History

Any discussion about the history of St. Mary's Catholic Center or Texas A&M University Aggie Catholics must begin with the story of one man. The strength of the campus ministry team, the commitment to encouraging and supporting religious vocations, and the dedication to the faithful evangelization of the students of Texas A&M University and Blinn College find their origin in the life and works of Monsignor John Baptist Gleissner.

The History with Monsignor John Baptist Gleissner

Born October 31, 1865, in a small village in Bavaria, Germany, John Gleissner immigrated as a young man to the United States to enter a seminary, and received Holy Orders on July 10, 1889, in Galveston, Texas.

In March 1904, after serving several small parishes in Central Texas, Father Gleissner was assigned to St. Joseph’s Parish in Bryan, Texas, and to the missions in Caldwell and Frenstat. Six young men in the cadet uniform of A&M College caught Father Gleissner’s attention at Mass one Sunday. When he learned that they walked six miles to attend Mass at St. Joseph’s, Father Gleissner stated, “What a source of edification they were to me and the congregation. No matter how the weather, they came.” That encounter with those six young cadets marked the beginning of Father Gleissner’s awareness of the importance of serving college students.

A Catholic Campus Ministry

In April 1904, a Catholic campus ministry at the college became a reality as Bishop Nicholas A. Gallagher of the Galveston Diocese granted permission for Father Gleissner to offer Mass for the young men of A&M College as often as possible in a classroom on the campus. With only a crucifix and two candlesticks, the young Catholic faithful gathered around a makeshift altar in the old Civil Engineering building, planting the seeds that would grow into today’s thriving St. Mary's Catholic Center. Father Gleissner devoted much of his time to these faithful young Aggies, and his pioneering efforts in college campus ministry are still recognized and appreciated today.

By 1923, Msgr. Gleissner recognized that a campus classroom could no longer accommodate the growing congregation of Catholic Aggies. With full trust and abundant prayer, Father Gleissner decided to approach the Austin Convention of the Knights of Columbus of Texas to plead their case. The Council agreed on the need for a chapel for the Aggie Catholics and by 1926, plans and specifications for the chapel were drawn and a contractor hired. The cornerstone was laid on the Feast of the Holy Family on January 9, 1927. The inscription read: “St. Mary’s Chapel, erected by the State Council of the Knights of Columbus of Texas, A.D. 1927.” By the following April, the Aggie Cadets were celebrating Mass within the new St. Mary’s Chapel. The chapel could accommodate 250 and had a basement designed to serve as a student center for socials, conferences, and other gatherings.

Through the next several years, St. Mary’s Chapel continued to flourish, and the Catholic population on campus swelled to 300. The tremendous number of Aggies attending Confession and receiving Holy Communion and the abundant vocations to the priesthood are all blessings that continue to this day. Because of his tireless ministry, Father Gleissner was granted the title of Monsignor in 1931.

By 1940, the chapel had become too small. Parishioners were standing and kneeling on the front steps in order to participate in devotions and the Mass. Associate Pastor, Father Tim Valenta, built a balcony but this was only a temporary solution.

A Growing Community

The student body of A&M College continued to grow and it became obvious that a larger church and student center were needed. The original chapel, built more than 25 years before, was showing wear and tear. It was thanks to generous support from the Knights of Columbus, the Czech Catholic Union of Texas (K.J.T.), and the Czech Catholic Family Fraternal of Texas (K.J.Z.T.) that funds were raised, and the planning for the new church continued. In 1948, the Diocese of Austin was formed and Bryan-College Station left the Diocese of Galveston to join Austin. Bishop Louis J. Reicher, the first Bishop of Austin, authorized $200,000 for the building of a student center, chapel, and home for a resident priest.

On February 28, 1953, Monsignor Gleissner passed away. He was not able to witness the realization of his dream to build a new church but as Bishop Reicher remarked at the Pontifical Requiem Mass, “His untiring work among the Catholic student body of A&M endeared him to an immeasurable degree to every Catholic Aggie during the many years [he] was stationed in Bryan.”

In 1954, Father Charles Elmer became the first resident chaplain to the students at A&M and together, they finished raising enough funds to build a student center. Construction began on two lots of land and soon the center housing a lounge, library/classroom, and a kitchen began to take shape behind the original St. Mary’s Chapel. The long, low narrow brick building provided the setting for many activities, including numerous Newman Club dances.

Today’s Chapel and Student Center

After the completion of the student center, the Aggie congregation set their sights on the construction of the new chapel. By June 1956, construction began on the new St. Mary’s Chapel. In accordance with the wish of Monsignor Gleissner, it was a red brick colonial style, with tall white columns supporting the entry portico. The white tower and green slate roof soon became a feature of the Northgate skyline. The original altar of maroon and white oriental and domestic marble remains, but the marble-topped communion rail was removed after the Second Vatican Council. The Stations of the Cross and crucifix behind the altar were executed in Belgium and Italy. The tabernacle, made in the Netherlands, is still in use today. The new chapel accommodated 550 in the nave with room for an additional 50 in the small choir loft and cry room.

Today’s chapel remains basically unchanged except for a later enlargement of the balcony and the addition of an altar facing the congregation donated by the Women of St. Mary’s. In 1959, the original St. Mary’s Chapel was remodeled into a rectory for the priests. The building continued as a rectory until May 1965, when the one lot of land was sold to Shell Oil Company for $45,000.

The decision of the Second Vatican Council and student growth at Texas A&M worked together to create a transformation in the congregation. The Vatican Council decreed the use of the vernacular in the Mass, an altar facing the people, and greater participation of the lay members in decision making in the parish. Until 1968, St. Mary's functioned as a mission chapel from St. Joseph's in Bryan. In that year the Bishop granted parish status to St. Mary's.In 1963, the college began opening admission to women and in 1965 made military training optional. This led to a student population boom. In just one decade the university would grow to 35,000 students. Because of the connection between St. Mary's Parish and Texas A&M, it was not surprising that this student population explosion affected the parish and added new demands.

Bursting at the Seams

In 1968, Father Bernard Mahoney was assigned as the first full-time pastor of St. Mary's and he established a parish council. During these years of change, St. Mary's served as a parish for the faculty, staff, and their children as well as for the students. The 1958 church soon began to burst at the seams. More seating room was needed and more Masses were needed. Running two completely different programs, one being family-oriented and the other being student-based, proved to be a difficult task. In the final years of the 1960s, a number of priests moved through the parish, some staying only a short period. This resulted in instability. At the end of the decade, Father Bernard Mahoney was assigned, and he established the first parish council. He was succeeded by Father Elmer Holtman, and finally, continuity and a stable environment were established.

In the fall of 1971, a poll was taken at the university requesting students to name their religious preference. The results stated that 2,312 students listed Catholicism as their faith tradition of choice, second only to the Baptist faith. St. Mary's pastoral council members seized the opportunity to enhance student life by offering more student-oriented programs appealing to Aggies. The St. Mary's community recognized that university students were essential to the spiritual atmosphere. Obviously without them would be no need for faculty and staff and no need for a student center. Social events catered to the students, and activities such as the Hamburger Fry, potluck dinners, and Freshman Orientation parties occurred each year.

Although social events certainly attracted great crowds to the center, additional organizations to nourish all aspects of spiritual life were created throughout the 1970s. The Newman Club, a group dedicated to student-centered programs, revived its activities, and the charitable society of St. Vincent de Paul began meeting at St. Mary's. With a revitalized sense of stewardship and responsibility toward Texas A&M students came an inevitable remodeling of the student center. Between 1972 and 1978, approximately 3,000 Aggies looked to St. Mary's for religious guidance, Mass celebrations, and community support each year. The State Council of the Knights of Columbus supported the Aggies with a contribution of $60,000 for the renovation of the student center. The student parish used this donation to add rooms for student meetings and facility upgrading.

As the only Catholic parish in College Station, St. Mary's offered programs for members of the university community and their families as well as the College Station community at large. Under the direction of Father Al Palermo and Father Bill Brooks, there were coffee houses, dinners with the priests, and, the Newman Club. The Newman Club met every Wednesday night, beginning with a Newman Mass in the student center. Following Mass, students met to discuss future activities and projects and to enjoy fellowship during their social hour. The chapel and student center were full of life while under the watchful eyes of these priests and helped the center grow to accommodate the thousands of Catholic students attending the university as well as the Catholic families within the College Station community.

Founding of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish

In 1982, St. Thomas Aquinas Parish was founded on the south side of the city to handle this mounting Catholic population with the mission of serving families. St. Mary's Parish no longer bore the sole responsibility of serving the needs of the entire Catholic community in Aggieland, so the student center situated on the corner of Church and Nagle Streets shifted its focus to address the needs of the students. All children's religious education was moved to the new parish. As St. Thomas Aquinas Parish grew in south College Station, the community at St. Mary's became even more focused on quality student ministry at Texas A&M.

In the summer of 1992, Fr. Mike Sis and Fr. Dean Wilhelm joined Fr. Adam Martinez at St. Mary's. When Fr. Adam was given a different assignment, Fr. Mike became the pastor in January 1993. The number of programs continued increasing so much that there was no longer room in the student center to hold them all. Thousands of Aggie Catholics were attempting to use a building designed for hundreds of cadets. The sounds of choir rehearsals often disturbed the meetings being held in adjacent spaces. Some meetings had to be held outdoors due to a lack of sufficient rooms. The physical condition of the student center was also showing the wear of heavy use over many years.

A New Student Center

Under the direction of Fr. Mike Sis, the AggieCatholic family continued to grow. Fr. Mike actively encouraged the students to develop and form new student groups with organized student leaderships. St. Mary’s Youth Retreat Team (SMYRT) – a group dedicated to leading retreats for Jr. High and High School students, Kappa Theta Beta (KTB- Daughters of the King) – a group for female fellowship, service and growth in faith, daily Adoration organized by the student body, The Rock – praise and worship, Pescadores – a ministry group for Spanish speaking students, and events like ‘Nun Run’ and ‘Seminary Sprint’ were started.

The continued growth in student population and the growth in the number of ministries made it obvious that a new facility was needed for worship, study, and promoting the faith of the Church.  The goal was that it would be an inviting and welcoming place where students could find a home away from home.  The previous capital projects at St. Mary's had been funded by organizations like the Knights of Columbus and the K.J.T. along with some local donors.  For this $5 million project, a Development Group was established and the "Building a Tradition in Faith" campaign began.

For the first time in St. Mary's fundraising, the parish was successful in reaching former students and parents of students outside the local community.  Over three thousand benefactors added their contributions to large gifts like $200,000 from the State Council Knights of Columbus and a $500,000 Challenge Grant from the Mabee Foundation.  The result was a 30,000 square foot facility with a lobby, classrooms, activity center, courtyard, and small Chapel.  The new facilities were dedicated on April 25, 1998.

The Fruit that Will Last Campaign

Our current church was designed to hold 650 individuals when the enrollment at Texas A&M numbered 7,500. With enrollments at Texas A&M and Blinn exceeding 70,000 with 17,000 estimated Catholics, we were unable to fit the Aggie Catholic family into our church during the seven weekend Masses. We expected these enrollments and thus the demand on St. Mary’s to continue to grow. That is why we launched a campaign to build our new church with seating for 1,500+.

In 2013, (now Bishop) David Konderla began the Capital campaign for purpose of constructing new buildings and a new church. The project began with the visioning of the JPII Expansion which included the JPII Event Center, new office spaces for staff, and new classrooms for ministries to meet.

The New Millenium

By the time St. Mary's celebrated its 100-year anniversary in 2004, Pastor and now Bishop Mike Sis had transformed the parish into a campus ministry that was receiving nationwide attention.  The new facilities, a large staff, and a strong financial base led to a flourishing of religious and lay vocations for Aggie Catholics.  The ministry was now expected to serve a combined student population of about 70,000 between Texas A&M and Blinn Junior College of which an estimated 17,000 were Catholic.  The 1958 church had an expanded capacity of about 850 but this was not sufficient to host the Aggie Catholic family, even with seven weekend Masses.  Further, it was apparent that the 1998 student center was not going to satisfy all the needs of the ministry.

It was the task of the next Pastor and now Bishop David Konderla to set a vision for future growth.  A capital campaign called "Fruit That Will Last" began in 2013 with the purpose of expanding the student center and ultimately building a new church.  The successful campaign raised $11 million to construct the John Paul II addition which included a larger event center, a new lobby, four large classrooms, and additional office space to consolidate parish staff.  The new facilities were necessary to foster the spiritual lives of Aggie Catholics.  The JPII addition was dedicated on October 22, 2019, the feast day of St. John Paul II.

The Third St. Mary’s Church Building

Once the JPII fundraising was complete, full attention shifted to the construction of a new church for St. Mary's.  It had been discussed as early as 2011 but the formal "New Church Campaign" began in 2017 under the guidance of the first Aggie pastor of St. Mary's, Fr. Brian McMaster.  The new church would feature seating for 1500, a prominent dome, and a bell tower.  The design was to highlight three values:

Beauty - a church that is aesthetically pleasing and calls upon the reality of heaven, Encounter - a church that will enhance the intimacy of encounter with the Lord like the existing church, and Tradition - a church rich in Catholic heritage

The groundbreaking for the new church took place on May 19, 2021, with the Dedication happening on July 29, 2023.  The Catholic community looks forward to how this new church will enhance the mission of "forming apostles for the Church and the world."