Parish History
Our roots go back to Mexican -American resident and migrant workers
who labored in local agricultural, ranching, and business enterprises,
and their families. They gathered regularly for Mass and became a faith
community over four decades ago (the early 60's). With the gradual
conversion of various crops to 4,400 acres of pecan tree groves, whose
produce is the primary product of the area, many more workers and
families were without a church. The "old" Sahuarita School was used for
Mass and CCD classes, and years passed with their growing community
needing a "real" church.
In 1983, the "main" area Catholic church, Our Lady of the Valley in
Green Valley (established 1970), and its pastor, Father Laroque,
undertook a $250,000 fund raising drive and built the present
all-purpose structure on pecan company property donated by Mr. Keith
Walden, one of its owners.
San. Martín de Porres Mission church was dedicated on November 4,
1984, the feast day of San Martín de Porres. San Martín de Porres was declared a parish by Bishop Moreno on
December 12, 2002 and incorporated as an Arizona corporation, a
501(c)(3) entity in 2005.
It was our current Director’s (Rita’s) mother, Francisca
Quihuis, Clara Pickenbrach from St. John’s, and Mary Corasco started the
CCD program 1963-1964 with about 15 kids. In the fall of 2007 we
had 300 kids
K-12, and 40 teachers!
The first pastor assigned to San Martín de Porres in 2002 was the
priest-administrator starting July 1, 2000, Reverend Michael Shay,
S.D.S. Father Shay is a member of the Society of the Divine Savior,
commonly called the
Salvatorians. The Provincial office is located in Milwaukee,
Wisconsin. The Salvatorian Motherhouse is located in Rome, the site of
its founding in1881 by a German priest, Father Francis Jordan.
Father Shay introduced the parish to email in 2000. In 2005 he
introduced high speed internet provided by a satellite from an antenna
on the roof of the office, and in late 2007 this webpage was
established.
San Martín de Porres now attracts many new residents moving into the
Sahuarita-Green Valley area, and with our intercultural spirit of warm
welcome and worship, serves over two thousand parishioners. San Martín
de Porres is preparing itself to lead the way in expanding services to a
growing population.
See also:
FICO History
Sahuarita Community Profile
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