About St. Gabriel (St. Paul the Apostle Parish) · Winterport, Maine
St. Gabriel Church is a historic Catholic worship site located at 435 South Main Street in Winterport, Maine, and is one of six churches that make up St. Paul the Apostle Parish in the greater Bangor area. The parish community traces its origins to the 1849–1850 surge of Irish Catholic immigrants who came to work the local granite quarries during the Great Famine, and it remains a small, tight-knit congregation serving Winterport and surrounding Penobscot County towns. Today the church offers a single weekly Sunday Mass in English and is supported by the larger merged parish, which was established in 2009. St. Gabriel continues its 170+ year tradition of Catholic worship along the Penobscot River under the Diocese of Portland in Maine.
- Established
- 1850
- Patron
- St. Gabriel the Archangel
- Rector
- Rev. Msgr. Andrew Dubois
- Diocese
- Diocese of Portland in Maine
Why belong here
St. Gabriel is a small, historic church where many parishioners know each other by name — several have worshipped here for decades and the choir even includes neighbors from other Christian traditions. As part of merged St. Paul the Apostle Parish, it offers a single, contemplative Sunday Mass in English along with access to seven-day Mass schedules, Confession, a Spanish Mass, an Adoration Chapel, parish school, faith formation, and the pastoral reach of a much larger Catholic family across Bangor, Brewer, Hampden, and Winterport. If you want a faithful Catholic presence rooted in 175 years of Penobscot River history and connected to one of Maine's most dynamic multi-campus parishes, St. Gabriel is a welcoming place to call home.
Mass times at St. Gabriel (St. Paul the Apostle Parish)
Weekly Mass schedule
St. Gabriel Church at a Glance
St. Gabriel Church is the Winterport worship site of St. Paul the Apostle Parish, a merged Catholic community serving Bangor, Brewer, Hampden, and Winterport, Maine. Located on South Main Street in the lower village, it offers one weekly Sunday Mass in English and remains a small, neighborhood-sized faith community within a much larger multi-campus parish family. Its patron, St. Gabriel the Archangel, gives the church its name and its feast day, September 29.
- Address: 435 South Main Street, Winterport, ME 04496
- Sunday Mass: 8:30 AM, English
- Pastor: Rev. Msgr. Andrew Dubois
- Diocese: Portland in Maine
- Music Director: Ellen Van Vranken
- Parish phone: (207) 217-6740
History: From Famine-Era Immigrant Mission to 175-Year Parish
St. Gabriel's story begins in the late 1840s when Irish Catholics fleeing the Great Famine settled along the Penobscot River to work the granite quarries around Winterport. Jesuit missionaries from Bangor — including the famous Father John Bapst, SJ — first said Mass in local homes, with the Reilly home doubling as the community's first church and rectory. A purpose-built church was begun in 1853 (the very year the Diocese of Portland was erected) and completed in 1854, though Bishop James Healy did not bless it in person until 1876. In 1877 the community was raised from mission status to its own parish, with missions reaching Belfast, Bucksport, Frankfort, and Searsport. The parish marked its 175th anniversary on September 29, 2024, with a Mass celebrated by Bishop James Ruggieri.
- Origins: Irish Famine-era immigrants of the late 1840s / early 1850s
- First worship site: home of James and Mary Reilly in the lower village
- Land acquisition and construction led by Fathers John Bapst, SJ, and Anthony Chiampi, SJ
- Church construction began: 1853
- First Mass in new church: 1854
- Blessing by Bishop James Healy: 1876
- Erected as its own parish (with missions in Belfast, Bucksport, Frankfort, Searsport): 1877
- 175th anniversary Mass celebrated by Bishop James Ruggieri on September 29, 2024
Becoming Part of St. Paul the Apostle Parish (2009)
In 2009, St. Gabriel Church joined five other Bangor-area Catholic churches — St. John, St. Mary, St. Joseph, St. Teresa, and St. Matthew — to form the merged St. Paul the Apostle Parish, headquartered at the Pastoral Center on York Street in Bangor. This canonical merger brought greater priestly and administrative resources to the Winterport community while preserving the local Sunday Mass and the historic identity of each worship site. St. Gabriel is the second-oldest church in the merged parish (after St. John, founded in 1832).
- St. Paul the Apostle Parish established: 2009
- Six worship sites: St. John (1832, Bangor), St. Mary (1872, Bangor), St. Gabriel (1850, Winterport), St. Teresa (1896, Brewer), St. Joseph (1926, Brewer), St. Matthew (1968, Hampden)
- Pastoral Center: 217 York Street, Bangor, ME 04401
Music Ministry at St. Gabriel
Music at St. Gabriel is led by Music Director Ellen Van Vranken, and the church hosts regular choir rehearsals. The parish-wide music program also includes directors at the other worship sites — Dr. Kevin Birch at St. John's and Michael Arell at St. Mary's — along with cantors, instrumentalists, a youth choir, a schola, and funeral choirs serving the entire multi-campus parish.
- St. Gabriel Music Director: Ellen Van Vranken
- Parish-wide directors include Dr. Kevin Birch (St. John) and Michael Arell (St. Mary)
- Opportunities for choir members, cantors, and instrumentalists across all six churches
Liturgical Ministries (Parish-Wide)
St. Paul the Apostle Parish offers a full range of lay liturgical roles at St. Gabriel and the other worship sites. Volunteers can choose the church where they serve and typically commit to one or two Masses per month. All volunteers must complete Protecting God's Children training and maintain ongoing Virtus compliance.
- Altar Servers
- Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion (EMHC)
- Greeters / Ushers
- Readers (Lectors)
- Sacristans
- Open to men, women, and youth (varies by role)
- Sign-ups through the parish office (217-6740)
Faith Formation, School, and Sacramental Preparation
Faith formation for the merged parish is coordinated by Dawn MacKay and supports St. Gabriel parishioners alongside the wider community. Catholic school education is provided through All Saints Catholic School, which operates on two campuses in Bangor under principal Johanna Lake. Sacramental records for all six churches are kept at the Pastoral Center in Bangor.
- Faith Formation Coordinator: Dawn MacKay (207-217-6584)
- All Saints Catholic School — St. Mary Campus (Pre-K – Grade 3), 768 Ohio Street, Bangor
- All Saints Catholic School — St. John Campus (Grades 4–8), 166 State Street, Bangor
- Principal: Johanna Lake
- Sacramental records archived at the Pastoral Center, 217 York Street, Bangor
Parish Staff and Pastoral Center
Pastoral and administrative staff for St. Gabriel and the wider St. Paul the Apostle Parish are based at the Pastoral Center on York Street in Bangor. The team includes clergy, deacons, school and formation leaders, a business administrator, and music directors across the campuses.
- Pastor: Rev. Msgr. Andrew Dubois
- Parochial Vicars: Rev. Ndukong Kilian; Rev. Matthew Valles
- SMA priests in residence: Rev. Alou Pilizue (Chaplain, St. Joseph Hospital); Rev. Michael Adebote (Chaplain, Northern Light EMMC)
- Deacons: Timothy R. Dougherty; Michael E. Whalen; Luis Sanclemente (Pastoral Life Coordinator)
- Director of Business Administration: Catherine Taft
- Faith Formation Coordinator: Dawn MacKay
- Pastoral Life Coordinator: Deacon Luis Sanclemente
- Music Directors: Kevin Birch (St. John); Michael Arell (St. Mary); Ellen Van Vranken (St. Gabriel)
- Director of Maintenance: Timothy MacKay
- Mount Pleasant Cemetery Director: Dave Lindemann
- Parish Office: 217 York Street, Bangor, ME 04401 — (207) 217-6740, Fax (207) 217-6730
Visiting and Getting Involved
St. Gabriel welcomes visitors and new parishioners, whether for Sunday Mass, joining one of the parish choirs, or signing up for a lay liturgical role. The worship site is reached from Route 1A north of Frankfort; the parish-wide office is just inside St. John Church at 217 York Street, Bangor. Joining the parish begins with a phone call to (207) 217-6740.
- St. Gabriel is located North of Frankfort on Route 1A in Winterport
- Parish Office (Pastoral Center): 217 York Street, Bangor, ME 04401
- Phone: (207) 217-6740
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.stpaulbangor.me
- Sunday Mass: 8:30 AM English at 435 South Main Street, Winterport