St. Peter's Parish (Mount Pearl, N.L. : Catholic)

St. Peter's initially was established as a mission of Mary Queen of the World Parish (Mount Pearl) in 1977. Members of the Capuchin congregation administering Mary Queen of the World held Sunday mass in the newly constructed St. Peter's Elementary School to serve the growing Catholic population in Mount Pearl's Newtown area. On 1 September 1982, Alphonsus L. Penney, Archbishop of St. John's, dismembered Mary Queen of the World Parish, detaching the Newtown territory to canonically erect St. Peter's Parish. The gymnasium at St. Peter's Elementary served as the parish's centre until 12 September 1985, when the newly constructed St. Peter's Chapel, annexed to O'Donel High School's gymnasium, was officially opened and dedicated by Archbishop Penney. Currently, a parish church is under construction at 112 Ashford Drive. A sod-turning ceremony was held 22 July 2001 and construction is expected to be completed in 2002.

A Steering Committee was established in 1982, charged with the responsibility of studying and reporting on the most appropriate administrative structure for the parish. The following year, the Committee recommended the establishment of a Parish Council to be comprised of the pastor, pastoral assistants, six members at large, the principals of the parochial schools, a parish member on the school board, and a parish member on the Diocesan Pastoral Council. (Information is not available on the current structure of the Parish Council. Denominational education reforms likely have altered its composition.) The first Parish Council was elected in 1984.

Other committees and lay societies established to share in the administration of the parish include the Liturgy Committee, the Administrative Committee, the Social Committee, the Christian Service Committee, the Finance Committee, the Building Fund Committee, the Planning and Building Committee, the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and the Legion of Mary (this list is not exhaustive).

St. Peter's Parish maintained close relations with Catholic schools in Mount Pearl, including St. Peter's Elementary on Munden Drive, St. Peter's Primary on Ashford Drive, and O'Donel High on Ruth Avenue. These schools are no longer under church control as a result of denominational education reforms passed by the Provincial Government in 1997.

Pastors who have served St. Peter's Parish since its establishment in 1982 include: Raymond Lahey (1982-1986); Francis A. Coady (1986-1987); William K. Lawton (1987-1990); Louis Mousseau, Administrator (1990-1991); and Charles Kelly (1991- ).

Created - April 28, 2013

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