St. John Paul II parish hall dedicated at Santa Rosa

After more than 20 years of fundraising and prayers, the new parish hall named in honor of St. John Paul II at Santa Rosa Church, San Fernando, was dedicated Aug. 23. Auxiliary Bishop Gerald Wilkerson presided at the 6:30 p.m. Mass, where concelebrants included Oblate of Mary Immaculate Father Stan Zowada, pastor, and six other Oblate priests.

An estimated 800 parishioners attended the dedication service following the Mass, exiting the side doors of the church and walking across the new plaza to the adjacent parish hall for the outdoor ribbon-cutting ceremony and indoor blessing service.

The tile-roofed mission-style building houses a large central room for events, religious education and youth ministry offices and a transitional kindergarten classroom, which is scheduled to open in a few weeks pending required permits. “The former TK is about a block from the school, so now it will be part of the [onsite parish] community,” noted Andre Nicdao, Santa Rosa’s new principal.