Our Lady of Fatima Parish sits in the heart of Seattle's Magnolia neighborhood, a residential community on a bluff west of downtown with views across Elliott Bay. The parish church faces Magnolia Playfield on West Barrett Street, while the parish office and the parish school line West Dravus one block south. Founded in 1952 and now home to roughly 1,200 registered families, Our Lady of Fatima is a Catholic community where a single mission statement frames everything that happens here: We, as stewards of Our Lady of Fatima Parish, keep Jesus Christ at the center of our lives by celebrating the Eucharist, nurturing our faith, building community, and serving others.
From Legion Hall to a Church of Its Own
The parish began on January 27, 1952, when its founding pastor, Father Emery "Doc" Blanchard, offered the first Mass for a scattered flock of Magnolia Catholics in the neighborhood's American Legion Hall at 32nd and West Barrett. The parish had no building, no rectory, and only a borrowed room next to a plumber's office for its first organization, the Men's Club. Within two months the congregation had already outgrown the Legion Hall and moved into the Magnolia Theatre, where Sunday Masses were offered on a portable altar and parishioners knelt in the aisles.
A parish drive raised pledges for a temporary church, a school, and a convent, and construction began in May 1953 on a muddy peat bog. On Christmas Eve of 1953 the first Mass was sung in a real church by a real choir. When the school opened in January 1954, Archbishop Connolly laid the cornerstone of the first building, and Our Lady of Fatima finally had a parish center of its own.
The dramatic milestone was the building of the present church, whose dedication many longtime parishioners still remember as a dream come true. By 1986 the parish had grown enough to open a Parish Center to address social needs. A new wave of families arrived in the neighborhood over the following fifteen years, and the parish school grew in three phases, capped by a new gymnasium in 2005. Today the parish spans at least three generations and includes a vital music ministry and a long roster of programs for children, youth, and adults.
Mass, Confession, and the Eucharist at the Center
The weekly rhythm of the parish is built around the Eucharist. Saturday Vigil Mass is celebrated at 5:00 PM and Sunday Mass at 9:00 AM. Weekday Mass is offered Monday, Thursday, and Friday at 9:00 AM, and on the first Saturday of each month at 9:00 AM. The Rosary is prayed in the church from 8:30 to 9:00 AM before each weekday Mass, and the First Saturday Devotion follows the 9:00 AM Mass on the first Saturday of every month.
Confessions are heard on Saturday from 4:00 to 4:30 PM in the church, half an hour before the Vigil Mass. The parish teaching on the Eucharist is straightforward and deeply Catholic: at Mass, the Risen Jesus is truly and substantially present under the appearances of bread and wine. The priest, through the power of ordination and the action of the Holy Spirit, transforms the bread and wine into the Body and Blood of Christ, a change the Church calls transubstantiation. The Mass is structured in two parts, the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist, and it is the source and summit of Catholic life.
Coffee and Donuts follow the Sunday 9:00 AM Mass in the Parish Center, and volunteers sign up to pick up the donuts, set up, host, and clean up. Children's Liturgy of the Word, for children from Pre-K through fifth grade, is offered during the 9:00 AM Mass in the Parish Center, so that younger children can hear the readings at their own level.
The Seven Sacraments
The whole liturgical life of the parish revolves around the seven sacraments instituted by Christ: Baptism, Eucharist, and Confirmation as the sacraments of initiation; Penance (Reconciliation) and Anointing of the Sick as the sacraments of healing; and Marriage and Holy Orders as the sacraments of vocation.
Baptism is celebrated several times a year at a weekend liturgy, with each celebration limited to six children age six or younger. Parents fill out a baptism registration form and submit a certificate of live birth, attend a baptism class within the last five years, and schedule through Jessica Harris at (206) 503-2415. A $200 donation is requested from families not registered and participating in parish stewardship giving.
Confirmation at Our Lady of Fatima is ordinarily received by children in seventh grade and above, with preparation handled through the parish's Confirmation program. Susan Burdett at (206) 503-2415 is the parish contact. The sacrament perfects baptismal grace and roots the confirmed more deeply in the divine filiation, strengthens their bond with the Church, and associates them more closely with her mission.
Penance (Reconciliation) is offered individually on Saturday afternoons as well as by appointment. The parish teaches the four steps of the sacrament: contrition for sin, confession to a priest, acceptance of absolution, and a commitment to live a Christian life. Only ordained priests have the faculty of absolving sins from the authority of the Church in the name of Jesus Christ.
Anointing of the Sick is available to the elderly, the ill, those preparing for surgery, and the dying. Parishioners may ask the priest following Mass, call the parish office at (206) 283-1456, or, in an emergency, call (206) 279-7040. Since the Second Vatican Council, the sacrament is celebrated more broadly than only at the moment of death, and is ideally a communal celebration.
Marriage preparation begins with a call to Fr. Freitag at least six months in advance, because the parish prepares couples not just for the wedding day but for the lifetime of marriage that follows. The Church teaches that marriage is a covenant that reflects the union of Christ and the Church, that it is unitive, indissoluble, and open to fertility.
Holy Orders is conferred only on baptized men whose suitability has been recognized by Church authority and who, in the Latin Church, embrace celibacy for the sake of the kingdom. The ordained ministry, in the three degrees of bishop, priest, and deacon, is irreplaceable for the organic structure of the Church.
Becoming Catholic, Returning Catholics, and RCIA
For adults who wish to enter the Catholic Church, the parish runs the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (RCIA), eight months of weekly inquiry and catechumenate sessions from September through Pentecost, with initiation generally taking place at the Easter Vigil. Catechumens move through the stages the Church has used since the early centuries: the inquiry stage, the rite of reception into the order of catechumens, the rite of election on the first Sunday of Lent, the scrutinies during Lent, and finally initiation at the Easter Vigil, followed by the period of mystagogy through Eastertide.
Christians already baptized in another church are prepared differently. They make a profession of the Catholic faith, are formally received into the Church, and are immediately confirmed and welcomed to the Eucharist. The parish's RCIA contact is Jessica Harris.
For those baptized Catholic who have drifted away, the parish opens its door explicitly. Returning Catholics are welcomed whether they left in pain, married outside the Church, attend only at Christmas and Easter, or have not been to confession in a long time. The parish invites them to renew their relationship with the Church and to contact the office.
Children's Faith Formation and the Parish School
The Children's Faith Formation program offers Sunday classes from September through May for children ages three through thirteen, a curriculum-based program that initiates children into the traditions and beliefs of the Catholic faith. A separate Rite of Christian Initiation for Children (RCIC) is offered for children of catechetical age, seven or older, who were not baptized as infants or who had little or no formal religious education. Preparation begins in the fall, and initiation takes place at Easter. Both programs are coordinated through Jessica Harris.
The Our Lady of Fatima School is a parish school with its own building at 3301 West Dravus Street, directly across from the parish center and the playfield. The school is supported by the parish through a School Commission that advises and supports the pastor and principal, and its athletic program is run through the Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) in affiliation with the Archdiocesan CYO network. The current principal is Karianne Earnest, and the school can be reached at (206) 283-7031.
EDGE and High School Youth Ministry
Middle school students in grades six through eight are invited to EDGE, the parish's middle school youth group. EDGE meets on Sunday afternoons, typically every other week, from 3:00 to 5:00 PM. The format rotates between six types of events: EDGE Days, Offsites, Challenge Days, Socials, Service Days, and Cooking with the Saints, each one shaped for middle schoolers. All students in the community are welcome, and the parish also invites actively practicing Catholic adults to serve as Core Team Members, as well as high school juniors and seniors to step into volunteer leadership roles. Ericka Lamsek is the volunteer youth ministry contact at (206) 503-2421.
High school youth gather for LifeNight in the Rectory Basement Meeting Room, two hours of faith, fellowship, and formation that anchors the high school ministry. The youth ministry program also feeds into Confirmation preparation, and Confirmation candidates are invited to join Youth Group as part of their sacramental journey.
Music That Lifts the Liturgy
The Music Ministry at Our Lady of Fatima is led by Sung Joon Lee, a native of Seoul, Korea, who studied piano from age seven, completed an undergraduate degree in music composition at the University of North Texas, a graduate degree in church music at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and a Master of Divinity at Central Baptist Theological Seminary. He has served as music director, choir director, and organ or piano accompanist in churches in Texas, Oregon, and Washington.
The parish choirs sing at the Saturday 5:00 PM Vigil Mass and the Sunday 9:00 AM Mass, and they rehearse for one hour before each liturgy. A supplementary rehearsal is held on Thursdays from 7:00 to 8:30 PM, except in July and August. No audition is required, and all ages are welcome. Cantors lead the congregation in hymns and psalms and are a particularly good opportunity for young people to gain professional musical experience. For funerals, the Music Director selects the Psalm and works with the family on the Entrance, Offertory, Communion, and Recessional hymns, drawing on the parish's Ritual Song hymnal and a list of approved solos that includes Ave Maria settings by Bach/Gounod and Schubert, Panis Angelicus by Franck, Pie Jesu by Faure, and chanted settings in English or Latin.
Community Groups: Quilters, Knights, Filipino-American Society
Our Lady of Fatima has a deep bench of community groups that sustain parish life. The Fatima Quilters, organized in February 2007, meets on the first Tuesday of each month at 10:00 AM in the Parish Office Classroom. Members take turns supplying a quilt block pattern, complete blocks at home, and assemble finished quilts twice a year in the Parish Center. All quilts are donated, most recently to the Magi Project for distribution to needy families.
The Knights of Columbus, the largest lay organization in the Catholic Church, meets on the second and fourth Wednesday of each month at 7:30 PM in the Rectory Basement. The local council is committed to charity, unity, fraternity, patriotism, and the defense of the priesthood. Each year the Knights award two or more $1,000 scholarships, funded through their own projects, and they supply the muscle behind the parish's Christmas Magi Project. The Grand Knight is John Campion.
The Filipino-American Society fosters goodwill and closer relations among its members and the broader community, promoting involvement in charitable, social, cultural, religious, and educational activities.
The Welcome Desk is staffed after weekend liturgies to answer questions and help parishioners request Mass intentions.
Reaching Beyond the Parish: Service Groups
The parish's Service Team channels volunteer energy into outreach that touches neighbors across Magnolia, Queen Anne, and South Lake Union. The Magi Project is an annual parish ministry that brings Christmas to more than eighty needy families and individuals. Working through Archdiocesan agencies, the project provides food, gifts, household items, and grocery store vouchers. The Knights of Columbus help distribute the gifts each year.
The parish supports the Queen Anne Helpline, which provides emergency assistance for housing, food, and basic needs in Magnolia, Queen Anne, and South Lake Union, with many volunteer opportunities for adults and families.
The St. Vincent de Paul Society, a Catholic lay organization, leads women and men to grow spiritually by offering person-to-person service to the needy and suffering. The conference meets the first Wednesday of each month from September through May at 7:00 PM in the parish library.
The St. Martin's Shelter Meal Program sends parish volunteers twice a month to St. Martin de Porres Shelter, a CCS facility in Seattle's SODO district. Meals are prepared and delivered to the Fatima parking lot, then driven downtown in the parish bus every other Tuesday evening. Individuals and families participate on a flexible schedule.
Parishioners are also invited to bring non-perishable canned and packaged food for the food bank on Sunday mornings at the Parish Center, a regular drop-off that fills the pantry week by week.
Faith Groups: Liturgical Ministries and Devotions
A wide range of liturgical ministries support the weekend Masses. Altar Servers, boys and girls from fourth grade and above, assist the priest at the liturgy, with training sessions in the fall and spring. Lectors proclaim the Scriptures at the Saturday Vigil and Sunday Masses. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion help distribute the Body and Blood of Christ. Hospitality Ministers greet people as they arrive, provide hearing devices, take up the offerings, and distribute bulletins. Altar Care volunteers maintain the altar cloths, purificators, towels, holy water fonts, and candles, and rearrange pew books and flowers each week. Those who wish to present the gifts of bread and wine at Mass may speak to an usher before Mass.
Ministry to the Sick and Home-bound sends parish volunteers to make Eucharistic visits to those who cannot come to Mass. Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament is held on the first Friday of every month, following the 9:00 AM Mass until noon, when the Blessed Sacrament is exposed and adored by volunteers who share one hour or more in prayer. Stations of the Cross are prayed on Friday evenings at 7:00 PM in the church during Lent.
Pastoral Teams: Community, Faith, Service
The parish's 2016 Pastoral Plan organizes ministry around three teams that report to the Parish Council and to Fr. Freitag. The Community Team cultivates a parish family that is welcoming and supportive. The Faith Team commits to learning about and deepening the parish's faith. The Service Team provides support and opportunities to strengthen the parish's culture of service. The Pastoral Council itself advises, plans strategically, and supports the pastor. Together these teams provide the structure that connects every other ministry in the parish.
Partners in the Gospel and the Northwest Seattle Catholic Parish Family
Our Lady of Fatima is one of three parishes in the Northwest Seattle Catholic Parish Family, joined with Sacred Heart of Jesus and St. Anne. The three share a weekly bulletin and a combined calendar of Masses and activities, and they have launched a new shared hub at www.nwseattlecatholic.org. Daily Mass is offered across the family: St. Anne celebrates Tuesday at 9:00 AM, Wednesday at 5:30 PM, and Friday at 8:45 AM; Sacred Heart offers noon Mass Monday through Friday. The parish family is part of the broader Partners in the Gospel initiative of the Archdiocese of Seattle, a strategic pastoral renewal effort responding to fewer priests, shifting populations, and new pastoral needs, with the goal of becoming more mission-focused communities.
Funerals, Marriages, and the Life of the Parish
Funerals at Our Lady of Fatima are normally celebrated on Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday in mid-morning, with Saturday morning available if no wedding is scheduled. The parish prefers the body of the deceased to be present in the church for the funeral Mass, in keeping with the Church's conviction that the human body is a temple of the Holy Spirit. Cremation is permitted, but the parish strongly prefers that cremation take place after the Funeral Mass, and cremated remains are brought to the church in a worthy urn or ossuary. The parish offers a reception space in the Parish Center that accommodates about 250 standing, with detailed information about caterers and handling provided by the office.
Standard honoraria for funerals include a memorial offering to the parish, $150 to the Parish Center for reception, $200 to the cantor and $200 to the organist, $20 for each of three altar servers, and customary gifts to the priest and to the minister at the cemetery. The Music Director contacts the family after scheduling to choose hymns from the parish's hymnal, and the funeral homily is offered by the priest or deacon who presides. Eulogies, where appropriate, are limited to 500 words and shared with the presiding priest at least 24 hours in advance.
The Patroness: Our Lady of Fatima
The parish takes its name from the apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary to three Portuguese children, Lucia, Francisco, and Jacinta, at the Cova da Iria near Fatima, Portugal, beginning on May 13, 1917. Our Lady identified herself as the "Lady of the Rosary" and asked for prayer, penance, and the conversion of sinners. Sister Lucia later reported additional apparitions requesting the devotion of the five first Saturdays and the consecration of Russia to the Immaculate Heart. The parish keeps this devotion alive through the First Saturday Mass and Devotion following the 9:00 AM Mass on the first Saturday of every month, and the Consecration to the Immaculate Heart of Mary prayed by parishioners renews the call to conversion, the rosary, and reparation.
Parish Office, Staff, and Stewardship
The Parish Office at 3307 West Dravus Street is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 AM to noon and 1:00 to 3:00 PM. The phone number is (206) 283-1456, and the parish email is parish@olfatima.org. The staff includes Fr. Patrick Freitag (Pastor), Fr. Tony Kitema (Parochial Vicar), Jessica Harris (Religious Education, Youth Confirmation, Baptism, Becoming Catholic), Sung Lee (Music Director), Phil Hasenkamp (Pastoral Assistant for Administration), Ericka Lamsek (Youth Ministry volunteer contact), Karianne Earnest (School Principal), and Ann DeBita (Communications and Development Manager). Recurring giving is set up through Pushpay, and contribution envelopes are mailed on a bi-monthly basis to registered families. The annual Stewardship of Treasure campaign frames financial giving as a form of prayer, with the tithe of ten percent offered as a benchmark: five percent to the weekly offertory, one percent to the Archbishop's Annual Appeal, and four percent to faith-based charities. The parish has roughly 860 registered families and raised $702,176 in fiscal year 2024-2025 toward a goal of $745,000 for fiscal year 2025-2026.
Becoming Part of the Parish
Anyone interested in joining the parish fills out the Parish Registration Form or contacts the Parish Office. Newcomers are warmly welcomed, whether they are looking for a new parish home, just visiting for a short time, interested in learning more about the Catholic Church, or returning to the practice of the Catholic faith. The parish invites people of every background to put faith into action, build community, and serve others, and it offers a wealth of ways to get involved, from the choir to the Knights of Columbus, from EDGE to the St. Martin's Shelter Meal Program, from the Fatima Quilters to the Queen Anne Helpline.