Parish History

In 1924, Father A.G. Nebreda, C.M.F. celebrated the first Mass in the little town of Scottsdale.  Most of the 500 people who lived in the area were Hispanic, and they crowded into a vacant store at Main Street and Brown for the celebration.

One year earlier, Frank Brophy and A. F. Mahoney, two generous men of vision, purchased three lots on the southeast corner of Brown and First Street, as the future site of the church.  For the next four years the community celebrated Mass in the old Coronado School on Main Street.  The school later became the Town Hall, then the Public Library, the Scottsdale Chamber of Commerce, and currently houses the Scottsdale Historic Preservations Society’s Museum.

In 1928, the community moved from the school house to the new home of Joe Morales.  Fr. Manuel Almuedo, C.F.M., traveled back and forth from Immaculate Heart Church in Phoenix to serve the people until 1931.  Fr. Almuedo urged the small congregation to start a building fund.  Inaugurated in 1930, the fund grew from donations of 10 cents or more and totaled $250.  Pledges for work poured in.  Many Mexican families who comprised the majority of the parishioners, worked long into the nights making adobe bricks for the outer walls.  Two men made a fantastic total of 4,000 bricks from the dirt of the church lot itself! 

1932 saw the arrival of Father Davis, now the retired Archbishop of the Diocese of Santa Fe. He infused the fledgling building program with new vigor. Through his earnest supervision, work progressed rapidly. Then, with the $1,000 donation sent by the Extension Society for the roof, the name of the new church was established - Our Lady of Perpetual Help.

The adobe church, designed by r.t. "Bob" Evans, on the lines of a Spanish Mission and constructed with the loving hands of parishioners, was completed in October 1933.  Benches and pews were built by the parishioners. The stained glass windows were designed and made by Bernabe Herrera. 

Until 1949 the adobe building was a mission church, served by priests from either St. Mary Church, Tempe, or from Immaculate Heart Church, Phoenix.  During that time one of the priests, Fr. Rooke, made great efforts to visit each home in the barrio, to learn Spanish, and to get acquainted with the culture of the parish. Fr. James Mulvihill became the first resident priest and pastor.

Fr. Eugene Maguire became pastor in 1952. The OLPH parish boundaries ran from 48^th Street on the west to the Salt River Indian Reservation on the east, and north from McDowell Road to the Maricopa County Line north of Carefree. But the Scottsdale population mushroomed. St. Theresa Parish, established on Thomas Road in 1955, absorbed some of the OLPH congregation with its western boundary at 64^th Street.

The little mission became too small to accommodate the burgeoning population.  In 1955 a 10 acre site on Miller Road was purchased and one year later ground breaking took place for a new church and school.  The first Mass in the OLPH church on Miller Road was celebrated on December 23, 1956.  In 1962 with the completion of a 17 room classroom school, the sisters of Charity of Seton Hill arrived. The Sisters continue today to minister in the school and parish. Two years later a convent was built on Second Street. 

Scottsdale was in the news. More residents crowded into the parish. Even with the newly formed parishes of St. Daniel the Prophet to the south and St. Maria Goretti to the north, the strain of overcrowding continued. The active membership continued to soar. By 1973 it was obvious that a larger church needed to be built.  On February 25, 1978, the first Mass was celebrate in the church on the corner of Miller and Main Streets. Bishop James Raush dedicated the new church on April 2, 1978. The former church building was renamed Maguire Hall. 

Celebrating 46 years of priesthood, and 40 years as Pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Fr. Maguire retired in June, 1993. Bishop Thomas O’Brien appointed Fr. William Healy Pastor on July 1, 1993, and he served until July 2000. 

July 1, 2000, Father Thomas F. Hever became pastor of Our Lady of Perpetual Help.  Fr. Hever began guiding the parish through a Strategic Planning Process and the completion of a Master Plan for the parish’s future.  Renovation of the Maguire Hall and the school administration is underway. 

The Parish continues to grow in number of members and in number of active volunteers dedicated to the spiritual and social needs of the parish family. It continues its outreach to the poor beyond its borders. Presently membership is comprised of 2,510 families with 642  parishioners involved in ministries. The school’s enrollment is 554 students. 

The original adobe mission is now undergoing a restoration. Phase One is underway. The plan is to honor the memory of the Mexican people who built the building, to remember the members of the Yaqui Tribe and the few Anglos who were early parishioners, to retain in Scottsdale the only building which recalls their presence in the early days, and to restore the Mission as a center of prayer -  where anyone can stop to rest and reflect.