Blessed Sacrament Parish...
a Few Historical Facts

A full informational fact sheet may be downloaded HERE.

HIGHLIGHTS:

• On December 1, 1957 Amherstview became a mission and the first Mass was celebrated at St. Joseph Provincial House
• Sunday Masses continued to be held in the chapel at St. Joseph Provincial House for the people of the Amherstview area until 1980
• On December 8, 1957 Archbishop O'Sullivan blessed and formally opened "Our Lady of Mt. Carmel School", with two classrooms and an enrolment of 59 students
• Amherstview became a parish in September, 1968 and was named "Blessed Sacrament Parish", with St. Linus parish as a mission
• In May, 1979 it was clear that a church had to be built, and a Building Committee was formed, chaired by John Murphy
• Kehoe Construction Ltd. was awarded the contract to build the new church for $500,000 on January 21, 1980
• In February, 1980 the sod was turned and parish volunteers canvassed homes in the Amherstview area to raise funds to build the church
• Building began and continued through the year, then on December 8, 1980 Blessed Sacrament Church was dedicated by Archbishop Wilhelm
• In the spring of 1982, Kingston artist Fred Schoenberger painted a 28 ft. x 20 ft. mural over the altar, depicting the Crucifixion and Resurrection
• Fred Schoenberger was again called upon in 1984 to design and paint stained glass windows that would replace the plain glass that existed. Each of the stained glass windows depicts a theme from the Bible, centering on Adam and Eve, Moses, Abraham and David.
• On March 11, 1992 the final mortgage payment was made on the church and the Parish celebrated with a mortgage-burning ceremony on June 14, 1992
• On October 3, 1993 the Parish celebrated its Silver Jubilee, with Archbishop F.J. Spence presiding
• In 1995 the Blessed Sacrament Knights of Columbus and Catholic Women's League Amherstview chapters were founded
• In 2001 a World Youth Day committee was formed and two young people from the parish represented Blessed Sacrament at World Youth Day
• On September 22, 2008 the parish celebrated its 40th anniversary as a Parish
• In October, 2008 the "Pennies for Pesos" campaign was launched in aid of the San José de Ocoa Mission in the Dominican Republic; this very successful campaign was adopted by schools and other councils in the region
• In 2009 the church sound system was updated and enhanced
• In August, 2009 a privacy fence was built around part of the residence by members of the Knights of Columbus using funds donated by Knights and CWL
• In October, 2009 a new furnace was installed in the church; funds were raised from parishioners, the Knights of Columbus and the CWL
• On November 14, 2010 the CWL celebrated its 15th anniversary with cake and a display of CWL activities over the years
• In July, 2012 Blessed Sacrament was clustered with St. Bartholomew (Amherst Island) and St. Linus (Bath)
• Air conditioning and a new heating system were installed in the rectory in 2012.
• A new lift into the church hall was installed on August 15, 2012
• In November, 2012 a garage was built for the priest's car, constructed by Knights of Columbus
• On July 13, 2013 a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony was held to launch the new lift
• On November 30, 2013 the installation of an accessible bathroom on the main level of the church was completed
• A bathroom was built between the vestibule and stairwell in December 2013, by members of the Knights of Columbus.
• In March, 2014 the parish Hall was re-painted.
• An automated external defibrillator (AED) was installed in June 2015.
• Two windows were replaced in September 2017.
• Between 2020 and 2021, the church was locked down due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Most of the interior of the church was painted over the winter of 2022/2023.
• Parish hall bathrooms were renovated in 2023.
• Lighting was upgraded in 2024 (church, hall, rectory).
• Renovations were made to the bathrooms in the rectory in July, 2024.