About St. Pius X · Hale, Michigan
St. Pius X is a Roman Catholic parish in Hale, Michigan, part of the Diocese of Gaylord. It is a small, family-style parish sharing pastoral leadership with its sister church, St. Stephen of Hungary in nearby Prescott. Together the two parishes — administered under the umbrella site holythree.org — serve the rural Catholic communities of Iosco County and the surrounding Au Gres / Au Sable area, with Mass celebrated on Saturdays at 4:00 PM and Sundays at 9:00 AM. The parish is pastored by Father Artur F. Duchnowicz, assisted by Deacon Brent Hemker, and offers Reconciliation, a Knights of Columbus council, a food pantry, prayer chain, and homebound ministry as part of its regular parish life.
- Established
- 1955
- Patron
- St. Pius X (Pope St. Pius X)
- Rector
- Rev. Artur F. Duchnowicz
- Diocese
- Diocese of Gaylord
Why belong here
St. Pius X is a welcoming rural parish where the same faces — and the same pastor — care for a faithful, family-friendly community across a wide stretch of northern Michigan. Members can attend weekend Mass at either the Saturday 4:00 PM vigil or Sunday 9:00 AM liturgy, take advantage of Saturday afternoon Reconciliation, grow in faith through weekly Tuesday Bible Study, and serve neighbors through the Knights of Columbus, the parish food pantry, the prayer chain, and the homebound ministry. With its deep roots in Hale since 1955 and its expanded mission following the 2025 merger of nearby St. James, St. Pius X offers a rare combination of small-parish intimacy, faithful Catholic tradition, and active outreach.
Mass times at St. Pius X
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 3:30 PM (at St. Pius X)
About St. Pius X Parish
St. Pius X is a small Catholic parish rooted in the rural community of Hale, Michigan, in Iosco County. The parish has served Catholic families along M-65 and the Au Sable River corridor since 1955 and is part of the Diocese of Gaylord. It operates in close partnership with St. Stephen of Hungary in Prescott, and both communities are reached through the shared parish website, holythree.org. The parish is known for its warm, intimate scale — a place where priests, deacons, and parishioners know one another by name, and where rural outreach (homebound visits, food pantry, prayer chain) is a natural part of parish life.
- Founded in 1955 in the Diocese of Saginaw (now Diocese of Gaylord).
- Part of the Oscoda-region pastoral cluster serving northeastern Lower Peninsula Catholics.
- Sharing ministry and staff with St. Stephen of Hungary, Prescott.
History
Established in 1955, St. Pius X was created to serve Catholics in the small towns between Tawas and West Branch, an area long served by missionaries and visiting priests before its own parish was erected. As the region developed, the parish absorbed mission territory including the former St. Francis of Assisi in Glennie. For decades St. Pius X has been part of a multi-parish cluster with St. James (Whittemore), Sacred Heart (Oscoda), and Holy Family (East Tawas). The parish's sister church, St. Stephen of Hungary in Prescott, has shared pastors and administrative resources with St. Pius X, and the two today operate under a single online presence at holythree.org.
- 1955 — Parish established.
- Mid-20th century — St. Francis of Assisi, Glennie transitions into St. Pius X (Diocese of Gaylord sacramental records).
- 2025 — Bishop Jeffrey J. Walsh decrees extinctive union of St. James, Whittemore into St. Pius X, effective September 28, 2025.
- Father Artur F. Duchnowicz named pastor of the consolidated community.
2025 Merger with St. James, Whittemore
In September 2025, Bishop Jeffrey J. Walsh of the Diocese of Gaylord issued a formal decree uniting the territory and membership of St. James Parish in Whittemore with St. Pius X in Hale. The action, which took effect at the close of Sunday, September 28, 2025, was prompted by declining priest availability, the inability to continue catechetical programs, financial unsustainability, and demographic shifts. St. James had shared a pastor with St. Pius X for more than 30 years. All sacramental registers, assets, and liabilities of St. James were transferred to St. Pius X, and Father Artur F. Duchnowicz was confirmed as pastor of the resulting consolidated parish, with the St. Pius X church building as the single worship site for the combined Catholic community.
Clergy and Staff
St. Pius X is led by a small pastoral team shared with its sister parish, St. Stephen of Hungary in Prescott. The pastor oversees both communities, supported by a deacon, a parish secretary, and additional staff and volunteers who assist with liturgy, faith formation, and outreach.
- Rev. Artur F. Duchnowicz — Pastor
- Deacon Brent Hemker
- Karol Shellenbarger — Secretary (St. Pius X)
- Elizabeth Hartman — Secretary/Bookkeeper (St. Stephen)
- Sharren Engle — staff (parish contact)
Bible Study and Adult Faith Formation
The parish offers a monthly Bible Study program open to all adults, meeting on Tuesdays from 6:00 to 7:00 PM. Sessions are scheduled throughout the calendar year, giving parishioners a regular opportunity to read and pray with Scripture together and to grow in knowledge of the Catholic faith.
- Bible Study — Tuesdays 6:00–7:00 PM
- Monthly sessions typically: Jan 20, Feb 17, Mar 17, Apr 28, May 19, Jun 16, Jul 29, Aug 19, Sep 16, Oct 21, Nov 18, Dec 16
Parish Ministries and Organizations
St. Pius X supports a range of lay-led ministries that strengthen parish life and extend Catholic service into the wider Hale community. Members are invited to participate through the parish office.
- Knights of Columbus — Grand Knight: James Szafran (St. Pius X)
- Parish Food Pantry
- Prayer Chain
- Homebound Ministry
- Right to Life / Pregnancy Centers — Susan Doyen
- Funeral Lunches (contact parish office)
- Council of Catholic Women — Chris Nuttall, President (St. Stephen, partner parish)
Outreach and Charity
Rooted in the rural nature of Iosco County, St. Pius X's outreach emphasizes practical, neighbor-to-neighbor care: bringing Holy Communion to the homebound, sustaining a parish food pantry, supporting local pregnancy centers and the right-to-life cause, and feeding families at funeral lunches. The Prayer Chain connects parishioners who are unable to attend Mass with the spiritual support of the parish community.
- Homebound visits and Communion calls
- Food Pantry assistance
- Right to Life and Pregnancy Center support
- Prayer Chain for sick and homebound parishioners
- Funeral lunches
Sacraments
St. Pius X celebrates the standard sacraments of the Roman Catholic Church. Reconciliation is offered weekly before the Saturday vigil; baptisms, weddings, anointing of the sick, and other pastoral needs are coordinated through the parish office.
- Reconciliation — Saturday 3:30 PM
- Baptism — preparation and scheduling via the parish office
- Marriage — couples contact the parish office for preparation
- Anointing of the Sick — by request through the parish office
Visiting and Contact Information
St. Pius X's parish office is staffed part-time during the week. The easiest way to reach the parish is by phone at (989) 728-2278; messages and emails received through the website's contact form are routed to the appropriate staff member.
- Address: 3901 N. M-65, Hale, MI 48739
- Phone: (989) 728-2278; Fax: (989) 728-7487
- Office Hours: Mon 8:30 AM–12:30 PM; Tue 9:00–11:00 AM; Wed 9:00 AM–Noon; Thu 9:00 AM–Noon; Fri by appointment
- Website: http://www.holythree.org
Partner Parish: St. Stephen of Hungary, Prescott
St. Pius X shares its pastor and many ministries with St. Stephen of Hungary in Prescott, Michigan, about twenty miles to the southwest. Both parishes are administered from the same office and share the holythree.org website, giving the Catholic faithful of rural Iosco County a unified parish family across two worship sites.
- St. Stephen of Hungary — 2811 Greenwood Rd., Prescott, MI 48756
- St. Stephen phone: (989) 873-3340; Fax: (989) 873-5209
- Office Hours: Mon & Tue 9:00–11:00 AM; Wed 9:30 AM–2:30 PM
- Elizabeth Hartman — Secretary/Bookkeeper
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Artur F. Duchnowicz
Current pastor; named pastor of St. Pius X and the consolidated community following the 2025 merger of St. James, Whittemore into St. Pius X.