With grateful hearts, we acknowledge the generosity of those individuals and organizations that have become a part of “Wings of St. Stevens” in support of the Sanctuary Renewal,
2015—2017. Fr. Pierre Hissey, the pastor, in consultation with Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted, and the Office of Worship and Liturgy of the Diocese of Phoenix, along with consultation of St. Steven’s finance and parish pastoral councils, recommended the establishment of an ad hoc committee. In 2015 the building committee was formed to look into new altar furnishing for the sanctuary in response to the General Instructions of the Roman Missal (GIRM) calling for a permanent, fixed altar made from stone and to be fixed, with noble simplicity, as part of the building .  Before detailing this project, it is important to honor the evolution and development of our parish, its buildings, and the continual growth and numerous updates and changes made prior to the renewal project of 2015—2017.

Sun Lakes was developed in 1972-73 by Edward J. Robson. The area was under the jurisdiction of St. Mary’s Parish in Chandler.  A group of about two dozen residents in 1974 (Sun Lakes had a population of less than 200 residents at this time.) formed a committee to create a chapel for all faiths. The dream of a chapel finally was realized in 1981 after a successful fund drive. On March 15, 1981, approximately 1,800 people attended the first service. The original Catholic community was called St. Michael’s Mission, but was changed to St. Steven’s Mission in honor of the bishop of Phoenix, The Most Rev. James Steven Rausch who visited the mission in April of 1981 and who died the following month. Although under the patronage of St. Stephen, Deacon and Martyr, the mission honored the Bishop by using his middle name and its spelling.

In May of 1984, Bishop Thomas O’Brien appointed Fr. Michael McGovern to serve

as the new Administrator of St. Steven’s Mission in Sun Lakes. In 1987 the Parish Council, under the direction of Fr. McGovern, purchased five acres of land on Dobson Road for the future site of the Church. On July 1, 1988, Bishop O’Brien assigned Fr. E. J. FitzPatrick as the “Founding Pastor” of St. Steven’s Parish as its status changed from that of a mission of St. Mary’s in Chandler. Building a church became a primary focus, with the original All Faiths Chapel too small to handle the standing-room-only Mass attendance. After forming a building committee and conducting successful fund and pledge drives, the Diocese gave permission to proceed with the building program in March of 1989. After various delays, the property was finally cleared for construction in January of 1990. 

On August 14, 1990 at 4:00 pm, parishioners met at the All Faiths Chapel and a golf cart procession led by Fr. FitzPatrick carrying the Blessed Sacrament proceeded to the newly-completed church on Dobson Road. There were, at that time, 635 registered families.

The Most Reverend Thomas J. O’Brien, Bishop of Phoenix, dedicated the new church  on the 4th of November 1990.

The church continued to grow and expand, necessitating the building of the Great Hall with its groundbreaking on February 17, 1994.  By 1997, the Church was expanded with the addition of  “bump outs” on the North and South sides. Fr. FitzPatrick continued as pastor until his death in October of 2004.

 Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted, who became Bishop of Phoenix in December of 2003, appointed Fr. Pierre Hissey as the second pastor of St. Steven’s Church. He was installed in late February, 2005.

As the community continued its growth, more construction and expansion were needed. The courtyard of the church had loose and broken tiles spaced too far apart and inadequate outdoor lighting. The sanctuary had four irregular steps differing in height and depth.  The courtyard was updated, and the sanctuary steps were respaced to make 4 equal steps. Additional hand railing was added to assist people entering and exiting the sanctuary.  At the same time, efforts were made to create a handicap ramp into the Sanctuary, but it was determined that space was not available without a major reworking of the church, both inside and out.

Fulton Ranch was developed within our parish boundaries, and many young families in need of religious education chose to come to St. Steven’s. It was quickly realized space was inadequate for all our classes. The parish had grown to need a parish administrator, bookkeeper, and secretary; and so again plans for expanding office, classroom, and meeting rooms were put into action. The office and classroom wing were finished and occupied by the fall of 2010.
With the growth of the parish came the addition of a parochial vicar, requiring an expansion projectfor the rectory in 2012.
Again, in consultation with Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted and the Office of Worship and Liturgy, an ad hoc building committee was formed in 2015 to address expanding the altar area (sanctuary) and a need for permanent furnishings. The original altar was built in three sections from plywood with oak veneer and a copper overlay, and it was portable and moveable. The new permanent stone altar would allow the placing of relics from a saint under the mensa or table top of the altar, honoring the ancient tradition and customs of our church. The ambo was also to be solid and unmovable.  The tabernacle needed to be permanent and not constructed from wood. The rest of the sanctuary furnishings were to coordinate with the stone of the altar, ambo, and the altar of repose with the tabernacle, including the sanctuary lamp, symbolizing one bread, one body, and one Lord—Jesus Christ. The overarching theme of the Committee was “For the Glory of God” and to honor the style of the building complex and achieve a noble simplicity in our design efforts.

The building committee soon realized that there were many issues that needed to be addressed. First was retrofitting of the Church and the Great Hall with a fire sprinkler system connecting to the sprinkler system in our newer office/education building. Second, it was time to explore refinishing, reupholstering, and repairing our existing pews. Additionally, we wanted to replace the extremely heavy glass doors into the nave of the church and create opportunities in the narthex for devotions. 

The committee began meeting to develop and refine the scope and nature of the project. An architect and contractor were hired in consultation with the Diocese of Phoenix. The focus of the committee was to heighten the experience of permanence and give honor to our existing architecture and southwest location, always keeping the theme “For the Glory of God” and maintaining noble simplicity. The church services were moved into the Great Hall in May of 2016 as construction commenced.

A covered portico was added to the front of the church to provide a wide, welcoming porch in the southwestern style. In the narthex, the devotional space was enhanced by enclosing the cloister walkway in the front of the church, relocating the front entrance doors to the open arches, and moving both the bathroom and janitor closet entrances into the newly-created entrance hallway.
In the nave, it was cost-effective over the long run to install new pews and upgrade the flooring to cork, providing greater safety. The committee ensured that the architect honored our existing building design and location to create the interior space: adding arches, ceiling beams, and a central ellipse in the ceiling at the crossing for a mural depicting the first martyr of the Church, St. Stephen. St. Stephen is shown being welcomed by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He’s accompanied by angels. The rocks used to stone him are falling from his hands.

When Bishop Thomas J. Olmsted consecrated the new altar at the church (December 18, 2016) and blessed the mural, he stated, “I am pleased with the enhancement of the church, especially the new mural depicting St. Stephen’s victorious martyrdom, together with the new marble altar which truly focuses attention on the Eucharistic Sacrifice. Attentiveness to details such as this helps our people to appreciate the beauty of the Sacred Liturgy and the radiant brilliance of Christ our Savior.”

The Diocesan Office of Worship and Liturgy insisted that the baptismal font be permanently relocated to the sanctuary, the four steps be reduced to three, and the sanctuary space be expanded to allow for greater depth of liturgical opportunities and improving the safety of all liturgical movement.

What follows chronicles the long months of construction that began in May of 2016 and culminated in our being back in the church to celebrate Christmas masses in 2016.
Finishing touches continue to be added as we live and celebrate
within our church “For the Glory of God.”