Saint Stanislaus Parish History
Centennial Edition 1900 – 2000
"There is a time and purpose for everything…"
Ecclesiastes 3:1
PRAISE and GLORY TO GOD for the 100 Years of ST. STANISLAUS PARISH!
United with Mary, we the present parishioners thank and Glorify God for all the Blessings so graciously and wondrously bestowed upon us. This HISTORY of ST. STANISLAUS, Bishop and Martyr Parish in East Chicago, Indiana, recalls the graces received. In remembering them, we pray to be open and to respond to all that God wills to be written in the next chapter.
A Time for Being BORN
Our story begins in 1886 as the first Polish immigrants began to arrive in Lake County, Indiana, a developing industrial center. The East Chicago area, in particular, because of its proximity to Chicago held the promise of possibilities. Its location was key for transportational access by rail or sail on Lake Michigan.
East Chicago, advertised as a “Twentieth Century Wonder Where Rail and Water Meet” attracted many industries to locate within its borders, including Inland Steel. It also served to attract workers and residents, a majority of them coming westward from the textile mills and the coal mining towns of Pennsylvania. A large portion came directly from the European Balkins, specifically Poland, which was split up by Germany, Austria, Ukraine, Russia and Prussia (Poland did not exist on the map of Europe at this time.) Thus in 1889, East Chicago became a town and four years later in 1893 received its city charter.
The Industrial Revolution was well underway as the first Poles immigrated and settled in this newly developing northwestern Indiana city. They brought with them great faith and devotion to God. Their dream was to live in America, the Country of Freedom, Justice and Opportunity. Here they wanted to make their home, raise their families, and share the richness their Roman Catholic Faith and Polish heritage with their children and their children’s children in peace.
St. Casimir Parish, located in North Hammond, was the nearest church. Reverend Casimir Kobylinski and Peter Kahallek and their parishioners welcomed and accommodated the “East Chicago Worshipers. Many walked the long distance because they had no horse or carriage to ride. All came because of their desire to be in Church on Sunday, the Lord’s Day. Together they wanted to offer thanksgiving for all the blessings received and to ask God’s help with the tasks ahead.
A Time for BUILDING
As the numbers of the Sunday community grew and the spiritual needs of the people increased, Father Kobylinski obtained permission from the Bishop of the Fort Wayne Diocese to build a Church in East Chicago. A wooden structure located at the corner of 150th and Baring Avenue was erected and dedicated to St. Michael in 1886. Father Kobylinski served at this new Site, while retaining his duties at St. Casimir. Four years later as the century turned, Father John Kubacki received his priestly appointment to be the first resident Pastor of this newly established parish.
The growth of the city and the influx of “Poles” joining St. Michael parish led Father Kubacki and his growing flock to purchase land at 150th and Magoun Ave., bordered on the east by Forsythe Avenue (now Indianapolis Boulevard). The Church structure was moved to this new site. With the change in location came the change in the Church name to St. Stanislaus Bishop and Martyr.
Concern for the youth guided the next major undertaking of the Parish. Recognizing the need for expansion, Father Kubacki and parishioners decided they would build a school, and build it they did. A four-classroom, coal stove heated structure was completed in 1903. Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis came to staff the school. 230 students were enrolled to learn about God, Country, their place in this world, and their Polish roots.
Life in the parish was exuberant and energetic. A choir was formed and dedicated to St. Cecilia, patroness of Music. The Confraternity of the Most Holy Rosary was established. A Church Committee was appointed. Mass servers were trained and organized initially by Father Kubacki, and then delegated to the Sisters, who also cared for the altar.
The next structural undertaking is credited to Father Joseph Bolka, who succeeded Father Kubacki in 1904. He directed the building of a rectory and convent, at the same time enlarging the Church. With the financial help of the Choir and Rosary Society, side altars were added. A small force of men volunteers handled the landscaping and garden beautification of the grounds.
Father Peter Budnik assumed the duties of pastor in 1908. The 1910 census showed the population of the city to be 18,908. St. Stanislaus Parish reflected this growth in its predominantly Polish membership. The present wooden church and school were now too small. To meet the needs of the time, the parish united in undertaking a vast building project planned in successive phases. First to be built was a new brick church (the present structure) which housed additional classrooms on the second and third floors. Next the old school was remodeled so it could serve as a hail and auditorium. Then the rectory and convent were built in the same brick as the church building. In 1922, construction began on the new school building and Memorial Hall, the last and final step of the building project. But Father Budnik would be unable to oversee its completion. In 1923, he resigned his pastorship to enter the Franciscan Order in Pulaski, Wisconsin.
Memorial Hall and the school building were under construction when Father Julian Skrzypinski was appointed the Fourth Pastor.
In addition to more modem classroom facilities, the new building plans called for a gymnasium and Community Center. As a community center – Memorial Hall would include two bowling lanes, pool and billiard equipment. The gymnasium would double as a hail and serve as the site for wedding receptions and dance socials. A 300 – seat auditorium on the second floor would accommodate the needs of young and old thespians; stage plays and concerts for the budding musicians. A movie projection enclosure would make possible the showing of the movies to the students and the parishioners. When completed, the Community Center became the social gathering place for the parish. In the auditorium, the “silent” films were shown until the “talkies” came in. Polish dialogued sound movies were imported from Poland. Ted Myziewski handled these movies. Boy Scouts and girls of the 71h and 81h grade classes were ushers, always under the supervision of the parents of the PRCU (Polish Roman Catholic Union) and the ZNP (The Organization of the Polish People Zjednoczenie Narodu Polskiego). The nominal fees – 10 cents – charged for the Hall rental and movies added up as a financial plus for maintaining the newly established parish complex.
Building buildings, however, wasn’t the new pastors’ only concern. His primary desire was to build the people into a parish community and to provide for their spiritual welfare. To that end, Father Skrzypinski established the Young Ladies Sodality and introduced the new Confraternity of Christian Doctrine Program (CCD), which provided for the formal religious training for the children unable to attend the parish school.
All was going well, so well, that assistant priests were assigned to help Father Skrzypinski care for the needs of this growing parish. The historical archives of the Fort Wayne Diocese noted that “St. Stanislaus, from very humble beginnings, has grown into one of the largest parishes in the Diocese of Fort Wayne”. –
A Time for LOSING
Black Monday, October 28, 1929 and The Great Depression that followed altered the course of the parish’s’ direction. “In an Instant” – the lives and livelihood of all was changes. The Parishioners’ trust in God was tried and tested. Unemployment was everywhere; money was lost in banks. Homes were repossessed because people were unable to pay their mortgages, and quarantined because of illnesses. Yet in the midst of this bleakness, God’s light and grace came through. The kindness and caring neighbors did for one another helped each make it through. Their generosity in the giving of their time, talent, and the few and sometimes only pennies from their treasury kept the parish going.
With the outbreak of World War 11 on September 1, 1939, the mothers of servicemen and women formed themselves into a group that became known as the World War 11 Mothers. They did everything they could to help the war efforts. They purchased war bonds, volunteered their services in the local hospitals to fill the nurses shortages, and visited the nearby military hospitals caring for the war casualties by offering their encouragement, assisting with rehabilitation and letter writing.
Frequent packages of “goodies” found their way to distant points, in the world where American GI’s were serving. Weekly they gathered in Church, joined by “the rest of the parish” for the sorrowful Mother Novena. Together, all prayed for the war’s end and a safe return home for all of the soldiers that were away and overseas.
At the War’s end, these WWII Mothers – some of who had been presented with “The Gold Star” – organized a huge Welcome Home dinner event held in the Memorial Hall. Each of the returnees was presented with one of the newly developed lifetime writing pens. Though costly, the mothers scrounged and scraped so that they could present “these first ball point pens” as a momento of gratitude and pride. To honor the memory of the boys who did not return, they saw to it that their names were etched on the marblestone Memorial located on the corner of 1501 Street and Indianapolis Boulevard. In the midst of the World War, St. Stanislaus Parish remained a place of Peace, a sign of God’s Kingdom.
The peace, prosperity, and the births of “The Baby Boomers” that resulted from the war years enriched the life of the Parish in many ways. New possibilities for growth and development were being considered.
On December 17, 1956, Pope Pius XII established the Diocese of Gary. The northwestern section of the Diocese of Fort Wayne became its own entity. Saint Stanislaus Parish was now part of this new diocese placed under the care of Bishop Andrew G. Grutka.
The school children were home on Saturday, January 18, 1958. The hail was booked for an evening wedding reception. The day was bitterly cold and windy when the fire alarm sounded off in the afternoon. Providentially, the disastrous fire, which totally destroyed the Memorial Hall and the School Building, claimed no lives or personal injuries. Gazing at the blazing flames and the heroic efforts of the firefighters to combat the flames and to contain the fire, Msgr. Skrzypinski and the stunned parishioners were already considering what in God’s Name they should do next.
A Time for MOVING ON
The education of the children must continue. Classrooms were needed. Some of the rooms on the third floor above the Church could be used if they were prepared. Volunteers came forth and restored the rooms. Holy Trinity School, located on the East Side of the city, offered their space. Principal Sister Mary Concepta and Faculty organized and adapted to the emergency situation. The children – saddened at seeing their school burn down, adjusted.
Next, the decision was made to rebuild. Blueprints were drawn. Contracts were signed, and the construction of the new school and community center began in the spring. From ashes, the new structure arose, and was dedicated in May of 1961. Msgr. Skrzypinski, who had arrived as the newly appointed pastor thirty-eight years ago, and saw to complete the construction of the first building, looked on in amazement, uttering a prayer that the money would come in to pay for this one
In August of 1962, Reverend Henry Krysinski was appointed as Administrator, and sent by Bishop Grutka to assist Msgr. Skrzypinski. The first session of the first Ecumenical Council to be called by a Pope in one hundred years began in Rome on October 11, 1962. Pope John XXIII convened this meeting to discuss the role of the church in the modern world. The world watched in their living rooms on their black and white TV sets, as the 6 o’clock news televised reports of the historic meeting for Roman Catholicism. The priests and parishioners of St. Stanislaus were no exception – they marveled at seeing their jolly lovable Holy Father on TV, and tried to get a glimpse of their bishop “in the crowd”.
The daily business of running the parish kept Msgr. Skrzypinski and Father Krysinski busy. The daily business of life occupied the parishioners. On Sundays, they gathered for Mass to ask God’s Blessings on the War in Vietnam, and wondered about the invasion of the Beatles and the hippies. What was this world coming to!! God knew, and he was leading them in.
In 1966, Msgr. Skrzypinski retired. Father Krysinski was appointed to serve as the fifth pastor. The job was not new to him, as he had been working at it for the previous four years. What was new was the responsibility of pastoring the parish and its’ people. This he did well until 1971, when the Bishop reassigned him to St. Mary’s Parish in Otis, IN.
A Time for REAPING
Father Joseph Niezgoda, a native son of the parish, was appointed to be the Sixth pastor on the seventy-first year of its’ existence. As he undertook his new responsibilities in leading St. Stans, the Parish where he himself was baptized and “educated” and wherein his vocation was nurtured, Father Joe invoked God’s blessing to guide him. In true humility, he asked the parishioners – some that, knew him way back when – to help him now in Caring for this special Parish in God’s Vineyard, and doing the work that needs to be done.
The new school and Memorial Hall, functioning so well the past ten years, still held a large, outstanding debt that needed to be paid off. A united effort was made to get this job done as soon as possible. Assistance, financial and supportive, was sought from the city’s civil, social and industrial groups. Fundraisers were started, which included monthly bingo’s, annual luncheons, spaghetti dinners, pancake breakfasts, a summer picnic, and a giant rummage sale. Negotiation was done with the diocese through Bishop Gaughan, the successor to Bishop Grutka, who retired.
Vatican II had yielded new insights on how to be a Church in the modern world, and these were being ‘written as directives coming to the Pastor’s desk from the Diocesan Office to be implemented.
The eighty-fifth Anniversary of the Parish was observed on Sunday, May 19, 1985. It was a jubilant day festival as all present looked back to its past, peered into its’ future – a centennial coming 15 years from now in 2000 – and gained a clearer view of the present reality. Life was changing all around the city, the neighborhood, and within the Church too!! The history printed in the commemorative booklet for the event certainly bore out the fact, and hinted at a given direction to pursue. ‘
On April 20, 1986, Father Joe invited everyone to the Mortgage Burning for the School Building. It was a good fix to see, and it warmed the hearts of all in rendering praise to God for the wonder He had done through their united efforts. The Diocesan Directory listed the following description of post Vatican II parish life:
Most Catholics gather together for Sunday worship in their local parish. The parish is where they publicly experience their faith, find nourishment for growth in their relationship with the Lord, and seek opportunities to practice charity i almsgiving and good works.
Each parish has a priest or priests appointed by the bishop. The priest celebrates the sacred mysteries, preaches the Word of God, andforms the people called by God into a community of unity and charity. He is also a reconciler in their mid and challenges them to use their gifts in continuing the work of Jesus.
In a way, the priest is also a catalyst. For all the baptized are loved and called by God and empowered by the Ho Spirit to use their gifts to proclaim Jesus’s saving Gospel to others in word and in deed, to build a community of believers, worship the Father; and to serve the poor and oppressed. –
Within the parish, the priest and laity use appropriate structures to ensure that Christ’s mission continues. These structures encourage parish members to participate in the decision making process and in doing the work of the Lord.
The Parish Pastoral Council seeks the wisdom of the Holy Spirit as it coordinates the work office parish commissions: Parish Life, Word/Worship, Catholic Education, Justice and Social Concern, and Stewardship/Administration.
The overriding mission of each parish is to facilitate good stewardship of its members so that each might use his c her gifts to bring the saving message of Jesus to young and old, and to bring the Gospel values of Jesus to our culture.
A Time for RENEWAL
A process for creating a Parish Mission Statement was the latest directive from the Chancery that found its way Father Joe’s desk. Following the steps of the process he and members of the newly created parish council considered an discussed the given questions: What does it mean to be a Parish in your neighborhood today? Why do you exist? The fruits of their labor was formulated into the St. Stanislaus Parish Mission Statement.
Trivial History Facts
Firsts At St. Stanislaus Parish
| FIRST PASTOR | Rev. John Kubacki (1900) |
| FIRST BAPTIZED | Michael Mysliwy |
| FIRST ORGANIST | Julian Glowacki (1903) |
| FIRST PRINCIPAL | Sister Priscilla (1903) |
| FIRST GRADUATE | Katherine Cierezewski |
| FIRST LAY TEACHER | Emilie Kuter Koslow |
| FIRST ORGANIZATION | Rosary Sodality |
| FIRST LAY PRINCIPAL | Ms. Marilyn Tomko (1988) |
| FIRST PRIEST ORDAINED from St. Stanislaus Parish |
Rev. Louis Bozyk (IN 1925) |
| CITY MAYOR IN 1900 | William Penman |
ALUMNI PRIESTS OF ST. STANISLAUS PARISH
| Name | Ordained | Status |
| Rev. Louis Bozyk | 1925 | Passed Away 06-09-59 |
| Rev. Anthony Lesniak, OFM | 1926 | Passed Away 03-12-67 |
| Rev. Vitalis Lasota | 1929 | Passed Away (Date Unknown) |
| Rev. Stanislaus Cak | 1931 | Passed Away 08-19-74 |
| Rev. Joseph Lesniak | 1932 | Passed Away 09-22-86 |
| Rev. Louis Madejczyk | 1936 | Passed Away 06-23-98 |
| Rev. Joseph Dziadowicz | 1938 | Passed Away 08-29-49 |
| Rev. John Szot | 1938 | Passed Away 03-14-70 |
| Rev. Matthew Bochnowski,OFM | 1938 | Passed Away 02-16-93 |
| Rev. Walter Mastey | 1940 | Passed Away 04-14-97 |
| Rev. Hugh Zurat, OFM | 1961 | Deceased |
| Rev. Joseph Niezgoda | 1962 | Deceased |
| Rev. Dennis Teles | 1965 | Living |
| Rev. Gerald Zawada, OFM | Unknown | Living |
| Rev. Stanislaus Pondo | 1998 | Living (Diocese of Indianapolis) |
PRIESTS THAT SERVED ST STANISLAUS B.M. PARISH
1900 Rev. John Kubacki – FIRST PASTOR – Passed Away 07-24-51
1904 Rev. Joseph Bolka – SECOND PASTOR – Passed Away 04-28-41
1908-1923 Rev. Peter Budnik – THIRD PASTOR – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
1923-1966 Rev. Julian Skrzypinski – FOURTH PASTOR Passed Away 10-16-73
1966-1971 Rev. Henry Krysinski – FIFTH PASTOR
1971-1996 Rev. Joseph.Niezgoda – SIXTH PASTOR – Passed Away
1996 (July 1) Rev. Monsignor John Siekierski – SEVENTH PASTOR
2019 (July 1) Fr. Nestor Varon – EIGHTH PASTOR
2021 (May 1) Rev. Monsignor John Siekierski – ADMINISTRATOR
ASSISTANT PRIESTS
Rev. Emil Block – Passed Away 09-27-90
Rev. Joseph Buczyna – Passed Away 0 1-12-76
Rev. Stanley Dominik – Living
Rev. Michael Gadacz – Passed Away 12-25-71
Rev. William Gieranowski – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Anthony Gorka (Gorek) – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Paschal Grigus, OFM – Passed Away in Poland
Rev. Robert Gumienny – Living
Rev. Vladimir Janeczek – Living
Rev. Theodore Janicki – Passed Away 02-18-83
Rev. Aloyslus Jarka – Passed Away 09-20-43
Rev. Julian Jercha – Passed Away 06-27-87
Rev. Matthew Kish – Passed Away
Rev. Leonard Kronkowski – Living
Rev. F.H.Libert – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Leonard Lukaszewski – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. James Mazepa – Living
Rev. Msgr. Louis Michalski – Passed Away 10-09-74
Rev. Stanley Milewski – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Joseph Murphy – Passed Away
Rev. Anthony Nadolny – Passed Away (05-20-40)
Rev. Francis Nowak – Passed Away(Date Unknown)
Rev. Richard Penczynski – Living in Poland
Rev. Michael Petzold – Passed Away 08-20-65
Rev. Eugene Pogorzelski – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Louis Ratajczak – Passed Away (09-17-64)
Rev. Walter Rakoczy – Living
Rev. Stephen Titko – Living
Rev. Paul Tomasula – Living
Rev. Msgr. Michale Tomaszewski – Passed Away (Date Unknown)
Rev. Andrew Topor – Passed Away 12-18-93
Rev. Michael Urbanski – Passed Away (03-02-55)
Rev. Stanley Witek – Living
Rev. Edward Wroblewski – Passed Away (01-18-53)
Rev. John Zemelko – Living
Rev. Joseph Zielinski – Passed Away 07-29-53
Rev. Msgr. Stanley Zjawinski – Passed Away (11-26-68)