About St. Ignatius · Neodesha, Kansas
St. Ignatius Parish is a small Roman Catholic congregation serving the town of Neodesha in southeast Kansas. It is one of two parishes — alongside Sacred Heart in nearby Fredonia — served jointly by Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer, whose mailing address and main parish office are in Fredonia. The Diocese of Wichita directory lists the parish at 74 families and 189 individual Catholics, a community that gathers each Sunday morning at 8:30 a.m. for Mass and supports a parish cemetery on the north end of the city cemetery northwest of town.
- Established
- 1946
- Patron
- St. Ignatius of Loyola
- Rector
- Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer
- Diocese
- Diocese of Wichita
Why belong here
St. Ignatius is a tight-knit small-town Catholic parish that offers a full Sunday Mass, weekday Masses, the sacraments, and ongoing faith formation for children — including a Parish School of Religion that meets right after the Sunday Mass with doughnuts and coffee. Members are supported by active lay organizations (Altar Society, Men's Catholic Organization, Catholic Youth Ministry) and a pastor who also serves the neighboring Sacred Heart community, giving St. Ignatius a stable, sustained pastoral presence in southeast Kansas.
Mass times at St. Ignatius
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- 30 minutes before each Mass
- By appointment
Adoration times
- First Friday: Exposition and Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament from 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. (offered at Sacred Heart, Fredonia)
About St. Ignatius Parish
St. Ignatius Catholic Church is a small parish serving Neodesha, Kansas, in Wilson County. It is one of two parishes served by Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer — the other being Sacred Heart in Fredonia — and shares its parish secretary, office operations, and bulletins with that parish through the joint website sacredheartks.org. The Diocese of Wichita lists 74 registered families and 189 individual Catholics in the parish.
- Patron: St. Ignatius of Loyola (feast day July 31)
- Diocese of Wichita parish
- Address: 801 N. 8th St., Neodesha, KS 66757
- Mailing: P.O. Box 186, Neodesha, KS 66757
- Phone: 620-325-5215
Faith Formation — Parish School of Religion (PSR)
St. Ignatius runs a Parish School of Religion for the parish's children. Classes meet each Sunday of the school year immediately after the 8:30 a.m. Mass, and parishioners and visitors are invited to share in doughnuts and coffee following Mass — a simple weekly rhythm that ties faith formation directly to the Sunday liturgy.
- PSR classes: each Sunday during the school year, after 8:30 a.m. Mass
- Doughnuts and coffee available for parishioners and visitors
Parish Organizations
Lay life at St. Ignatius is supported by several parish organizations. These groups are the backbone of parish fellowship, service, and youth ministry, and they collaborate with the parallel organizations at Sacred Heart, Fredonia.
- Altar Society
- Men's Catholic Organization
- Catholic Youth Ministry (CYM)
Sacraments
The parish celebrates the seven sacraments either at St. Ignatius or in coordination with the cluster. Couples preparing for marriage are asked to contact the parish office a year in advance of the wedding date; families seeking Baptism, Anointing of the Sick, or other sacraments are likewise invited to contact the parish office.
- Baptism — contact parish office
- Penance — 30 minutes before Mass or by appointment
- Anointing of the Sick — contact parish office
- Matrimony — contact parish office a year in advance
Parish Cemetery
St. Ignatius maintains a Catholic cemetery located on the north end of the Neodesha city cemetery, northwest of town. After years without a marker, the parish installed a sign identifying the Catholic ground — a notable act of stewardship of the parish's heritage and a help to visitors seeking the resting places of loved ones buried from the parish.
- Location: north end of Neodesha city cemetery, northwest of town
- New parish sign installed to mark the Catholic section
Parish Office and Staff
The parish is staffed by a pastor shared with Sacred Heart, Fredonia, and a part-time parish secretary based at St. Ignatius. Office hours are limited mid-week, so callers are encouraged to plan accordingly.
- Pastor: Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer
- Parish Secretary: Vicky Gutchenritter
- Office hours: Tuesday 1–3 p.m., Wednesday 1–3 p.m., Thursday 1–3 p.m.
- Office closed July 14–19
History and Heritage
Cause IQ's nonprofit records place St. Ignatius's formal year of formation at 1946. Through the 1990s the parish was a visible part of Catholic life in Wilson County — funeral notices from that period record vigils, rosaries, and burial Masses at the church with burial in the Neodesha Catholic Cemetery, and name the Altar Society and the church building fund. Today the parish continues that heritage as a small but active faith community within the Diocese of Wichita.
- Founded/incorporated: 1946
- Operates under the USCCB group exemption
- Long-running parish cemetery in the Neodesha city cemetery
- Currently clustered with Sacred Heart, Fredonia, sharing one pastor
Pastor — Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer
Rev. Stuart M. Smeltzer has served as Parochial Administrator — and now Pastor — of both Sacred Heart, Fredonia, and St. Ignatius, Neodesha, since 2021. Born July 12, 1965 and ordained May 25, 1996 for the Diocese of Wichita, he previously served as assistant at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, Wichita; chaplain for the diocesan Scouting Program; studied at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C.; served as Defender of the Bond and Vice Chancellor in the diocesan Chancery; and pastored parishes in Hutchinson, Little River, Wichita, and Conway Springs.
- Ordained: May 25, 1996, Diocese of Wichita
- Born: July 12, 1965
- Parochial Administrator of Sacred Heart, Fredonia, and St. Ignatius, Neodesha, since 2021
- Currently also serves the diocesan Tribunal Office