St. Henry

Parish Identity & Patron

St. Henry Parish in Dayton, Ohio, is named for St. Henry, the Holy Roman Emperor (Henry II), whose feast day is celebrated on July 13. The parish regularly marks this feast with community festivities, including an annual pig roast that kicks off the parish's anniversary celebrations. Each year the patron's witness is preached at weekend Masses, including the parish's own Feast Day Homily, which emphasizes Henry's legacy as a just ruler and patron of the poor.

History

St. Henry Parish traces its origins to July 1960, when the Archdiocese of Cincinnati established it with 150 families to serve the growing south Dayton area. Following an initial chapel Mass schedule in the rectory and Sunday Mass at a nearby school, a combination school-and-church building opened in 1962 on a site chosen about a mile south of the original (flood-prone) location. By 1970 the parish had grown to 1,000 families with 600 students in religious education. In 1973 St. Henry School and Our Lady of Good Hope School merged to form Bishop Leibold School — one of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati's first consolidated Catholic schools.

• 1960 — Parish founded with 150 families
• 1962 — Combination school-and-church building opens (church on second floor)
• 1970 — Parish reaches 1,000 families; 600 students in religious education
• 1973 — Bishop Leibold School formed by consolidation with Our Lady of Good Hope (Miamisburg)
• 1980 — Capital campaign launched for a new church
• 1982 — Current church dedicated
• c. 1988 — Church construction debt paid off
• 1996 — Parish activity center opened, named for Father Lawrence Mierenfeld
• 2010 — 50th anniversary celebrated with Mass by Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr
• Present — Operating as part of the St. John Paul II Family of Parishes

Worship & Sacraments

St. Henry offers a full schedule of weekend and weekday Masses, Saturday confession, and Eucharistic Adoration. The parish is one of three campuses of the St. John Paul II Family of Parishes, and Mass schedules are coordinated across the family. Confession is regularly scheduled before the Saturday Vigil Mass, and Eucharistic Adoration is offered on Sunday mornings.

• Sunday Mass: 8:00 AM, 10:30 AM, 6:00 PM
• Saturday Vigil Mass: 5:00 PM
• Tuesday Mass: 7:00 AM
• Wednesday Mass: 9:00 AM
• Friday Mass: 9:00 AM
• Confession: Saturday 4:00–4:45 PM
• Eucharistic Adoration: Sunday 9:30–10:15 AM

Faith Formation & School

Catholic education has been central to St. Henry's identity since the first combined school-and-church building opened in 1962. Ursuline Sisters from Cincinnati taught at St. Henry School and lived in a parish-built convent. After the 1973 consolidation, students from both St. Henry and Our Lady of Good Hope (Miamisburg) continue to be served by Bishop Leibold School. The parish also runs a robust parish-based religious education program, which at its 1970 peak enrolled 600 students, and RCIA / adult faith formation continues to bring new members into the Church.

• Bishop Leibold School (co-formed by St. Henry in 1973)
• Parish religious education program
• RCIA / adult faith formation
• Ursuline Sisters of Cincinnati (former school staff and residents on campus)

Pastoral Leadership

St. Henry's pastoral leadership has been provided by priests of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati. Father Thomas Shearer served as pastor beginning in 2003 and was still pastor at the time of the 2010 golden anniversary, when he was assisted by parochial vicar Father Ron Combs. Earlier pastors include Father Martin Gilligan, who helped mentor younger priests, and Father Lawrence Mierenfeld, in whose honor the 1996 parish activity center was named. Today, Father Martin Fox serves as Pastor of the entire St. John Paul II Family of Parishes, which unites St. Henry with St. Mary of the Assumption and Our Lady of Good Hope.

• Father Martin Fox — current Pastor (St. John Paul II Family of Parishes)
• Father Thomas Shearer — Pastor from 2003; led 50th anniversary
• Father Ron Combs — Parochial Vicar at 50th anniversary
• Father Martin Gilligan — former Pastor
• Father Lawrence Mierenfeld — former Pastor; parish activity center namesake

Outreach & Mission

Outreach has long been a defining mark of St. Henry's faith community. The parish raised more than $200,000 toward building a medical clinic in Haiti, and parishioners regularly donate food, supplies, and time to local outreach efforts. In the 1960s, charter member Jack Schockman helped launch a parish blood bank — among the earliest such efforts in a Catholic parish in the Dayton area.

• Haiti medical clinic mission (>$200,000 raised)
• Parish blood bank (founded in the 1960s)
• Food and supply drives
• Parishioner hospitality for parish-wide events

Parish Life & Community

Parishioners often describe St. Henry as large enough to be vibrant yet small enough that people know one another. The parish hosted a 2010 anniversary pig roast, a slideshow of parish photos, a speaker series during Lent 2011, and ongoing ministries across generations. A parish council, pastoral associate staff (including longtime charter-member pastoral associate Mary Ehret), and lay-led ministries support parish life.

• Parish Council
• Pastoral Associate ministry (Mary Ehret, charter member)
• Feast Day Pig Roast (each July 13)
• Anniversary photo / oral history project
• Hospitality and fellowship events

St. John Paul II Family of Parishes

St. Henry is one of three campuses of the St. John Paul II Family of Parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, alongside St. Mary of the Assumption and Our Lady of Good Hope. The family is led by Father Martin Fox as Pastor and is part of the Dayton Deanery. Together, the three parishes share resources for faith formation, youth ministry, sacramental preparation, and pastoral care across south Dayton, Miamisburg, and the surrounding area.

• St. Henry campus (Dayton / Miami Township)
• St. Mary of the Assumption campus
• Our Lady of Good Hope campus (Miamisburg)
• Family Pastor: Father Martin Fox
• Diocese: Archdiocese of Cincinnati (Dayton Deanery)

Contact & Location

St. Henry Parish is located on Springboro Pike in southern Dayton, with a Miamisburg mailing address. The church serves Miami Township, Miamisburg, Centerville, and nearby communities along the Ohio 741 corridor. Phone inquiries are welcomed at the parish office.

• Address: 6696 Springboro Pike, Dayton, OH 45449
• Phone: (937) 434-9231
• Website: www.sthenryparish.com
• Family-of-parishes site: www.stjohnpaulii.org