A parish is many things. Its church building is a place of worship; its boundaries encircle a home, for both the body and soul of its members; and through the celebration of the sacraments and holidays, it provides a central pillar for the lives of its parishioners.
Regardless, floorboards get old and creaky, parishioners die and new ones are born and baptized, and renewal becomes a necessity. Few parishes feel that reality more strongly than St. Francis of Assisi in East Vancouver.
This year, the parish celebrates its 90th anniversary while also looking toward the future. Its historic church requires significant repairs, including a restoration of its tower estimated at $600,000. The parish has already completed drainage, boiler, elevator and seismic upgrades, among other improvements, but the work continues.
The parish also marks the 800th anniversary of the death of its patron saint, the great medieval reformer St. Francis of Assisi. Pope Leo XIV has proclaimed a special Franciscan Jubilee Year from January 10, 2026, to January 10, 2027, giving the parish’s 90th anniversary an added significance.
From its beginnings, the parish was closely connected to Vancouver’s Italian Catholic community. Over the decades, its community has changed and expanded, with the parish school becoming an important part of parish life and drawing families from throughout the neighbourhood and beyond.
The parish was formally established on Sept. 20, 1936, growing out of the Franciscan monastery that had been built in Vancouver more than a decade earlier. The first Masses were celebrated in the monastery’s small chapel before the present church was built and dedicated in 1938.
For St. Francis of Assisi’s parishioners, its history is manifest less in dates and construction accomplishments than in baptisms, weddings, funerals, First Communions, Christmas concerts and Sunday Masses.
Ann Massé first came to St. Francis of Assisi in 2007, when she enrolled her two children at the parish elementary school. She soon began working there as an educational assistant, and 18 years later, although her children have grown, she continues to love her work at the school.
“Bringing my kids to the school and being a part of the school was very providential for me, especially as a single parent,” she told The B.C. Catholic. “It’s a very special, close community … I had my mother’s funeral there last year, which was very beautiful.”
Her work at the school has also given her an opportunity to become more deeply involved in parish life, including helping with sacramental preparation. Just having the children there and singing during the liturgies brings her joy, she said, as does being part of the celebrations surrounding Confirmation and First Communion.
Like many parents, some of Massé’s favourite memories revolve around her children and the school, particularly watching her daughter take part in Christmas concerts.
She is hopeful for the future of the parish. “A lot more young families are coming [to Mass],” she said. “You always hear babies.”
Sonia Erichsen officially became a parishioner at St. Francis in 2005, but her connection to the parish goes back much further.
She was baptized there in the 1970s, and her family were parishioners for a time. They eventually began attending St. Mary’s Parish because it offered a school bus, but Erichsen retained fond memories of St. Francis.
“My father was Italian, so there was that connection to St. Francis of Assisi,” she said.
Over the years, she continued to return to the church for weddings and other celebrations. Since taking on a leadership role in the parish in 2009, she has developed an even deeper appreciation for the community.
“I love all the traditions, and watching the kids receive their sacraments,” she said. “Watching the school and the parish come together is a beautiful thing.”
First Communion is one of her favourite celebrations, especially watching entire families accompany their children up to the altar to receive their First Communions. She also treasures seeing friends get married in the church.
For Erichsen, reaching the parish’s 90th anniversary feels “a little surreal.”
When she first became involved, the parish was approaching its 75th anniversary. Over the years, she has watched the parish and school continue to grow together, describing them as “one and the same.”
Her hope for the future is that St. Francis will remain a strong Catholic presence in the neighbourhood and that its school will continue to thrive.
Paul Kingsbury and his family arrived at St. Francis in 2016 after moving from downtown Vancouver. They were looking for a Catholic school for their daughter, Grace, and were drawn to the intimacy of the culture at St. Francis of Assisi School.
After attending several Masses, the family decided they had found their parish.
“I think as a faithful Catholic, the reason the school is so good is the parish, and the Eucharist,” he said. “It’s what endows beauty, truth and goodness in our lives.”
Kingsbury has served as chair of the Parish Education Committee for about five years. His wife, Melinda, and daughter sing in the choir, while he serves as a lector.
For him, the relationship between the school and parish is essential to the character of the parish, and that unity ultimately flows from the Mass. “All the beauty, truth and goodness radiate from the Mass,” he said.
Further, he noted the influence the parish has in the surrounding community. “Churches and parishes have this sort of halo effect on the surrounding world,” he said. That influence, he said, radiates from Christ’s presence in the Eucharist and into the activities that grow from the Mass, including prayer groups and the Knights of Columbus.
For Kingsbury, that is part of the reason St. Francis has endured for 90 years. Its history is connected not only to the parish itself, but to the 2,000-year history of the Church, the 800-year legacy of St. Francis of Assisi and the recent Jubilee Year of Hope.
Rose Aiello has been part of St. Francis of Assisi Parish for six decades.
Although she was baptized at Sacred Heart because her family lived outside St. Francis’ boundaries, they began attending St. Francis shortly afterward, and the parish soon became a central part of her family’s life.
She received her First Communion and Confirmation there. Generations of her family have also celebrated important milestones at the parish: family members were married there, most of her nieces and nephews were baptized there, and her parents renewed their 25th wedding anniversary vows at St. Francis.
“It’s my heart and soul,” Aiello said. “I am being biased, but I think that St. Francis is the best little church in the community.”
She says entering the old church still gives her a sense of peace that is difficult to describe. The statues and the history contained within the building contribute to the feeling.
“I feel a sense of calm,” she said. “It’s hard to put into words when you walk into that little parish. You can walk in with the weight of the world on your shoulders, but I guarantee that when you leave, that weight has been lifted.”
One of the memories that has remained strongest for Aiello dates back to 1979, when her mother died at just 49 years old. Aiello was only a teenager, and her father was left to raise three teenagers all by himself.
The response of the parish priest at the time, Father Emmanuele Rosaia, left a strong impression on Aiello. Fr. Rosaia reached out to Aiello’s father and made a point of being there for the family, often visiting nearly every day to make sure he had what he needed to care for his children. “That has always stood out to me because of the time he took,” Aiello said. “He always made a point of telling my dad that he was there for him.”
After six decades at St. Francis, Aiello says being part of the parish remains “so fulfilling on so many levels.”
In more recent years, Aiello has continued to serve the parish in a variety of ways, including on the pastoral leadership team and through the baking team.
She remembers the difficult days of the COVID-19 pandemic, when the pews were nearly empty, and she worried about the health of the parish. But she has been encouraged by the revitalization she has seen since Father Lucca arrived three years ago.
“Today, with Father Lucca, we have been extremely blessed,” she said. “It was amazing how he brought a vitality to our little parish. Now the 10:30 Mass I attend is full, it’s completely full.”
That vitality, she says, can be felt throughout the parish. There is a new energy, and she is especially encouraged by the number of younger people coming to Mass and becoming involved.
“You are seeing the younger generation more and more,” she said. “That is what, for me, is very impressive and important.”
