...With more than 2,600 families as members, St Francis of Assisi is the
largest parish in the Wichita Diocese.
...The then-new St. Francis Church was dedicated on March 13, 1977.
...The cost of building the new church was less than $1 million.
...There are approximately 4,800 words in each edition of the
Vernacular. That equals 57,600 words in a year. (An average novel contains
about 60,000 words.)
...There were 275 parishioners when St. Francis was founded on July 1,
1959.
...Totus Tuus is Latin for Totally Yours.
...When it was begun on April 27, 1991, The Word, the newspaper of the
Church of the Magdalen, looked like a clone of the Vernacular. It had a
parishioner profile on page 2, a financial report, a list of Baptisms and a
list of new parishioners.
...Cana Hall, the school lunch room, is 5,100 square feet in size.
...Until 1996, Parish Council members met quarterly. They now meet
monthly.
...The youngest person ever featured in a Vernacular profile was 15. He
was Joe Rackers, and the article appeared in the September 1990 issue. He
and his older sister, Janelle, were recognized for providing music at
Masses. The Rackers have since moved from the parish.
...The pews in the church were built by Central Manufacturing in North
Little Rock, Ark.
...The three elements of Stewardship are Time, Talent and Treasure.
...The first Boy Scout Chili Supper was held in 1965, making it one of
the oldest activities in the parish.
...There are seven weekend Masses at St. Francis, more than at any other
Catholic church in Wichita.
...Msgr. Tom McGread holds the record as the longest-serving pastor in
St. Francis history. He served as pastor for 31 years., one month and five
days.
...Msgr Joseph Gerstenkorn was the second longest-serving pastor. He
served six years and seven months.
...The first Parish Dinner was held in May 1969.
...The first parishioner profile in the Vernacular featured Maxine
Lange.
...During a typical weekend Mass, a minimum of 17 parishioners help out
during the service: six Ushers, three Eucharistic Ministers, one Lector,
one Commentator, one Cantor, one Organist, two Altar Servers, and two who
bring up the Eucharistic Gifts.
...RCIA stands for Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults.
...The St. Francis School gym measures 8,566 square feet.
...The 100th profile of a parishioner ran in the November 1997 issue of
the Vernacular.
...St. Francis of Assisi died on Oct. 4, 1226, at the age of 44.
...The first church at St. Francis had room for 150 worshipers.
...The altar in the chapel has been dedicated to the memory of Jerome A.
Sealer, a member of the St. Francis Building Committee until his death in
1976. He helped oversee construction of the new church.
...The hymn, "City of God," was sung at the Silver Jubilee Mass of
Thanksgiving on July 1, 1984.
...St. Clare Hall was completed in October 1992.
...Two persons have held the role of Director of Religious Education at
St. Francis: Barbara King and Richard George.
...Even though the center of activity at St. Francis has shifted to
Bekemeyer St., the church's address is still 861 N. Socora.
...One Vernacular profile was written about a parishioner who had died.
It was in the December 1990 issue, and the person was John Joy. The profile
covered his activities at playing Santa Claus over the years.
...St. Francis Church measures 17,589 square feet.
...The hymn, "Prayer of St. Francis," was written by Sebastian
Temple.
...PSR stands for Parish School of Religion.
...The first Mass at St. Francis was held in July 1960.
...The chapel area of the church is designed to seat 68 adults, and the
choir area can handle 50.
