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St. Hedwig Catholic Church 129 29th Ave NE |
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St. Hedwig Catholic Church 129 29th Ave NE |
The roots of St. Hedwig Parish trace back through the fifty years of its life to the seed that fell alongside of its parental tree, Holy Cross parish of Minneapolis, which had been flourishing in God's vineyard since 1886, three years after establishment of the first Polish parish in the United States by the Franciscan missionary Father Leopold Maczgemba, O.F.M. in San Antonio, Texas. At the beginning of the twentieth century, the influx of new members into Holy Cross parish grew steadily in proportion, creating problems of absorption, accommodation, and mutual cooperation. It was in the year 1912, when the immigration of Polish families to Minneapolis was at its peak and overflowing the capacity of Holy Cross church (the original Polish Catholic church in the city), causing serious overcrowding in the parish school, that the idea was conceived of organizing another Catholic parish in the extreme northeast part of Minneapolis.
Under the direction of Reverend Henry Jazdzeski, pastor of Holy Cross parish, the task of organizing the new parish was begun. Meetings were held among parishioners who live dint he north end of the First Ward of the city. So that hey might be close to their work, Catholic families had settled in this residential peninsula bounded by lumber years, sawmills, flourmills, and by the Mississippi River on the west. The zeal of these pioneers was high, and their hopes were speedily transformed into action. With the consent of Archbishop John Ireland, the organizers purchased ten lots in the North Town Addition Block 6 for the sum total of twelve hundred dollars. The site selected for the new church was located on 29th Avenue between Grand and Randolph Streets, Northeast. On March 6, 1914, the parish was incorporated under the name of the Church of St. Hedwig. The articles of incorporation were signed by Archbishop John Ireland as President; Reverend Ambrose Kryjewski, Pastor of Holy Cross, as Vice-President; Mr. Leon Jedlinski, Secretary; Mr. Izydor Job, Treasurer. For the forty-eight families that comprised the nucleus of the newly formed parish, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in the Holy Cross school hall on Sunday, September 14, 1914, by Father Kryjewski. But within a month, St. Hedwig parishioners began to realize their hope fo a church building for their parish. Because financial problems of the time dictated economy in new ventures, a frame building formerly occupied by St. Clement Catholic church at Quincy Street and Lowry Avenue was purchased and moved to the new parish property to be used y St. Hedwig parishioners as their first house of worship. It was here that the Reverend Maximilian Klesmit, assistant pastor at Holy Cross, offered the first parish Mass on Christmas Day, 1914. After a few months under the temporary guidance of Reverend Anthony Szczukowski, St. Hedwig parishioners welcomed Father Klesmit as their first appointed pastor on May 27, 1915. This was the memorable day on which Father Klesmit began the devoted service which was to go on ceaselessly for half a century, a service marked by a spirit of sacrifice. A rented house, wherever it was available, served as lodging for the pastor through the first years until, by 1918, the parish had built a comfortable rectory adjoining to the church.
But faith, as all virtue, must be tested and tempered by fire. For St. Hedwig Parish, this was to prove a literal truth in July, 1919. Tragedy struck the young parish in the form of a fire of unknown origin that destroyed the greater part of the wooden church. For several months after the disaster parishioners gathered for the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass within the charred ruins of their first church. But their faith and zeal proved equal to the trial. All joined wholeheartedly to achieve a new objective - a new and more permanent place of worship. Within six months the present church-school building was erected. History came to a joyful spiral as the first pastor of the parish again celebrated the first Mass in the new St. Hedwig church on December 25, 1919.
In the new church building, it was now possible to organize an elementary school. St. Hedwig parochial school was opened in 1920, staffed by the Sisters of St. Francis of Sylvania, Ohio, who had been coming weekly from Holy Cross parish to teach catechism in St. Hedwig church from 1915, to 1920. From the day of its opening, St. Hedwig school has provided a sound Catholic education for its children without once closing its door for any emergency, nor had it ever been without the ministration of the Franciscan Sisters who cultivated its first seedling. In 1925, a parish convent for the Sisters was buldt on Randolph Street in close proximity to the school. Five Sisters of St. Francis presently staff the school, whose enrollment now stands at one hundred and eighteen pupils.
The fruits of a Catholic education have been evident in the activity and zeal of both the younger and the mature members of the parish. Organization of parish societies, sodalities, and clubs has marked the progressive growth of the parish in numbers and in Catholic activity. Six parish organizations presently channel the active zeal and endurance of St. Hedwig parishioners.
In recent years, despite the geographical limitations of the parish, it has shown appreciable growth and consequent increase in attendance at liturgical services. From the original group of forty-eight families who comprised the membership of the pioneer parish in 1914, the number has grown to 160 families of Polish descent who make up the St. Hedwig parish body today. Lack of space is becoming an increasingly serious problem, one which has led to the consideration of building a new parish church and converting the present one into additional classrooms. The pressing need of a parish hall likewise has been give thoughtful consideration.
History is a chronological account, and in the recounting, any one decade, half-century or century is merely a convenient period of time. The significant, permanent history of a parish is not to be read in calendar years, in organizational excellence, nor in financial triumphs over difficulties and challenges. Rather it is to be read in the spiritual life and growth of its members, of the parish laity who are its living body. In this light, the history of St. Hedwig parish shows that it has been highly favored by God. It has been greatly blessed with lay leaders of exceptional personality and capability. In a world where great numbers of people show themselves spiritually inadequate to meet the challenges which confront them, St. Hedwig has produced outstanding noble characters who have left an indelible imprint on their immediate environment. By the grace of God St. Hedwig will continue in the future to be a small parish great in the spiritual stature of its members.