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The history of Most Precious Blood Parish began in 1946. Archbishop J. Vehr, anticipating the tremendous post-war population boom of Southeast Denver, purchased forty-six lots from the University of Denver, in the 2200 block of South Colorado Boulevard at a cost of $24,000. The area was still agricultural and Colorado Boulevard was a two-lane thoroughfare.
The need did indeed arise for more Catholic parishes. On June 19, 1952, Archbishop Vehr announced the creation of three more parishes, including Most Precious Blood. The block of land bounded by Colorado Boulevard, Iliff Avenue, Harrison Street and Warren Avenue was declared to be under the care of the Vincentian Fathers, a community founded by St. Vincent de Paul.
Southeast Denver exploded with residential and commercial developments after World War II. The sparsely settled 1880s neighborhood of University Park, next to the University of Denver, boomed, with development spilling over into the newer neighborhoods of University Hills and Wellshire. The block between Colorado Boulevard and Harrison Street, East Iliff and Warren Avenues, which had been Joseph Weid’s bee, wheat, and chicken “ranch,” was soon to become a new parish plant.
On July 10, 1952, Archbishop Vehr authorized creation of Most Precious Blood and appointed a Vincentian priest, John Donohoe, CM, the founding pastor. Father Donohoe held the initial Mass and organizational meeting August 10, 1952, in the large outdoor grotto at Our Lady of Lourdes Church. Several hundred people attended and were given census and donation forms. Subsequent Masses of the baby parish were held in the eighth-grade classroom at Our Lady of Lourdes School. By December, the young parish had outgrown that room and began meeting in the basement chapel at St. Vincent de Paul School. Meanwhile, Most Precious Blood parishioners began raising money for a church of their own, using socials at Observatory Park, bazaars, Levi Blue Jeans dances, swimming parties, hay rides, bake sales, spaghetti dinners, “Country Cousins” square dances, and festivities featuring filmed highlights of Notre Dame football games. Envelopes were distributed during the census and new parishioners were requested to drop these Most Precious Blood envelopes into the collection basket of the church they were presently attending. Each Monday Father Donohoe would make his rounds to collect this money for the new parish. The results of the first census indicated that Most Precious Blood had 344 families within the parish boundaries.
On Christmas Day, 1952 the size of the congregation dictated larger quarters and the new parish moved to the old basement Church in St. Vincent de Paul School. St. Vincent’s congregation had just moved to their new and present-day church.
During 1953, social activities were combined with fundraisers for building a new church. A loan of $170,000 enabled construction to begin on a temporary church, parish hall, and rectory. Ground was broken for the new buildings by June 1953. The architect, John K. Monroe, designed a plan for the meeting hall and temporary church, which could easily be converted into a portion of the school. In February 1954, Father Philip LeFevre, CM joined Father Donohoe as the much needed assistant.
A fire in St. Vincent’s basement church necessitated the use of the incomplete parish hall for Sunday Masses starting on March 7, 1954. After Fathers Donohoe and LeFevre moved to the newly completed rectory in mid-March, daily Masses were celebrated in the basement of the rectory until the completion of the church.
John K. Monroe designed a rectory, meeting hall, and temporary church completed in March 1953, on South Colorado Boulevard. In the presence of sixty priests and seven Monsignors, Archbishop Vehr dedicated the church on May 13, 1954. The first Mass was celebrated on May 16 with 250 people in attendance. Father Donohoe, who had been living with his fellow Vincentians at nearby St. Thomas Seminary, moved into the one-story beige brick complex. The rectangular structure was semi-modernistic with extensive windows on the north and south with blue Cathedral glass. It had a seating capacity of 380. Many parishioners donated time, labor, and items toward the beautification of the newly dedicated church and church property.
In August 1954, Father Joseph Edwards, CM replaced Father LeFevre as assistant. Father Frances Kunz, CM, eventually succeeded Father LeFevre.
As many parish families were looking for loans to build homes in the area, one of the first services offered by Most Precious Blood was a parish credit union, established in the fall of 1956. After persuading many members to donate or pledge 2 per cent of their income to build a school, the parish hired the Roland Johnson architectural firm to design six classrooms. This modern one-story brick structure, which included a library, audiovisual room, health room, business office, and kitchen, was built for $241,011. The school opened in the fall of 1960, with a blue habit; pupils had no uniform. But in 1961, students were asked to wear uniforms, and in 1964 the nuns shed their 300-year old headgear—the coronets also called “windmills” and sunbonnets.”
By July 1957, the parish census showed that there were 689 families.
Education was a priority for both the children and adults. Catechism classes for public grade school children were initiated while the congregation was still at St. Vincent’s. Three volunteers from Loretta Heights, supervised by Father Donohoe, taught the classes. In the summer of 1954, five nuns from the Daughters of Charity conducted a summer vacation school for 115 students. Since this went will, they returned yearly to teach as well as conduct the annual census. During the regular school year, Catechism was conducted by lay people and by Loretta Heights students.
Adults were also the recipients of adult religious education primarily through lectures and speakers from St. Thomas Seminary. However, the priority for many parishioners was a school. To begin to raise money for the new school, the first parish bazaar was held in June 1955, followed by a bigger one in 1956.
In 1957, Father John Murphy, CM, replaced Father Kunz. He and Father Donohoe made a dynamic pair. The two priests launched into a project to build both a school and a convent. The fund drive was officially launched in May, 1959 with the theme “Partners in Progress.” Two percent of the parishioners’ annual income was requested as a pledge. Pledges by 662 families totaled $118,999. Construction was started on January 3, 1960. The six-classroom building opened in the fall of 1960 with four grades –third, fourth, fifth, and sixth. The Daughters of Charity were placed in charge of the school. Four nuns taught these grades for 145 pupils. These four nuns were Sister Theresa, Sister Loyola, Sister Clothilda, and Sister Irene. Throughout the years, additional classes have been added until today the school teaches pre-kindergarten through the eighth grade with approximately 500 students. Until a permanent convent could be built, the sisters lived in a temporary convent at 2201 South Harrison Street.
To house the Daughters of Charity, a home across the street from the school was purchased for $33,200 and remodeled in 1959. Four years later, a large two-story convent was built for $127,384 home replaced this. Over the main entrance was a life-sized bas-relief of a Daughter of Charity in the old costume.
By 1962, the congregation was strong with 1,028 families a three-fold increase in just 10 years. After a decade of service, Father Donohoe was transferred and Father Bernard Degan, CM was named pastor. He, too, became much loved by the parish family. By 1963, he was in the midst of the next construction project – the new convent. This building, now the parish offices was completed and blessed on November 19, 1963. Also during 1963, Father John Shaughnessey, CM joined Father Murphy as an additional assistant to Father Degan. During Father Degan’s pastorship the school was expanded, the church debt was paid off and the original church was enlarged.
In 1968, Father Degan was transferred and Most Precious Blood got its third pastor, Father Maurice P. Kane, CM. He had served as a teacher and pastor prior to coming to our parish. When he arrived, the congregation was still meeting in the temporary church. It was time for a new church.
In 1969, the Building Fund Campaign for the new church and “recreation center” was launched. In part because of the enthusiasm and drive, which Father Kane demonstrated for this project, approximately $300,000 was rapidly pledged to be paid over a three-year period. Our present church was built within two years and the old church was converted to classrooms, which now form part of the school. The first Mass was celebrated in our present-day church on December 18, 1970. Archbishop James V. Casey dedicated the church on May 21, 1971.
Parishioners were shocked on the night of January 19, 1978, when Father Kane died in his sleep at the age of 62. His plans for the parish were pursued by the next pastor, Father Oscar Luckefahr, CM, who, with parishioners, completed a parish center on September 17, 1979, as a memorial to Father Kane.
Father Lukefahr was an avid runner who began using marathons as fund-raisers. He believed in spiritual as well as physical exercise and made Most Precious Blood the first parish in the western states to inaugurate a Renew program. Father Lukefahr also felt that it was time to establish an educational endowment fund that continues to work hard.
David A. Darling, CM, followed Father Lukefahr in 1982. Although the Daughters of Charity withdrew from the school, preschool through eighth-grade education is still offered. His focus was one of building “community” among the people and emphasizing lay leadership. Despite creation of new parishes from its territory, Most Precious Blood maintained a family membership of over 1,560 as of 1988.
By 1987, the Daughters of Charity were transferred and the school became completely lay-operated.
John F. Clark, CM, the pastor since 1988, focused on building up a Counseling Center and a fully accredited Day Care Center. “M.P.B. certainly is a very active, concerned and caring parish,” Father Clark reported in 1988. “The promotion of Gospel values is at the center of our activities and programs, indeed at the center of our life as a parish.”
As the needs of the parish changed, Most Precious Blood adapted its facilities to meet those needs. The priests moved into the old convent and the rectory became a day-care center with a professional staff.
Most Precious blood Parish has followed the example of the Vincentians in helping the poor and disadvantaged so that Social Ministry has continued to be a major focus.
In 1992, after forty years of service to the parish, the Vincentian Community decided to discontinue staffing Most Precious Blood. In June, the parish was assigned to the Archdiocese of Denver and Father Ken Koehler became our new pastor. Father Koehler was installed on September 20, 1992 at a wonderful parish picnic celebrating our fortieth anniversary. In December, Father Koehler and Father Pat O’Brien moved to the new rectory located across from the church on Warren Avenue.
We ask God’s blessing on us for all that we have done and all that we hope to do in the years to come.
More to come....please check back for history from 1992 to 2008
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