About St. Vincent de Paul · Springfield, South Dakota
St. Vincent de Paul Parish is a small Roman Catholic parish serving the community of Springfield, in Bon Homme County, South Dakota. It is part of the Diocese of Sioux Falls and is clustered into the St. Martin of Tours Pastorate, which links eight parishes across southeastern South Dakota, including Sacred Heart and St. Benedict in Yankton and St. Leo the Great in Tyndall. The parish meets weekly at its church at 1203 Wood Street and offers a Saturday Vigil Mass and Sunday Mass, along with Saturday confessions. Springfield is a small college town (home to the former Springfield College, now part of the University of South Dakota system), and the parish's identity is closely tied both to the local farming community and to the Newman Center that was built alongside the church in the early 1970s.
- Established
- 1880
- Patron
- St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660), French priest and patron saint of charities
- Rector
- Rev. Thomas Anderson (Pastor, St. Martin of Tours Pastorate)
- Diocese
- Diocese of Sioux Falls
Why belong here
St. Vincent de Paul offers the small-town Catholic community of Springfield a faithful weekly presence with a Saturday Vigil Mass, a Sunday Mass, and regular Saturday confessions — a rare and welcome rhythm of sacramental life for a rural parish. As part of the Diocese of Sioux Falls' St. Martin of Tours Pastorate, it is supported by a team of priests and shares the Catholic life of seven sister parishes, while still retaining its own parish identity at 1203 Wood Street. The parish has long served both the local farming community and the students of Springfield's college, and parishioners find a welcoming, familiar worshipping community rooted in the same faith that has been celebrated here since 1880.
Mass times at St. Vincent de Paul
Weekly Mass schedule
Confession times
- Saturday 5:15 PM – 5:45 PM
History of St. Vincent de Paul Parish
Catholic life in Springfield goes back to 1880, when the first parish in the area was established. That early church was destroyed by a tornado in 1940. The following year, a church was moved into Springfield from Running Water, South Dakota, and the community became a mission of St. Leo the Great in Tyndall. When a new church was built in Tyndall, the Springfield mission was closed in 1948 and local Catholics worshipped in Tyndall for nearly a quarter century.
- 1880 — First Springfield Catholic parish established
- 1940 — Tornado destroys the church
- 1941 — Running Water church relocated to Springfield; becomes mission of St. Leo the Great, Tyndall
- 1948 — Springfield mission closed; Catholics travel to Tyndall
- 1972 — New St. Vincent de Paul church and Newman Center built and dedicated under Bishop Lambert Hoch and Msgr. Leonard Zwinger
Parish Identity and Patron Saint
The parish is named for St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660), the French priest known for his lifelong dedication to serving the poor and founding organizations of charity. He is the patron saint of charities, and his feast day is September 27. The parish's name places it in a long Catholic tradition of honoring the saint whose spiritual children — the Vincentians and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul — continue his work of charity around the world.
- Patron: St. Vincent de Paul (1581–1660)
- Patronage: patron saint of charities
- Feast day: September 27
The Newman Center at Springfield
When the new church was built and dedicated in 1972, it was accompanied by a Newman Center serving the students of Springfield's local college — a reflection of the parish's longstanding ministry to Catholic students in this small college town. The Newman Center has been part of the parish's identity from the beginning of the current church era.
- Built and dedicated 1972 alongside the church
- Ministers to Catholic students of Springfield's college
- Under the same leadership of Bishop Lambert Hoch and Msgr. Leonard Zwinger
St. Martin of Tours Pastorate (Pastorate 14)
St. Vincent de Paul Parish is one of eight parishes in the Diocese of Sioux Falls' St. Martin of Tours Pastorate (Pastorate 14). Sharing pastoral ministry across several parishes allows the diocese to keep small rural parishes like St. Vincent's alive with regular sacramental life while connecting them to a wider Catholic community across southeastern South Dakota.
- St. Boniface — Idylwilde
- St. John the Baptist — Lesterville
- St. George — Scotland
- St. Vincent de Paul — Springfield
- St. Wenceslaus — Tabor
- St. Leo the Great — Tyndall
- Sacred Heart — Yankton
- St. Benedict — Yankton
- Pastorate office: 1500 St. Benedict Dr., Yankton, SD 57078
Clergy of the St. Martin of Tours Pastorate
The St. Martin of Tours Pastorate is served by a pastor supported by several parochial vicars who help provide Mass, sacraments and pastoral care across the eight parishes, including St. Vincent de Paul in Springfield. Rev. Joseph T. Forcelle, who served as pastor of St. Leo the Great, Tyndall and St. Vincent de Paul, Springfield, transitioned to senior status effective July 2, 2024.
- Rev. Thomas Anderson — Pastor, St. Martin of Tours Pastorate
- Rev. Joseph T. Forcelle — Parochial Vicar (now senior status, effective July 2, 2024)
- Rev. Robert Lacey — Parochial Vicar
- Rev. Darin Schmidt — Parochial Vicar
- Rev. Thi Pham, SCJ — Parochial Vicar
Diocese of Sioux Falls
St. Vincent de Paul Parish is a parish of the Diocese of Sioux Falls, the Roman Catholic diocese covering the eastern part of South Dakota. The diocese is led by Bishop Donald E. DeGrood and groups its parishes into pastorates for collaborative ministry. St. Vincent's belongs to St. Martin of Tours Pastorate (Pastorate 14), one of sixteen pastorates in the diocese.
- Diocese: Diocese of Sioux Falls
- Bishop (as of assignment changes July 2, 2024): Most Reverend Donald E. DeGrood
Visit, Contact and Location
Parishioners and visitors can find St. Vincent de Paul Church at 1203 Wood Street in Springfield, South Dakota. The parish phone number is (605) 589-3504. Springfield is a small city in Bon Homme County, in southeastern South Dakota along the Missouri River region.
- Address: 1203 Wood Street, Springfield, SD 57062
- Phone: (605) 589-3504
- Diocesan website: sfcatholic.org
Pastors & rectors through the years
- Rev. Joseph Forcellethrough July 2, 2024
Listed as Pastor of St. Leo the Great, Tyndall and St. Vincent de Paul, Springfield in the Diocese of Sioux Falls 2022 assignment changes; transitioned to senior status July 2, 2024.