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ST. CLAIR SHORES — St. Lucy Catholic Church celebrated its 69th anniversary with parishioners and guests at their mass on Jan. 26.
St. Lucy was built back in 1956 and, according to the Rev. Jim Commyn, it was one of the parishes built during the building boom in the 1950s. It started as a mission for St. Joan of Arc Church. The city’s oldest parish, Commyn said, was St. Gertrude Roman Catholic Church, which is no longer there.
“The chapel in American House is dedicated to St. Gertrude’s,” Commyn said. “So I think there’s a plaque there. That would have been the 1800s.”
St. Joan of Arc was built next followed by St. Isaac Jogues Catholic School and St. Lucy and St. Margaret of Scotland Church. Commyn said the parishes in the northern end of St. Clair Shores would have been built later than that.
The church had an adjoining school which is now closed. Currently, the school hosts the St. Clair Shores Police Department and Fire Department administrative offices while construction is ongoing at their central buildings.
Commyn did not know how many parishioners the church started out with.
“But if it was like with most places, there were a hundred kids on every block and so everybody had a school at that point,” Commyn said.
He estimated there’s 513 families who attend the church.
“Most of them are older and they’ve been here for a while,” Commyn said.
He started at the church in 2005.
“I’ve been here almost 20 years and have watched everything sort of ebb and flow,” Commyn said.
He listed off events he’s seen affect the parish, including the housing crisis and the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We’ve been through a great deal in my tenure,” Commyn said.
Though he’s seen hard times within the community, Commyn said it’s been interesting to see the church growing and evolving.
“I think we’re at a good point in our history as we kind of move forward,” Commyn said.
He continued saying that St. Lucy — and other parishes in the area — need to remain conscious of welcoming others from the surrounding neighborhoods.
“St. Clair Shores itself is sort of regentrifying and so there’s all sorts of little kids and we just need to welcome them,” Commyn said.
St. Clair Shores Fire Chief James Piper said he knows the parish has been a big part of the community and that they’ve also been a great partner with the Fire Department. He said it was nice to be invited to their anniversary service.
“It’s always great that institutions like this can continue on for a long period and hopefully for many more years to come,” Piper said.
Rebecca Simms, a parishioner at St. Lucy, said she’s had a wonderful experience.
“Like I said, I grew up here. It’s always been a welcoming place, and everyone is always kind and caring and if you need anything you just ask and somebody will make it happen for you,” Simms said. “It’s been a wonderful, wonderful community.”
Cheri and John Schmidt, also parishioners at St. Lucy, married at the church in 2020.
They’ve been a part of the community since 2012. Both said the experience has been wonderful.
“He is really very personable. He’s got easy sermons, you know, with a good message and all that,” John said about Commyn. “He’s got something to say and he’s getting all of us involved.”
