About St. Mary · Milaca, Minnesota
St. Mary's Catholic Church in Milaca, Minnesota is a parish of the Diocese of St. Cloud and part of the Four Pillars in Faith Area Catholic Community (ACC), which also includes St. Louis Bertrand in Foreston, St. Kathryn's in Ogilvie, and St. Mary's in Mora. The parish currently numbers roughly 182 families and 420 registered members across Kanabec and Mille Lacs Counties. It offers Sunday Mass at 8:00 a.m., a Thursday daily Mass, and a beloved First Saturday Mass with confessions, rosary, and devotions. Liturgical and pastoral life is served by a pastor, a parish associate, a deacon, faith formation staff, an ACC-wide music director, and a long-tenured administrative assistant.
- Established
- 1954
- Patron
- The Blessed Virgin Mary (Assumption of Mary)
- Rector
- Father Timothy Gapinski
- Diocese
- Diocese of St. Cloud
Why belong here
St. Mary's Milaca is a welcoming rural parish rooted in more than 70 years of Catholic life in Mille Lacs County, with a faithful that knows its priests and staff by name. The parish offers the full rhythm of Catholic life — Sunday and weekday Mass, a monthly First Saturday devotion with confessions, rosary, and devotions, faith formation for all ages, RCIA, and a music ministry led by an ACC-wide Sacred Music–trained director. As part of the Four Pillars in Faith ACC, St. Mary's joins with neighboring parishes in Eucharistic processions, family faith formation, retreats, and social events like Sunday socials after Mass.
Mass times at St. Mary
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- First Saturday of the month, 8:00–8:45 a.m. at St. Mary's, Milaca (before the 9:00 a.m. First Saturday Mass)
Adoration times
- Eucharistic Adoration is offered at St. Anne's Chapel (Foreston) within the Four Pillars in Faith ACC; weekly adoration is also available at other parishes in the ACC. A specific St. Mary's Milaca adoration slot is not posted on the public schedule.
Parish History
St. Mary's was founded in 1954 when Bishop Bartholome purchased the former Harmonia Hall and the neighboring Westling home in Milaca for use as a church and rectory. Father Richard John, O.S.C., a Crosier, was appointed as the first pastor on July 22, 1954, and celebrated the parish's first Mass on the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary that August. A new church at the present site was opened on January 13, 1957; the present-day church was built in 1993–1994 and dedicated on Pentecost by Bishop Jerome Hanus, O.S.B. The original 1957 building now serves as classrooms, offices, parish hall, and kitchen.
Four Pillars in Faith Area Catholic Community
St. Mary's Milaca is one of four parishes in the Four Pillars in Faith ACC, alongside St. Louis Bertrand in Foreston, St. Kathryn's in Ogilvie, and St. Mary's in Mora. The ACC spans Kanabec and Mille Lacs Counties in the eastern part of the Diocese of St. Cloud and serves about 1,162 Catholics across roughly 582 families. The parishes share a pastor, parish associate, music director, faith formation programming, a combined bulletin and directory, and events like Sunday socials, Lenten soup dinners, joint confirmations and retreats, and Eucharistic processions on Corpus Christi.
- St. Louis Bertrand — Foreston
- St. Mary's — Milaca (182 families, 420 members)
- St. Kathryn's — Ogilvie
- St. Mary's — Mora (182 families, 381 members)
- St. John's Area School in Foley (Pre-K through 6th grade; St. Louis Bertrand is a contributing member)
Mass & Service Schedule
St. Mary's Milaca celebrates Sunday Mass at 8:00 a.m. and a Thursday daily Mass (7:00 a.m. April through September; 8:00 a.m. October through March). The parish hosts the popular monthly First Saturday Mass at 9:00 a.m., preceded by confessions from 8:00 to 8:45 a.m., a rosary at 8:30 a.m., and followed by First Saturday Devotions. Holy Day Masses are scheduled as announced, and Masses are livestreamed via the Four Pillars YouTube channel.
- Sunday — 8:00 a.m.
- Thursday — 7:00 a.m. (Apr–Sep) / 8:00 a.m. (Oct–Mar)
- First Saturday — 9:00 a.m. (Confessions 8:00–8:45 a.m.; Rosary 8:30 a.m.; Devotions follow Mass)
- Holy Days — As scheduled
First Saturday Devotion
On the first Saturday of each month, St. Mary's hosts a special morning of devotion: confessions from 8:00 to 8:45 a.m., the rosary at 8:30 a.m., Mass at 9:00 a.m., and the First Saturday Devotions following Mass — fulfilling the Five First Saturdays devotion associated with the apparitions at Fatima. The parish has noted that no First Saturday Mass or Confessions will be offered on June 6, 2026.
Parish Staff
The parish is led by Pastor Father Timothy Gapinski, who was assigned to the Four Pillars in Faith ACC in 2023 after serving as pastor of St. Michael in St. Cloud and St. Joseph in Waite Park, and as parochial vicar at St. Anthony, Holy Spirit, and St. John Cantius in St. Cloud. Father Gapinski is a U.S. Army veteran with a 16-month deployment to Iraq and was ordained for the Diocese of St. Cloud in 2014. He is assisted by a parish associate, Deacon Ken Rosha (who also serves part-time as a chaplain at Country Manor Campus in Sartell), faith formation director Rita Olson (Director of Faith Formation since 2016 and Eucharistic Adoration coordinator since 1998), ACC Music Director Hannah Miller, long-time Administrative Assistant Kris Archibald (on staff since 2003), and custodian Mary Ziegler (on staff since 1985).
- Father Timothy Gapinski — Pastor (since 2023)
- Parish Associate (name not published on the public staff page)
- Deacon Ken Rosha
- Rita Olson — Faith Formation Director / RCIA
- Hannah Miller — Music Director for the ACC (Sacred Music, University of Mary '21)
- Kris Archibald — Administrative Assistant (since 2003)
- Mary Ziegler — Custodian (since 1985)
Faith Formation & Religious Education
St. Mary's Milaca offers lifelong, youth, and family faith formation across the ACC, coordinated by Director of Faith Formation Rita Olson, who has led the program since 2016 and has coordinated Eucharistic Adoration at St. Anne's Chapel since its inception in 1998. The parish runs RCIA for adults preparing to enter the Catholic Church and supports family catechesis, retreats, and Sacramental preparation. The ACC has prioritized strengthening youth engagement and Eucharistic spirituality as part of the National Eucharistic Revival, including Corpus Christi Eucharistic processions at St. Mary's Milaca.
- Family Faith Formation programs
- RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults)
- Sacramental preparation
- Youth and young adult programming
- Eucharistic Revival initiatives (Corpus Christi procession at St. Mary's Milaca)
Music & Liturgy
Music for the liturgies at St. Mary's and across the Four Pillars in Faith ACC is directed by Hannah Miller, who was raised in Browerville, Minnesota, and graduated in 2021 with a degree in Sacred Music from the University of Mary in Bismarck. A multi-instrumentalist (piano, violin, organ, voice, and guitar), Hannah has been playing for Masses since she was 12 and now brings her vocation to leading worship across the four parishes of the ACC. Masses are also livestreamed via the ACC's YouTube channel for those who cannot attend in person.
- Hannah Miller — Music Director for the ACC
- Livestream Mass via the Four Pillars YouTube channel
Seminarians & Vocations
St. Mary's Milaca is helping to form future priests for the Diocese of St. Cloud. Fr. Nathaniel Daubner, ordained in 2025 from Saint Paul Seminary, lists the Four Pillars in Faith ACC — and specifically St. Mary's in Milaca and St. Louis Bertrand in Foreston — as his home parish. The ACC actively supports vocations through seminarian contact, diocesan events, and youth engagement.
- Fr. Nathaniel Daubner (home parish: Four Pillars in Faith ACC / St. Mary's, Milaca)
Parish Life & Community Events
Beyond the Sunday liturgy, the parish and ACC nurture community through Sunday socials after Mass in Milaca, Saturday dinners in Foreston, Lenten soup dinners in Ogilvie, joint confirmations and retreats, and a combined bulletin and directory used across all four parishes. The ACC also identifies strengthening youth engagement, improving communication, fostering a culture of prayer and reflection, and expanding outreach and charitable efforts as its pastoral priorities.
- Sunday socials after Mass (Milaca)
- Combined parish bulletin and directory
- Joint confirmations and retreats
- Lay-led groups and activities
Contact & Visit
St. Mary's Milaca invites all to visit. The parish office is staffed at 645 3rd Avenue SE, Milaca, MN 56353, reachable at 320-983-3255 or [email protected]. Fr. Timothy Gapinski can be reached at [email protected], and the Faith Formation office at [email protected] or 320-983-6564. Mass is livestreamed on the Four Pillars YouTube channel for those unable to attend in person.
- 645 3rd Avenue SE, Milaca, MN 56353
- Phone: 320-983-3255
- Email: [email protected]
- Pastor email: [email protected]
- Faith Formation: [email protected] — 320-983-6564
- Website: fourpillarsinfaith.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Father Richard John, O.S.C.1954–
First pastor; Crosier priest appointed by Bishop Bartholome on July 22, 1954. Celebrated the first Mass on the Solemnity of the Assumption of Mary, 1954.
- Father Timothy Gapinski2023–present
Current pastor of the Four Pillars in Faith ACC; previously pastor of St. Michael, St. Cloud and St. Joseph, Waite Park, and parochial vicar at St. Anthony, Holy Spirit, and St. John Cantius in St. Cloud.