About St. Mary Queen of Heaven · Peebles, Ohio
St. Mary Queen of Heaven is a small Roman Catholic parish located at 205 Wendell Avenue in Peebles, Adams County, Ohio. Founded in 1952, it is one of four worship sites that together form the Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family in the rolling hills of southern Ohio's Adams and Highland Counties. The parish is part of the Archdiocese of Cincinnati and shares pastoral leadership with Holy Trinity (West Union), St. Benignus (Greenfield), and St. Mary (Hillsboro). Worship is celebrated in a modest, intimate setting three times a week, with the faithful also able to follow Mass via a free livestream on Twitch.
- Established
- 1952
- Patron
- Mary, Queen of Heaven (Blessed Virgin Mary under the title of Queen of Heaven)
- Rector
- Fr. Michael A. "Mike" Paraniuk
- Diocese
- Archdiocese of Cincinnati
Why belong here
St. Mary Queen of Heaven offers a small, intimate Catholic community in Peebles with a manageable weekly schedule: Sunday Mass, plus two weekday Masses, and the convenience of confession before Wednesday Mass or by request. As part of the Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family, the parish is supported by four worship sites and a robust team of priests, so worshippers benefit from both a quiet, hometown parish feel and the broader ministries of the larger family—including OCIA (formerly RCIA), parish faith formation, Knights of Columbus, and a free livestream of Mass for those unable to attend in person.
Mass times at St. Mary Queen of Heaven
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Wednesday before Mass (around 9:00 AM, per Discover Mass 9:00 AM–9:30 AM)
- Available upon request
Welcome to St. Mary Queen of Heaven
St. Mary Queen of Heaven is the Catholic parish serving the village of Peebles in Adams County, Ohio. Tucked into the Appalachian foothills of southern Ohio, the parish shares its home with one of the four churches that make up the Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family. Whether you live in Peebles year-round, are visiting family in Adams County, or are passing through on S.R. 32 or S.R. 41, you are warmly invited to join the small but faithful community for Sunday or weekday Mass.
Parish History
St. Mary Queen of Heaven was established in 1952 to bring Sunday Mass and the sacraments to the Catholic families of Peebles and the surrounding hills. Although younger than many of the area's old Society of the Most Precious Blood parishes, it shares the same missionary heritage of Catholicism in Adams County and continues that legacy today. In the Archdiocese of Cincinnati's 'Beacons of Light' reorganization, the parish was joined with Holy Trinity (West Union), St. Benignus (Greenfield), and St. Mary (Hillsboro) under the umbrella of the Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family.
Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family
St. Mary Queen of Heaven is one of four worship sites in the Our Lady of the Hills Catholic Family, a 'Beacons of Light' parish family in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati covering Adams and Highland Counties. The four sites — St. Mary Queen of Heaven (Peebles), Holy Trinity (West Union), St. Benignus (Greenfield), and St. Mary (Hillsboro) — share priests, ministries, and resources so that every Catholic in the area has access to Mass, confession, formation, and outreach.
- Pastor: Fr. Michael A. "Mike" Paraniuk (937-403-2510)
- Parochial Vicars: Fr. Adam Lewis, Fr. Scott Morgan, Fr. Masilamani "Masi" Suvvakin
- Family website: https://ourladyofthehillsoh.com
- Family Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61565871562111
- Fr. Mike's sermons on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@ourladyofthehills
Parish Staff & Contacts
Because St. Mary Queen of Heaven shares administration with Holy Trinity in West Union, the parish office is reached through the Holy Trinity line. Faith formation, OCIA, music, Knights of Columbus, St. Vincent de Paul, and pro-life contacts are coordinated at the family level.
- Parish phone: (937) 544-2757
- Parish email: [email protected]
- Pastor (Our Lady of the Hills): Fr. Mike Paraniuk, 937-403-2510
- OCIA: Joyce Combs & Cindy Sprauer, 937-403-6708
- Faith Formation / Evangelization / Safe Environment: Michelle Vanzant Salyer, 937-840-9932, [email protected]
- Knights of Columbus (Grand Knight Jim Hehl): 937-661-4835
- Pro-Life Representative: Mary Tamborski, 937-205-4458
Sacraments
The parish celebrates the seven Catholic sacraments and prepares parishioners for each in the context of the broader Our Lady of the Hills family. Confession is regularly scheduled on Wednesdays before Mass and is also available on request.
- Eucharist: Sunday 8:00 AM; Wednesday 9:00 AM; Friday 8:30 AM
- Confession: Wednesday before Mass, or upon request
- Baptism: contact the parish office to schedule
- Marriage: contact the parish office for preparation
- OCIA (adult initiation): contact Joyce Combs or Cindy Sprauer, 937-403-6708
Parish Ministries
Even as a small parish, St. Mary Queen of Heaven participates in the wider ministry network of the Our Lady of the Hills family. Lay faithful are active in spiritual, charitable, and formation programs that reach out to neighbors in Adams and Highland Counties.
- Knights of Columbus — faith, fraternity, and service for Catholic men
- St. Vincent de Paul — works of charity for those in need
- OCIA — Order of Christian Initiation of Adults (formerly RCIA)
- Parish School of Religion / Faith Formation for children
- Choir / Music ministry
- Pro-Life ministry
- Safe Environment program for the protection of children and vulnerable adults
Adams County Catholic Heritage
St. Mary Queen of Heaven is rooted in the rich Catholic mission history of Adams County. The wider region was evangelized in the 1840s by Father Francis de Sales Brunner and his communal Society of the Most Precious Blood, whose German-speaking settlers founded a chain of 'cross-tipped churches' across western Ohio and into Indiana. Holy Trinity Parish in nearby West Union and the historic Irish Settlement church — built when Irish members of Holy Trinity split off in the late 1800s — are part of that same Catholic heritage.
- Adams County was settled by German Catholic missionaries from the Society of the Most Precious Blood beginning in the 1840s.
- Holy Trinity Parish in West Union is one of the historic parishes in the region.
- St. Mary Queen of Heaven (Peebles, est. 1952) continues that Catholic presence today as part of the Our Lady of the Hills family.