About St. Michael · Watauga, South Dakota
St. Michael is a small Catholic mission parish in Watauga, a rural community in Corson County, South Dakota, within the Diocese of Rapid City. The mission is clustered with Sacred Heart in Morristown and St. Bonaventure in McIntosh as part of a single pastoral grouping administered by a priest-pastor based in Lemmon. St. Michael's faith community is tiny but devoted, sharing weekend Mass with neighboring Morristown and serving a wide stretch of the northern plains ranchland. The parish has produced priestly vocations for the Diocese of Rapid City, including seminarian Blane Schriock, who grew up in the Watauga faith community.
- Patron
- St. Michael the Archangel
- Rector
- Rev. Dan Juelfs
- Diocese
- Diocese of Rapid City
Why belong here
St. Michael is a small but warm rural Catholic mission that gathers the faithful of Watauga and the surrounding ranch country for weekend Mass in the alternating Saturday evening schedule with Morristown. The parish family has a strong vocational culture — multiple of its sons have gone on to seminary and priesthood for the Diocese of Rapid City — and parishioners can rely on a tight-knit cluster of neighboring missions (Sacred Heart in Morristown, St. Bonaventure in McIntosh, St. Mary in Lemmon) that share clergy, faith formation, and youth ministry. It's the kind of place where every face is known and the faith is lived out across the wide-open plains.
Mass times at St. Michael
Weekly Mass schedule
About St. Michael Parish
St. Michael is a Catholic mission church in Watauga, South Dakota, served by the Diocese of Rapid City. As a mission, it has never had a resident priest; instead it is grouped with the nearby Lemmon/Morristown/McIntosh parishes and cared for by an Administrator. Mass is celebrated on Saturday evenings, alternating each week with Sacred Heart in Morristown. The parish is listed in the Diocese of Rapid City Official Directory under Deanery 1.
History & Vocations
St. Michael has always been a small mission parish in the northern plains ranch country. Despite its size, it has produced an outsized share of vocations: the Diocese of Rapid City has publicly noted that St. Michael in Watauga, alongside Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Martin and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, has given the diocese multiple priestly vocations, including seminarian Blane Schriock, who was featured in a 2024 diocesan Archives Office article.
- 2001–2003: Bishop Steven Biegler (later Bishop of Cheyenne) served St. Michael in Watauga along with St. Bernard (McLaughlin), St. Bonaventure (McIntosh), St. Aloysius (Bullhead), Assumption of the BVM (Kenel) and St. Bede (Wakpala).
- 2010–2011: Bishop Biegler served as Diocesan Administrator of Rapid City.
- 2024: Seminarian Blane Schriock (St. Michael, Watauga) visited the diocesan Archives Office to study his home parish's history.
Pastoral Leadership & Staff
St. Michael is administered as part of a cluster with the Lemmon, Morristown and McIntosh parishes. The Diocese of Rapid City 2020 Official Directory lists the following for the cluster's Watauga contact:
- Rev. Dan Juelfs — Administrator (phone 374-3767, cell 850-4843, [email protected])
- Loyson and Lori Carda — Secretary (phone 347-3767)
- Loyson Carda — Safe Environment Coordinator ([email protected])
- Carol Kling — RCIA Coordinator (374-5639, [email protected])
- Jenny Dirk — Youth Ministry Coordinator (374-5909, [email protected])
Mass & Worship Schedule
St. Michael celebrates Mass on Saturday evenings at 6:00 PM (Mountain Time), alternating each week with Sacred Heart in Morristown. This rotating schedule lets the priest-pastor serve several mission communities on the prairies while giving each one regular weekly Mass. Visitors are advised to confirm current times with the parish office, since rural mission schedules can shift with the seasons.
- Saturday — 6:00 PM (alternates weekly with Sacred Heart, Morristown)
- Rite: Roman-Latin
- Language: English
Cluster Parishes & Vicariate
St. Michael belongs to a cluster of small northern-plains missions staffed by a single priest-pastor based in Lemmon. Each mission in the cluster retains its own identity and worship schedule, and they share faith formation, RCIA, youth ministry and safe-environment coordination.
- Lemmon — St. Mary (parish base)
- Morristown — Sacred Heart (alternates Saturday evening Mass with Watauga)
- McIntosh — St. Bonaventure
- Watauga — St. Michael
Diocese of Rapid City
St. Michael is one of 85 churches in the Diocese of Rapid City, which covers western South Dakota and is led since June 25, 2024 by Bishop Scott Edward Bullock. The diocese's vocation director has publicly celebrated St. Michael's strong vocation culture alongside Our Lady of the Sacred Heart in Martin and the Cathedral of Our Lady of Perpetual Help in Rapid City.
- Diocese: Diocese of Rapid City
- Current Bishop: Most Rev. Scott Edward Bullock (since June 25, 2024)
- Parish ID: GCatholic 36711
- Deanery: 1
Getting Involved
Because St. Michael is a small mission, parishioners are invited to share in every dimension of parish life — liturgy, faith formation, and the practical upkeep of the church and grounds. The cluster provides formal coordinators for RCIA, youth ministry and safe-environment training.
- RCIA — contact Carol Kling (374-5639)
- Youth Ministry — contact Jenny Dirk (374-5909)
- Safe Environment — contact Loyson Carda ([email protected])
- Cluster Secretary — Loyson and Lori Carda (347-3767)
Visit & Contact
St. Michael sits on 1st Avenue East in the tiny community of Watauga, South Dakota 57660, in the ranch country west of Mobridge. The cluster's parish office phone — (605) 374-3767 — reaches the Administrator's rectory in Lemmon and is the best way to confirm current Mass and confession times before traveling out.
- Address: 1st Ave. E, Watauga, SD 57660
- Phone: (605) 374-3767
- Website: http://www.rapidcitydiocese.org/location/watauga-st-michael/
- Nearby churches: Sacred Heart, Morristown (~14 km); St. Bonaventure, McIntosh (~15 km)
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Bishop Steven Biegler2001–2003
Served St. Michael in Watauga along with St. Bernard (McLaughlin), St. Bonaventure (McIntosh), St. Aloysius (Bullhead), Assumption of the BVM (Kenel), and St. Bede (Wakpala). Later Diocesan Administrator of Rapid City (2010–2011) and now Bishop of Cheyenne.
- Rev. Dan Juelfsas of 2020 directory
Listed as Administrator of the Lemmon/Morristown/Watauga/McIntosh cluster; contact number 374-3767, email [email protected].