About St. Joseph the Worker · Moore Haven, Florida
St. Joseph the Worker Parish is a Roman Catholic parish in the small community of Moore Haven, in Florida's rural Glades County, within the Diocese of Venice. Founded in 1960–61 through the efforts of a handful of pioneer families, it is the area's first Catholic parish and today worships in both English and Spanish, with two of its weekly Masses celebrated in Spanish for the surrounding agricultural and ranching community. The parish is presently led by Rev. Remigious Ssekiranda as Administrator and continues to serve Moore Haven and the lake region along US Highway 27 and Lake Okeechobee's western shore.
- Established
- 1961
- Patron
- St. Joseph the Worker
- Rector
- Rev. Remigious Ssekiranda (Administrator, per the official Diocese of Venice parish page)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Venice in Florida (Eastern Deanery)
Why belong here
St. Joseph the Worker is a welcoming, bilingual Catholic family in rural Glades County that celebrates the faith in both English and Spanish, with two Spanish Masses each week alongside its Sunday English Mass and a Lenten weekday Mass. Rooted in the sacrifice of five founding families who gave twenty acres of pastureland in 1961, it is a small but close-knit parish whose ministries include faith formation (CCD), prison ministry at Glades County Prison and the CCA State Prison, and outreach to seasonal workers — including a winter Mass at Benbow Camp (November–May). For Catholics in Moore Haven, Lakeport, and the surrounding agricultural communities along US-27, it offers an accessible, dignified, and historically rich place to worship.
Mass times at St. Joseph the Worker
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 6:30 PM (per the Diocese of Venice parish page)
- Anytime by calling the parish office (per older parish listing)
Parish Identity and Patron — St. Joseph the Worker
St. Joseph the Worker Parish in Moore Haven is named for St. Joseph under the title 'the Worker,' the same devotion Pope Pius XII elevated in 1955 by instituting the Memorial of St. Joseph the Worker on May 1. The Diocese of Venice highlights the parish as one of several diocesan churches and missions that honor St. Joseph, alongside St. Joseph Parish in Bradenton, San Jose Mission in Fort Myers, and the Campo San Jose Retreat Center in Lake Placid. Devotion to St. Joseph as the humble carpenter of Nazareth and guardian of families is reflected in the parish's identity as a hard-working, family-centered community rooted in rural Glades County.
- Patron: St. Joseph the Worker
- Feast day: May 1
- Diocese of Venice parish honoring St. Joseph
History of the Parish
The parish traces its origins to a chance encounter in 1960 between Monsignor Beerhalter and Margaret Van De Velde at her family's Lakeport store. Their friendship led Margaret to deed twenty acres of pastureland near US-27 and SR-78 in March 1961. Together with five founding families, the small community built a church that Archbishop Coleman Carroll of Miami dedicated in July 1961. Visiting priests served the mission for two decades until Father Bill Romero became the first resident Pastor in 1982.
- 1960 — Monsignor Beerhalter meets Margaret Van De Velde in Lakeport
- March 1961 — Van De Velde family donates 20 acres for the parish
- July 1961 — Original church dedicated by Archbishop Coleman Carroll of Miami
- 1982 — Father Bill Romero becomes first resident Pastor
Growth and the New Church (1991–2000)
Father Emilian Swiatecki arrived as Pastor in November 1991 and, working from a tiny trailer that shook when trucks passed, transformed the parish property. He built CCD classrooms, a back patio, a grotto honoring the Blessed Virgin Mary, and a new rectory blessed on June 24, 1996. He then spearheaded the fundraising for a new church that opened with Christmas Eve Mass on December 24, 1999 and was formally dedicated by Bishop John J. Nevins on February 20, 2000.
- November 1991 — Father Emilian Swiatecki becomes Pastor
- June 24, 1996 — New rectory blessed
- December 24, 1999 — First Mass in the new church
- February 20, 2000 — Church dedicated by Bishop John J. Nevins
Clergy and Staff
The Diocese of Venice parish-listing page currently names Rev. Remigious Ssekiranda as Administrator of St. Joseph the Worker. The Diocese of Venice's 'Year of St. Joseph' history article also identifies Father Marcial Garcia as pastor of the parish. Together they continue the line of priests — including Monsignor Beerhalter, Father Bill Romero, and Father Emilian Swiatecki — who have shaped this small Glades County community since 1961.
- Rev. Remigious Ssekiranda — Administrator
- Rev. Marcial Garcia — Pastor
- Office contact: (863) 946-0696 / [email protected]
Religious Education and Sacraments
The parish offers a CCD / Religious Education program on Saturday evenings to form the children of the community in the Catholic faith. Baptism is celebrated by appointment, and the parish office coordinates First Communion, Confirmation preparation, Anointing of the Sick, and Marriage preparation.
- Religious Education (CCD) — Saturdays 6:00 PM
- Baptism — by appointment
- Anointing of the Sick — contact parish office
- Marriage — contact parish office
Prison Ministry
An important apostolate of St. Joseph the Worker is its prison ministry, which sends clergy and volunteers into two correctional facilities each Thursday to bring Mass and the sacraments to incarcerated Catholics in Glades County.
- Glades County Prison — Thursday 1:30 PM
- CCA State Prison — Thursday 6:00 PM
Parish Grounds and Facilities
The 20-acre campus along US Highway 27 includes the current church building (dedicated February 20, 2000), the rectory blessed in 1996 which doubles as a small chapel for daily Mass and offices, CCD classrooms, a back patio, and the Blessed Virgin Mary grotto added under Father Swiatecki.
- Current church — dedicated Feb. 20, 2000
- Rectory / daily Mass chapel — blessed June 24, 1996
- CCD classrooms and meeting space
- Blessed Virgin Mary grotto
- Back patio
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Monsignor Beerhalter1960–1961
Driving through Lakeport in 1960, he met Margaret Van De Velde and helped launch the parish; she deeded 20 acres in March 1961.
- Father Bill Romero1982 – September 1991
First resident Pastor of the parish; previously served only by visiting priests.
- Father Emilian SwiateckiNovember 1991 – c. late 1990s/2000
Built CCD classrooms, back patio, the Blessed Virgin Mary grotto, and the rectory (blessed June 24, 1996); raised funds for the new church that opened Christmas Eve 1999 and was dedicated Feb. 20, 2000.
- Father Marcial Garcia
Identified as the current pastor of the parish in the Diocese of Venice's 'Year of St. Joseph' history article.
- Rev. Remigious Ssekiranda
Listed as Administrator on the current Diocese of Venice parish-listing page.