A Catholic Heart on the Central Bench
Sacred Heart Catholic Church sits on the corner of Latah and Cassia Streets in the Central Bench neighborhood of Boise, Idaho, where it has been the spiritual home of generations of Catholic families since the parish was formally established in September 1952 and its first Mass was celebrated on Easter Sunday, April 5, 1953. The parish's mission is to help every person encounter the living Christ through vibrant worship and prayer, a deepening grasp of the Gospel, and outreach to those in need, and that three-fold rhythm is visible the moment one walks through the doors. Across from the church runs the K-8 Sacred Heart Catholic Elementary School, and the parish complex houses Faith Hall, Hope Hall, the parish offices, the day chapel where adoration is held, and a parish library. Fr. Hippolytus Ezenwa pastors the community, supported by Fr. Oscar Jaramillo in residence and Deacons Sal Carranza, Jude Gary (retired), Dan Vawser, and Jim Ineck.
From Vista Theater to Easter Sunday 1953
The Bench had waited years for a Catholic church of its own. In 1951 Bishop Edward D. Kelly purchased the land at Latah and Cassia and, with the architectural firm of Hummel, Hummel, and Jones, designed the building that still defines the parish. Father James T. Hallissey was named Sacred Heart's first pastor. While the church rose, the faithful gathered for Mass at the Vista Theater, with children's classes and parish meetings held in private homes and the priests' house on Cassia. Christmas Mass that year was celebrated at South Junior High. The official establishment date of the parish was September 1952, the first Mass was Easter Sunday 1953, and the church was dedicated on June 14, 1953.
The six years that followed were a building boom. The Bowles architects drew the school with eight classrooms, a kitchen, nurse's room, office, and gymnasium; a rectory went up next to the church; and a two-story house was hauled across Boise from the North End to house the Benedictine Sisters who came up from Cottonwood, Idaho, to teach. Sister Mary Amada led a faculty that, between 1958 and 1979, gave Catholic formation to more than 20,000 children. The first eighth-grade class graduated in 1961. By 1965 the lower grades were overflowing, and parishioners built an extra second-grade classroom. When even that addition proved inadequate, the Diocese of Boise bought land in the Cole/Northview area and built the Sacred Heart Mission School - the seed of today's St. Mark's Parish.
The Bench parish kept growing up as well as out. The rectory was absorbed into Hope Hall; a new convent was built on Camas Street, then later remade into a rectory; in 1992 a two-story rectory with two apartments went up next door. In 1979 the parish launched a master building plan to bring the church into line with the Second Vatican Council and diocesan norms; two years of physical and spiritual renewal led to the dedication of the renovated church by Bishop Sylvester W. Treinen on June 29, 1984, and the parish office and Faith Hall were occupied in December 1993. Bishop Kelly High School, Idaho's only Catholic high school, was built in 1960 by the Boise parishes together, and Sacred Heart continues to support it. In 1982 a "John Doe" was found dead in the church on a Sunday morning; the case was featured on the television program "Unsolved Mysteries" and has never been solved.
For all of that, the parish describes itself as a "close knit community that loved each other and served the Lord." The women's altar society, now the Ladies of Sacred Heart, used to clean the church with their families, sew linens and vestments, and teach younger women to sew and play bridge. Baked sales, Christmas bazaars, Harvest Balls, Mardi Gras, square dances, carnivals, crab feeds, and dinners knit the parish together as fundraisers. The Catholic Schools Foundation of the Sacred Heart was created in 1980 to support the school. Since 1994 the parish has offered a variety of retreats, with the Evangelization Retreat proving the most fruitful; the Evangelization Retreat Team, dubbed the "Roamin' Catholics," has helped parishes in Emmett, St. Maries, Moscow, McCall, San Francisco, McEwen (Tennessee), Moses Lake (Washington), and Ravena (New York) conduct the same retreat since 2000. In 1963 Mr. John Kirk and Father Hallissey founded the Hallissey Basketball Tournament, which still draws seventh- and eighth-grade teams from across Idaho for a weekend of Christian sportsmanship. Sacred Heart cares for the poor through its St. Vincent de Paul Conference, which runs the food pantry at 3209 W. Overland Road that is open to anyone in the community.
Mass on the Bench
The weekend Mass schedule is built around three celebrations. Saturday evening Mass is at 5:00 pm, Sunday Masses are at 8:30 am and 11:00 am. Weekday Mass is celebrated Tuesday through Friday at 8:30 am, and a Treasure Valley Community Mass is offered on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday at 7:00 am. Reconciliation is heard on Friday evenings from 6:00 to 7:00 pm and by appointment Tuesday through Friday. Visitors are welcomed with a printed guide to the parts of the Mass - especially helpful for those unfamiliar with when to sit, stand, and kneel - and ushers will lend a hearing assistance device on request. The parish asks that those who are not Catholic refrain from receiving Communion, but invites them to come forward with arms crossed over their chest for a blessing. There is no crying room; if a child needs a break, the Narthex and Faith Hall are available. Pets are not allowed at Mass, and service animals require prior approval from the parish office.
Music, the Family Mass, and a New Pipe Organ
Music is led by Susan Daly, the parish's Music Ministry Coordinator. Saturday's 5:00 pm Mass is shaped by a cantor and pianist; the 8:30 am Sunday Mass adds an organist; and the 11:00 am Sunday Mass is the parish's choral Mass, with cantor, choir, pianist or organist, and a variety of solo instruments. The 11:00 am Mass is also the parish's long-standing Family Mass, which celebrates children of all ages and highlights the work of the Sacred Heart school community. The choir is non-audition and welcomes singers of every level; rehearsals run Sunday mornings at 10:00 am from September through May.
The parish was gifted a beautiful Johannus D-477 Digital Pipe Organ by an especially generous parishioner in celebration of the 70th anniversary of the church's dedication in 2023, with additional piping installed during the project and a future connection to the pipes planned. A bell choir for teens and adults is on hiatus while the parish seeks leadership. Cantors, choir members, and instrumentalists are recruited continually.
The Faith Hall and the Family Mass: Children and CLOW
Sacred Heart treats the family as the domestic church, the first and most important place where children encounter Jesus. Children's Religious Education for kindergarten through sixth grade meets on Sundays from 9:45 to 10:45 am throughout the school year. At least one parent is required to attend each class with their child, and the lesson is experienced together; younger and older siblings are welcome with parental supervision. A typical session opens with sung prayer, moves into a shared lesson, breaks into smaller age-appropriate groups, and closes with a hands-on activity. Parents leave with practical ideas to weave Catholic faith into ordinary family life. First Reconciliation and First Communion are prepared for in a two-year track that includes weekly Religious Education classes, family meetings, regular Mass attendance, and a baptismal certificate on file. Erin Rosenkoetter coordinates the sacrament track and can be reached through the parish office.
Children's Liturgy of the Word (CLOW) is offered at every 11:00 am Sunday Mass except on holiday and special weekends. Children are dismissed from the assembly before the readings and gather to hear the Gospel proclaimed from the Lectionary for Masses with Children at an age-appropriate level, then rejoin their families for the Profession of Faith. Order of Christian Initiation of Children (OCIC) walks unbaptized children through the same steps in an age-appropriate way. Vacation Bible School runs one week each summer with song, crafts, drama, scripture stories, and snacks.
Adoration on Mondays, First Fridays, and Forty Hours
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament is held in the chapel on Mondays from 7:30 am to 5:00 pm, with Benediction at 4:45 pm. The parish also keeps a longer vigil on First Fridays, opening at 9:00 am after the 8:30 am Mass and continuing through Saturday afternoon until 4:30 pm. Twice a year - in Lent and Advent - the parish keeps the Forty Hours Devotion. The parish's own reflection on adoration, written by Father John F. Donoghue, traces the practice from Christ's own adoration of the Father through the teaching of the Council of Trent, the encyclicals of Pope Pius XII and Pope Paul VI, and the witness of St. Peter Julian Eymard and St. John Vianney.
Adoration is one of several prayer offerings at Sacred Heart. The Legion of Mary meets every Thursday at 9:30 am in the parish library and reaches out to shut-ins and the unchurched. An email prayer chain, available at shprayerchain@sacredheartboise.org, lifts up special intentions. Mary's Sanctuary gathers in the church on Mondays at 5:30 pm to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet and the Rosary.
Becoming Catholic: OCIA for Adults, Teens, and Children
The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults at Sacred Heart accompanies inquirers through a gradual process of conversion. OCIA is for three groups: adults who have never been baptized and will receive Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist together; Christians baptized in another denomination who wish to be received into full communion with the Catholic Church through Confirmation and Eucharist; and baptized Catholics who have not yet completed their initiation. The period of inquiry gives room to ask questions without committing to initiation. OCIA for Teens offers the same journey to youth who have not been baptized, preparing them for the three sacraments of Christian initiation. OCIC is the children's track.
Confirmation preparation is offered to baptized Catholic youth in grades 9 through 12 who have already received First Communion and Reconciliation. Candidates register with a $30 sacramental fee, submit a baptismal certificate, celebrate Sunday Mass and Reconciliation regularly, serve in a liturgical ministry, attend all required parent-sponsor-candidate sessions beginning in October, take part in the ICYC/Confirmation Retreat, help serve at the Bench Supper, choose an active Confirmed Catholic sponsor who is at least 18 and not their parent, write a letter to Bishop Peter Christensen, and go to Confession. The Youth Minister discerns readiness with the candidate.
Adult Faith Formation, Bible Study, and Small Christian Communities
Adult Faith Formation at Sacred Heart follows the framework of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: ongoing conversion to Jesus, active membership in the Christian community, and a missionary call to act as disciples in the world. A Monday Morning Bible Study walks through The Great Adventure - The Gospel of Luke in six sessions, gathering at 9:15 am in Faith Hall. "That Man is You," an interactive men's program addressing the pressures and temptations men face in modern culture, meets on Thursdays at 6:30 am and 6:30 pm. "Building a Eucharistic Marriage" is a video-based marriage enrichment program that meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 7:00 pm.
About ten Small Christian Communities (SCCs) form the foundation of much of the parish's ministry. Each community is a place where members share the walk with God, support one another, and bear witness to the resurrection of Jesus. A SCC Formation Team invites new participants, organizes new communities, and assists in ongoing formation. Catechesis materials approved for use in the communities include works on the Creed, the Eucharist, family life, media, civic responsibility, work, parenting, nonviolence, hunger, the death penalty, and the parish's social mission. The parish also subscribes to FORMED, giving parishioners unlimited access to Catholic eBooks, talks, and videos.
Youth Ministry and Young Adults
Chris Nichol coordinates Youth Ministry for grades 5 through 12, including Confirmation preparation. Youth Night meets on Wednesday evenings for grades 6 through 12, with breakout sessions for junior high (grades 6 to 8) and high school (grades 9 to 12). The program aims at the total personal and spiritual growth of each young person, drawing them into responsible participation in the Church's life and mission. Confirmation preparation for grades 9 through 12 takes place in the context of in-home small-group faith sharing and large-group experiences such as retreats and service projects. Deacon Jim Ineck can be reached at the parish office with questions about youth ministry or Confirmation.
Young adults between 21 and 35, married or single, are served through FirePit Ministry, a regional effort to help them embrace the Gospel of Jesus Christ and the Church through spiritual, social, and service opportunities.
Sacred Heart Catholic School and Bishop Kelly High School
Sacred Heart Catholic Elementary School, on the same campus, has been a fixture of the parish for more than six decades. The original eight classrooms, kitchen, nurse's room, office, and gym were designed by the Bowles architects; the building behind the school (the St. Anne's Rooms) has served many purposes and today houses the preschool. A second building was eventually moved onto the property for kindergarten classes and a science lab; a library was added to the front of the school in 1994; and in 2004 a beautiful Art and Computer Center was built behind the school. The Catholic Schools Foundation of the Sacred Heart, founded in 1980, funds special projects, grants, scholarships, subsidies, and tuition assistance; the Home and School Association supports students, staff, and families through parish-wide activities; and the Sacred Heart Advisory Board advises the Principal and Pastor on marketing, policy, and finances. Bishop Kelly High School, the only Catholic high school in Idaho, was built by the Boise parishes in 1960; Sacred Heart families continue to fill its classrooms, and the Ladies of Sacred Heart grant two scholarships each year to Sacred Heart students attending Bishop Kelly.
Healing Prayer, Anointing of the Sick, and the Health Ministry
Sacred Heart's Christian Healing Prayer Ministry is staffed by team members trained through the Institute of Christian Ministries and Christian Healing Ministries who meet with individuals by appointment or during special healing prayer services. A Healing Mass is typically offered on the second Thursday of each month at 8:30 am, with the Christian Healing Prayer Team available afterward to pray with and for individuals. The Anointing of the Sick is celebrated communally at the monthly Healing Mass or privately at home or in the hospital; both St. Luke's and St. Alphonsus have Catholic priests assigned to their chaplaincies. Outreach Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion carry the Eucharist in a pyx to the hospitalized, homebound, and those in retirement centers.
The parish Health Ministry is led by registered nurses trained in Faith Community Nursing and other health-care professionals. Services include wellness education, blood-pressure screenings, active listening, home visits, prayer, advocacy, and referrals. Nurses do not provide home-health care, medication procedures, wound care, or invasive procedures; their role is supportive and educational.
Liturgical Ministries: Servers, Lectors, Eucharistic Ministers, Sacristans, Ushers, and Greeters
The liturgical life of the parish is carried by hundreds of trained volunteers. Altar servers must be at least in fourth grade (adults are also encouraged to serve) and assist the celebrant at Masses, weddings, funerals, and other liturgical events. Lectors proclaim the first and second readings at Sunday and Holy Day liturgies, commit to a twelve-week schedule, and arrive at the sacristy at least fifteen minutes before Mass. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion distribute the Body and Blood of Christ at the weekend liturgies; six are assigned to each regularly scheduled weekend Mass, and ministers are taught the careful reverence with which hosts, chalices, and any accidents must be handled. Sacristans prepare the chapel or church for liturgy, set out the sacred vessels, bread and wine, books, candles, and microphones, and clean up afterward. Ushers arrive early, greet latecomers, help seat them at appropriate moments, identify gift bearers, take up the collection, assist at Communion, distribute bulletins, and remain calm in any disruption. Greeters arrive twenty minutes before Mass, wear their identifying badge, and offer a friendly first impression. A music ministry completes the ensemble, with cantors, choir, organist, and instrumentalists.
St. Vincent de Paul, the Bench Supper, and Outreach
The parish has cared for the poor for decades, beginning with Fr. John Donoghue's Christian Action Program and continuing as the St. Vincent de Paul Sacred Heart Conference in 1998. The St. Vincent de Paul Center, at 3209 Overland Road, runs a food pantry open to the community, free medication for those who qualify, a dining room, and educational classrooms. Members coordinate a helpline and home visits, assist families with rent, utilities, and food, network with other churches and organizations, and coordinate Thanksgiving food boxes. The Bench Community Supper, organized by Sacred Heart parishioners each second Friday evening, is an ecumenical project that collaborates with other Bench-area churches to serve a hot meal to anyone in the local community. The Ladies of Sacred Heart donate to Birthright. The Respect Life Committee educates the parish on abortion, cloning, euthanasia, and capital punishment. Story Link provides inmates in the Idaho prison system with the opportunity to read and record a story from a new book so it can be sent to their children.
Sacred Heart also partners with several inter-parish and community ministries, including Catholic Charities of Idaho, Catholic & Single Together (CAST) for mid-life Catholic singles, Catholic Engaged Encounter, Corpus Commons (a day center for the homeless), Diocesan Prison Ministry, GriefShare, Interfaith Sanctuary, Marriage Encounter, the Rachel Project for those affected by abortion, and Retrouvaille. The Ladies of Sacred Heart also host funeral dinners, maintain altar supplies, candles, and the kitchen, and award the Bishop Kelly scholarships.
Parish Life: Funerals, the Columbarium, and the Festival
Funerals at Sacred Heart are normally celebrated Monday through Friday and are reserved for Catholic parishioners and those with significant ties to the parish. A vigil is usually held the afternoon or evening before at the church or funeral home. Fr. Hippolytus Ezenwa invites families to begin the process by calling the parish office. The parish also maintains a Columbarium with three spaces available in the 21 Lakeview District at Cloverdale Memorial Park Cemetery. Each year, on or around the Feast of the Sacred Heart in June, the parish gathers for its annual festival with a meal, games, and entertainment. Coffee Hours follow the Sunday liturgies and offer a moment to socialize and welcome new parishioners.
Parish Staff, Office Hours, and Joining the Parish
The parish office is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 am to 3:00 pm at 811 S. Latah Street, Boise, ID 83705. The office number is (208) 344-8311. Debbie Fischer serves as Coordinator of Adult Formation & Ministries, Susan Daly as Music Ministry Coordinator, Janet Rollinger as Business Manager, and John Pettinger as Maintenance Supervisor. A Coordinator of Children's Religious Education & Office Administrator position is currently open; applications are submitted to Fr. Hippolytus Ezenwa. New parishioners are asked to register with the parish; registration forms are available at the parish office and in the Narthex, or online. Stewardship of Time, Talent, and Treasure is the framework for parish giving, and online giving, parish donations, school donations, and Mass intentions are all available through WeShare. The parish tithes a percentage of its Sunday collections to its own St. Vincent de Paul Conference and to other local charities.
The Heart of the Mission
Sacred Heart's mission is to help every person encounter the living Christ through vibrant worship and prayer, a deepening understanding of the Gospel, and outreach to those in need. Whether one is drawn by the choral Mass at eleven, a Monday hour in adoration, a Tuesday morning Bible study, the Evangelization Retreat, the Hallissey Tournament, the food pantry on Overland Road, the children's Religious Education program on a Sunday morning, or simply a quiet weekday Mass at 8:30 am, the parish offers a steady rhythm of prayer, formation, and service rooted in more than seventy years of Catholic life on the Central Bench.