St. Thomas Aquinas

About St. Thomas Aquinas Parish

St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Parish served the South Buffalo neighborhood of Buffalo, New York from 1920 until its closing Mass on November 9, 2024. The parish was born during the Irish-American migration that grew South Buffalo into a streetcar suburb and was one of the most architecturally celebrated Catholic complexes in Western New York. Since 2008 it shared its pastor with neighboring St. Martin of Tours and, in its final years, was part of the Catholic Family of South Buffalo.

History of the Parish

Founded in 1920 under Bishop William Turner with Rev. Eugene B. Regan as first pastor, the parish moved from the struggling All Souls mission on Mystic Street to a site at Abbott Road and Athol Street. The first Mass was celebrated in a temporary church on July 4, 1920. Within three years Father Regan had built a $200,000 school (1923) and broken ground for a permanent rectory, completed in October 1928. Plans for a larger permanent church were deferred through the Depression and World War II; ground was broken in 1949 on the present Umbrian Romanesque church, designed by Stickle, Kelly & Stickle and completed in June 1951.

• 1920 – Parish founded; first Mass on July 4 in temporary church.
• 1923 – New $200,000 parish school opens.
• 1928 – Permanent rectory completed.
• 1949 – Ground broken on the present Umbrian Romanesque church.
• 1951 – Current church completed (architect: Stickle, Kelly & Stickle).
• 2008 – 'Journey in Faith and Grace' links St. Thomas Aquinas with St. Martin of Tours under a shared pastor.
• 2017 – St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Church Complex listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
• 2024 – Final Mass celebrated Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 11:30 AM; parish merged into St. Teresa's.

Our Staff

The parish was served by a small team led by its pastor, a deacon, a parish coordinator, a pastoral associate, a director of music, and a parish records administrator. Staff often served both St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Martin of Tours under their linking arrangement.

• Pastor: Rev. William J. (Fr. Bill) Quinlivan
• Deacon: Daniel Denecke
• Parish Coordinator: Barbara Ryan
• Pastoral Associate: Dawn Iacono
• Director of Music (linked parishes): Laura Lawless
• Parish Records: Barb Krause
• CFSB Director of Faith Formation: Cheryl McNerney

Faith Formation & Religious Education

Faith Formation for children in grades 1 through 9 (plus Confirmation preparation) took place through the home parish, and the parish also ran the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA) for adults seeking full communion with the Catholic Church. Adult Confirmation was offered year-round for anyone who missed the sacrament as a teen.

• Faith Formation for Grades 1–8
• Grade 9 and Confirmation preparation
• First Reconciliation and First Eucharist preparation
• Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA)
• Adult Confirmation (sessions year-round)
• Contact: parish office (716) 822-1250 or Dawn Iacono

Music & Liturgy

Liturgical music at St. Thomas Aquinas was led by Music Director Laura Lawless, who had been making music in the parish's sacred setting since 2001 — first as a cantor and trumpet player, then as choir director, pianist, organist and ultimately Music Director for the linked St. Martin of Tours / St. Thomas Aquinas community. She is also co-founder of The South Buffalo School of Music and operates Sound Solutions of WNY.

• Director of Music for the linked parishes: Laura Lawless
• Cantor and choir program
• Instrumental music including organ, piano, and trumpet
• Sunday Mass livestream for those at home

Ministries & Volunteering

The parish regularly invited new volunteers into liturgical and hospitality roles. Faith Formation teachers, music ministers, lectors and Eucharistic ministers served the parish weekend Masses and daily liturgies.

• Altar Servers
• Eucharistic Ministers (4–6 used at weekend Masses; 1–2 at daily Masses)
• Lectors
• Music Ministry
• Ushers
• Hospitality / Greeters

Sacraments & Sacramental Records

Parish Coordinator Barbara Ryan helped schedule Baptisms, weddings and funerals, and Parish Records lead Barb Krause maintained the sacramental registers. Letters of recommendation for Confirmation sponsors and Godparents were issued from the parish office.

• Baptism
• First Reconciliation and First Eucharist
• Confirmation (teen and adult)
• Marriage / Weddings
• Funeral Masses
• Communion to the Sick and Homebound
• Letters of Recommendation (Godparents / Sponsors)
• Records of St. Thomas Aquinas (1920–2024) now held by St. Teresa's, Buffalo

Architecture of the Church Complex

The St. Thomas Aquinas Roman Catholic Church Complex is one of the architectural treasures of South Buffalo. The 1951 church, designed by Stickle, Kelly & Stickle, is in the Umbrian Romanesque style, directly modeled on the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome. An arcaded courtyard, an Italian Romanesque Revival school (George Dietel, 1922–1923) and a matching rectory surround the church, framing an outdoor altar and a sculpted statue of St. Thomas Aquinas by Julia Porcelli. The interior holds a large mosaic mural of Saints Thomas Aquinas and Bonaventure, mosaic Stations of the Cross from the San Pietro Mosaic Factory in Rome, and the only set of stained-glass windows in Buffalo by the Dutch artist Joep Nicolas. The complex was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.

• Umbrian Romanesque church, 1949–1951 — Stickle, Kelly & Stickle
• Pink, orange and white Tennessee quartzite (crab orchard stone) façade, red tile roof
• Arcaded cloisters connecting church, campanile, rectory, and former school
• Statue of St. Thomas Aquinas by Julia Porcelli in the courtyard
• Italian Romanesque Revival school (1922–1923, George Dietel; addition 1956–1957, William Trautman)
• Rectory in Italian Romanesque Revival style (1928)
• Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017

South Buffalo & the Closing of the Parish

In June 2024 the Diocese of Buffalo announced its 'Road to Renewal' plan, designating St. Thomas Aquinas to merge with St. Teresa's parish. The parish held its Final Mass on Saturday, November 9, 2024 at 11:30 AM, after which Father Bill Quinlivan led a procession with the Blessed Sacrament to St. Teresa's, where benediction and a reception followed. Sacramental records and ongoing parish life moved to St. Teresa's parish on Seneca Street.

• June 2024 – 'Road to Renewal' designates St. Thomas Aquinas to merge with St. Teresa's.
• Saturday, November 9, 2024, 11:30 AM – Final / Closing Mass.
• Procession with Blessed Sacrament to St. Teresa's; benediction follows.
• Parish trustees Thomas Sullivan and Barbara Fitzgerald welcomed the standing-room-only farewell congregation.
• Sacramental records (1920–2024) now housed by St. Teresa's, Buffalo.

Contact & Parish Office

• Address: 450 Abbott Road, Buffalo, NY 14220
• Phone: (716) 822-1250
• Email: [email protected]
• Website: StThomasBuffalo.com
• Parish Office Hours: Mon 8:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.; Tue & Thu 9:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.; Wed 8:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m.; Fri–Sun CLOSED