries, and outreach and to grow toward becoming one canonical parish, with the pastor — currently Rev. Milhton H. Scarpetta — leading the family.
- Parish Family 42 announced Feb. 2, 2024 by Archbishop Paul D. Etienne.
- Partner parishes: St. Joseph, Chehalis; St. Mary, Centralia; St. Francis Xavier, Toledo; St. Yves, Harmony.
- Shared resources include faith formation, youth ministry, music, and Spanish-language outreach.
- St. Joseph School (Chehalis) serves as the parish-family school.
Contact and Practical Information
Parishioners and visitors can reach the parish family through the shared offices in Chehalis, or contact St. Francis Xavier staff directly via email. The parish phone line and the parish-family website are the principal points of contact for Mass intentions, sacramental preparation, and cemetery inquiries.
- Address — 139 Spencer Road, Toledo, WA 98591-9705
- Phone — (360) 864-4126
- Fax — (360) 864-4135
- Email — [email protected]
- Website — http://www.wlpcatholic.org/
- Mailing address — 157 SW 6th Street, Chehalis, WA 98532
- Deanery — South Sound Deanery
- County — Lewis
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Fr. François Norbert Blanchet1838–
Founder; celebrated the first recorded Mass on Cowlitz Prairie on Dec. 16, 1838, in Simon Plomondon's home; devised the 'Catholic Ladder' catechetical tool.
- Fr. Modeste Demers1839–
Co-founder; erected the log church, hung the 50-pound bell on a 40-foot tower, and laid out the original mission cemetery.
- Fr. Van Holderbeke / Van Holdebeke1901
Died from injuries sustained trying to save parish records when the 1879 church burned in 1901.
- Fr. Aegidius1932
Directed the rebuilding of the brick church at the end of 1932 after the Ash Wednesday fire gutted the 1917 interior.