Mission and History:

Vision Statement

Only the love of God puts meaning into each life. We of
St. Joseph Church are drawn by Jesus and His message, to
experience the love of God in a personal way.

This calls us to personal holiness; to put love into action;
and to share His Good News.

The Mission of St. Joseph Church

“To put on the mind and heart of Christ by being a greater welcoming presence in His community.”

This is taken from two scripture verses:

"Continue to love each other like brothers and remember always to welcome strangers, for by doing this, some people have entertained Angels without knowing it." (Hebrews 13:1-2)

"Over all these clothes, put on love, the perfect bond. And may the peace of Christ reign in your hearts, because it is for this that you were called together in one body." (Colossians 3:14-15)

Our Beginnings

From the first recorded visit of Oblate missionaries to the Grande Prairie area in 1883, this Parish has been a living testament to our faith in God. Much has changed since that time and significant transformation has come to St. Joseph Parish. Throughout our history, many people have dedicated their energy to help our Parish develop to its present shape.

The first church building in this area was a house-chapel built in 1898 at Lake Saskatoon and later moved to Bear Creek. The earliest registrations of Marriage and Baptism in 1904 are all of native people but gradually Irish, Scottish, Polish and German names began to appear. In 1909, a bigger church was built and a cemetery was established.

When the rectory burned down in 1919, a new and larger church and rectory were built, and the name changed to St. Joseph in honour of Fr. Joseph LeTreste. The church again burned in 1966, and two years later a new and spacious St. Joseph Church and Parish Centre were blessed and opened. The city's population at that time was about 12,000. Over the years, the site was enlarged with the purchase of the Youth House and two adjacent lots.

In the more than 35 years since our present church was built, our city has grown in population to about 43,000. Naturally our congregation has grown proportionately, resulting in a need for newer and larger facilities to enable us to minister to them effectively. Our present church properties have been sold, new facilities have been designed for the old Holy Cross Catholic School site a block away, and fundraising continues. Hopefully we will be able to move into our new facilities in the spring of 2006.

We give thanks for those people who have, over the century, provided what we have today.