100 years for St. Vincent de Paul Parish

Friday, Oct. 03, 2025

HOLLADAY — On Sept. 27, their patron saint’s feast day, the community of Saint Vincent de Paul Parish and School in Holladay gathered for a centennial celebration that included Mass at which Bishop Oscar A. Solis presided.

Concelebrants were Father Samuel Dinsdale, the current pastor; Father John Evans, vicar general; Father Langes Silva, judicial vicar; Monsignor M. Francis Mannion, who began as administrator of the parish in 2003, then was pastor from 2004 to 20212; Father John E. Norman, who was pastor from 2012 until his retirement in 2022; retired priests of the diocese Monsignor Joseph M. Mayo, Father Martin Diaz and Father Thuy D. Ha; and Monsignor Joubran Bou-Merhi, a retired Maronite priest who is in residence at the parish. 

Deacon John Kranz, chancellor, and Deacon Jeffrey Allen assisted. The Knights of Columbus provided an honor guard. 

As he opened his homily, Bishop Solis thanked the priests and religious women who had ministered at the parish over the years as well as the parishioners “who have been part of this historic moment.” He then gave a brief summary of the life of the parish’s patron saint, a 17th-century French priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor, and who founded the Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul as well as the Congregation of the Mission (known as Vincentians), a religious order for men.

“For him, the poor were not projects or programs, but persons and icons of the crucified Christ,” the bishop said, noting that St. Vincent remains a model of exemplary Christian life today, “especially his concern for the poor and those in need.”

The first reading of the Mass, Isaiah 58:6-10; and the Gospel, Matthew 25:31-40, both spoke of serving the hungry and the afflicted. Mentioning this in his homily, the bishop said that people encounter those in need every day, “but how often we walk by them, ignore them, and even dismiss their sufferings.”

St. Vincent de Paul, however, reminds people that to serve the sick, the unhoused veteran, the undocumented mother, the elderly who are abandoned in a care facility, “is to patch the wounds of Christ himself,” the bishop said. 

“During this centennial anniversary of your parish church, it is not only a moment of thanksgiving for the blessings of God to this community for the past 100 years, but it is an occasion to renew your commitment to continue the great legacy of your church, of loving our poor and serving one another,” Bishop Solis said. “As you begin a new chapter in the life of this parish community, I encourage you to pray to God for his grace for fidelity and perseverance, that you may continue to carry the torch of hope in your community, in our society and in the world. So let us always strive to be good role models and examples of the Christian faith to everyone around us and whom we encounter in our daily lives. We do not have to wait to live the Gospel message of love and salvation; let us begin now, here, in your homes, in your community and our society and the streets and wherever you may be, for whatever we do to the least of our brothers and sisters, we do to Christ.”

At the dinner that followed the Mass, Bishop Solis offered to the St. Vincent de Paul Parish community, on behalf of his fellow priests and the People of God of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, “our sincerest and congratulatory greetings. … And may God continue to bless you and make you a strong, vibrant Church to make the presence of Christ known not only here in Utah but all over the world.”

The centenary celebrated the parish history, which included the original “small church” on Wasatch Street in Murray and the move to what is now the 18-acre parish campus in Holladay that is home to the church and school. 

Following the dinner, several guest speakers made remarks. Fr. Dinsdale, who has been pastor for the past three years, said that St. Vincent’s used to be a “training parish,” where young priests served immediately following their ordination “to learn from seasoned pastors, wise pastors.” He recalled some of the previous pastors at St. Vincent’s, including Monsignor George F. Davich (pastor 1986-2002), who oversaw the building of the new church, as well as the Sisters of the Presentation of the Blessed Virgin Mary, “who came here to teach and to run the school from ’74 to 1994.”

Pictures of the sisters still adorn the halls of St. Vincent de Paul School, Fr. Dinsdale said, “and people around my age remember them fondly as their teachers, their spiritual guides and their dance teachers.”

After giving a summary of the parish’s current ministries, Fr. Dinsdale said, “At this time we look back and we look forward. … We pray that we may have wise discernment of the Holy Spirit as our Church adapts to a changing world and responds to the changing needs of our Catholic community here at St. Vincent’s.”

In his comments, Gary Green, principal of the parish school, spoke of the centennial video project that the school undertook to interview people who were involved with the parish over the years. Viewing the video, “you will hear stories of St. Vincent parishioners doing their duty well and going straight to God. You will see people who are very humble, very patient and very charitable,” he said, paraphrasing a quote from St. Vincent de Paul. 

Deacon Jeffrey Allen, who ministers at the parish and school, said that the evening was a celebration of “a joyful century of faith, hope and love lived as one community. … St. Vincent’s is not just a place to pray – it is a family of relationships built on love, generosity and support.”

He told the story of his family of seven arriving at the parish 25 years ago “because the parish offered Mass interpreted in sign language.” One of his daughters had become Deaf from meningitis, and with the help of an interpreter at the parish she attended religious education and Confirmation classes, and became an altar server. The family’s two youngest children attended the parish school, and “the relationships we have made here are among the most cherished of our lives. … This is the legacy of our parish – not only for my family, but for so many families over the past 100 years,” he said.

The final speaker was Fr. Norman, whose family moved to the parish in 1968; he remembers attending Mass in the gym while the church was being built. After he was ordained he served at the parish as an associate pastor from to 1980 to 1983, and in the early 2000s he assisted there on weekends while serving as an administrator at Judge Memorial Catholic High School. Then  from 2012 to 2022 “I was really greatly blessed to serve here as the pastor,” he said.

He added that he will return on Oct. 17 because he is moving back in retirement, and has already chosen the pew he will sit in during daily and Sunday Masses.

“I am so grateful to be here,” he said. “I feel very much a part of this community, and the support you have shown me in those 57 years is an important part of my life and my lived experience.”