About St. Mary · Flint, Michigan
St. Mary is a Catholic mission church on the east side of Flint, Michigan, at 2500 N. Franklin Ave. Long one of the historic Irish-founded parishes of the city, it was merged into St. John Vianney Parish by decree of the Bishop of Lansing effective October 31, 2017; the Franklin Avenue building retains its title as an oratory and continues to serve as an auxiliary place of worship. Today it is part of the collaborative Catholic Community of Flint (alongside St. John Vianney, St. Matthew and St. Michael), and its campus is the home base for a vibrant missionary outreach run by the Servants of God's Love sisters — including a much-loved summer youth camp for neighborhood children.
- Established
- 1918 (chapel); parish formally served from 1919; present church dedicated 1955
- Patron
- Blessed Virgin Mary (St. Mary)
- Rector
- Father Thomas Firestone (pastor of the consolidated Catholic Community of Flint, which includes St. Mary Oratory)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Lansing
Why belong here
St. Mary Mission is the Catholic Church's home base for missionary outreach on Flint's east side. Parishioners and friends find here a Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m., a warm neighborhood-based faith community, and a campus where the Servants of God's Love sisters run summer youth camps, a year-round youth group, door-to-door outreach, ecumenical PraiseFest events and Eucharistic processions into the surrounding streets. It is a place to belong, serve and walk with families facing real hardship.
Mass times at St. Mary
Weekly Mass schedule
St. Mary Mission at a Glance
St. Mary (2500 N. Franklin Ave., Flint, MI 48506) is one of four worship sites in the collaborative Catholic Community of Flint. While it is canonically an oratory of St. John Vianney Parish as of October 31, 2017, the church continues to host Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m. along with weekday Masses. The parish office can be reached at (810) 232-4012, with office hours Monday 9:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m., Thursday 9:00 a.m.–4:30 p.m., and Friday 11:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m. Visitors are asked to check the bulletin and calendar for seasonal schedule changes (Easter, Christmas, Holy Days of Obligation).
- Sunday Mass: 9:00 a.m.
- Weekday Masses Monday–Wednesday and Friday at 8:00 a.m.
- Saturday Vigil 4:00 p.m.
- Parish office: 810-232-4012
History
St. Mary traces its beginnings to 1918, when a chapel was rented on Franklin Avenue for the Polish community of Murray Hill — though in practice the congregation that formed was Irish. Father Laurence Soest was sent in 1919 and served until his death in 1961, overseeing the building of a new church (1921), rectory and school. The growing parish dedicated a larger church in 1955, which remains the present-day worship space.
- 1918: chapel rented on Franklin Ave.
- 1919: Fr. Laurence Soest arrives as first pastor
- 1921: first church dedicated
- 1955: present-day church dedicated
St. Mary's School
Opened in September 1925 by the Sisters of St. Joseph from Nazareth with four grades, the school was expanded in 1928 with four more classrooms and one of the area's first gymnasium/auditorium combinations. It graduated its first high school class in 1930 and educated generations of Flint Catholics, including longtime state representative Dale Kildee (class of 1947). The high school closed in 1970 as area parishes consolidated into Powers Catholic High School; the grade school closed in 1992, and after more than twenty years of varied reuse the building was eventually demolished following a special Mass.
- Founded September 1925
- High school closed 1970
- Grade school closed 1992
- Later demolished after a special farewell Mass
The 2017 Merger
Facing decades of decline in Flint's population and Catholic Mass attendance, the Diocese of Lansing consolidated the city's parishes. In April 2017 the St. Mary Parish Council, with their pastor Father Thomas Firestone, requested merger with St. John Vianney Parish, designating the Franklin Avenue church as an oratory. Bishop Boyea decreed the merger (unio extinctiva) effective October 31, 2017. The consolidated parish retained the name St. John Vianney, with St. Mary's church continuing as an auxiliary worship site — used especially for outreach to the east side.
- Decree to merge issued by Bishop Boyea
- Effective October 31, 2017
- St. Mary designated an oratory of St. John Vianney Parish
- Father Thomas Firestone continued as pastor of the consolidated parish
Mission and Outreach
St. Mary Mission is best known today for its mission to Flint's east side, an area affected by poverty, unemployment, the water crisis, and loss of population. The parish campus hosts the Servants of God's Love sisters and is the home of the diocese's Faith in Flint initiative, which coordinates the Catholic response to the city's needs — including door-to-door outreach, ecumenical events, and direct service to families.
- Faith in Flint initiative
- Door-to-door visitation on the east side
- Ecumenical partnerships with other Flint churches
Flint Summer Youth Mission
For nearly a decade, St. Mary Mission has hosted a free Summer Youth Camp for about 100 neighborhood children ages 4 to 13, supported by teenage volunteers who travel from Christ the King parish in Ann Arbor (the sister parish of the Catholic Community of Flint). The camp runs Mondays from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. across four weeks each summer (recently June–July), offering games, meals, friendship and faith formation. Sister Rachel Benjamin, of the Servants of God's Love, coordinates the program as Youth Outreach Director. A year-round youth group has grown up for kids who 'graduate' from the summer camp.
- Free four-week summer day camp
- Mondays 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
- Run by Sister Rachel Benjamin (SGL)
- Supported by teen volunteers from Christ the King, Ann Arbor
PraiseFest and Community Events
St. Mary's also hosts PraiseFest, an annual ecumenical praise event drawing around 200 residents from across Flint to worship together across denominations and musical styles. Organized by Sister Christina Frey (pastoral associate at St. Mary's Mission) in partnership with the Flint Registry, the event has featured Church Without Walls praise dance, the Christ the King gospel choir, a Spanish band, and the St. Mary's Church musicians. St. Mary's, Church Without Walls and other churches regularly go door-to-door together to make sure families know about available resources in the community.
- PraiseFest (annual ecumenical event)
- Door-to-door resource outreach
- Monthly Eucharistic procession into the neighborhoods
Mass and Service Schedule
The published liturgical schedule at St. Mary Oratory includes a Sunday Mass at 9:00 a.m., Saturday Vigil at 4:00 p.m., and weekday Masses Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday at 8:00 a.m. The parish bulletin and calendar should be consulted for seasonal adjustments (Easter, Christmas, Holy Days of Obligation).
- Sun 9:00 a.m.
- Sat Vigil 4:00 p.m.
- Mon–Wed, Fri 8:00 a.m.
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Laurence Soest1919 – death in 1961
Founding pastor; built the 1921 church, rectory and school.
- Rev. Thomas FirestoneAppointed 2015; pastor of the consolidated parish at and after the October 31, 2017 merger
Pastored all four Flint parishes together; led Faith in Flint initiative; oversaw the merger into St. John Vianney Parish with St. Mary's becoming an oratory.