Click for Ave Maria, Florida Forecast

The Ave Herald

Serving the community of Ave Maria, Florida

Home

New, Larger Catholic Church Announced for Immokalee

olg-400Bishop Frank Dewane told delighted parishioners at Our Lady of Guadalupe parish in Immokalee over the weekend that there are plans to build a new Catholic Church that will double the capacity of the current building.

The new structure will hold more than 1,000 people, the diocese said in a statement, almost as many as the Ave Maria oratory to its south.

Our Lady of Guadalupe Parish Administrator Carlos Reyes-Rameriezsaid that the prospect of having a new church is a dream come true for the priests and for the community. "This community cannot thank Bishop Dewane and the entire Diocese enough for helping to make this possible."

bishop-200As part of the project, the existing church, which was dedicated in 1989, will be converted into a parish hall, and the diocese plans a parish center where religious education classes can take place for the ethnically-diverse parish that offers weekend Masses in English, Spanish and Creole.

The diocese said construction is planned to begin in about a year with completion of the entire project another year after that.

"This is such wonderful news for this faith-filled community," Bishop Dewane said. "It is with the joy of Jesus Christ to know that with the construction of the new church and pastoral facilities the pastoral needs of the growing and diverse Immokalee Catholic community will be better served for many years to come."

Right, Bishop Dewane with parishioners after announcing the new church Sunday (photo by David Campbell). At top, an artist rendering of the new church provided by the diocese.

 

Looking for the truth about
what Ave Maria is really like?
So much of what has been
reported is wrong.
Click for the most
oft-repeated myths about
Ave Maria and the reality.