FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Carl Apple
[email protected]
616-475-1240 office, 616-826-9808 cell
NEW CATHOLIC PARISH PLANNED FOR CEDAR SPRINGS
GRAND RAPIDS, MI – Most Reverend Walter A. Hurley is pleased to announce that the
Diocese of Grand Rapids has purchased property for a new Catholic parish that will be located in
Cedar Springs in Kent County. Blessed John Paul II Parish will be located at 3110 17 Mile Road,
near US-131.
The property, which is the former home of Pioneer Christian Reformed Church, consists
of a church, church hall and rectory on about 2.9 acres. The diocese also purchased
approximately eight acres of adjacent vacant land that is part of a nearby industrial park located
at 13911 Northern Springs Drive. Once the new parish community has grown, there is sufficient
land for the construction of a new and larger church.
“This is part of the ‘Our Faith, Our Future’ pastoral planning process that we began in
2009,” said Bishop Hurley. “We are using the resources available to us to react to the changing
demographics of our faith community and provide services in areas where the population is
growing.”
The diocese officially purchased the 17 Mile Road property on January 24, 2013, but
waited to take possession of it until last week, so the former congregation could celebrate Easter.
St. Margaret of Scotland chapel in Harvard will continue to serve as a worship site until
renovations of Blessed John Paul II Church are completed at which time St. Margaret will
become a chapel of the new parish used for special events.
In the coming months, the public will be invited to take part in the planning and
organization of the new parish as a pastor is chosen, prior to the parish’s opening in early July.
More details will be released in the weeks ahead.
The Diocese of Grand Rapids, which encompasses an 11-county area of West Michigan, serves over
182,000 Catholics and 82 parishes as well as 27 elementary and four high schools with enrollment of
over 5,800 students. Connect with the diocese on Facebook (Diocese of Grand Rapids) and Twitter
(@GRDiocese). For additional information, visit the diocesan website, www.dioceseofgrandrapids.org.
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