HISTORY OF ST. JOHN BOSCO PARISH

St. John Bosco Parish was established on March 27, 1953. Rev. Peter J. Keenan was named as the founding pastor. Father converted the first floor of his rectory at the corner of Warminster and E. County Line Road to be a chapel for Baptisms in the new parish. Sites in Lacey Park (now Warminster Heights) and Fulmor Heights served as chapels where the parishioners attended Sunday Mass.

On August 3, 1953 ground was broken for an auditorium and classrooms. In September of 1953 the auditorium which Father rented in Lacey Park became the first school building. Four large rooms were divided into eight classrooms for the first school year. The desks and benches that the original students used were made by members of the parish. Five Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and two lay teachers staffed the school. Approximately 350 children were enrolled.

On November 7, 1954 the auditorium which served as the church until 1991 and the classrooms were dedicated by Archbishop John F. O’Hara. Six hundred students and their teachers moved into the new building. The parish grew throughout the fifties and sixties. In September 1962 over twelve hundred students attended St. John Bosco School. This growth necessitated two additions to the original school building which brought the classroom total to twenty five rooms. A declining enrollment due to changes in population, the building of new public school, and constriction of classes took place in the late sixties and early seventies. In 1974 the library, kitchen and Nurse’s Office were renovated. In the ensuing years the empty classroom space has been utilized by parish organizations in an effort to deepen the formational program for all parishioners.

Groundbreaking for a new church took place on June 11, 1989 under the leadership of Rev. Joseph D. Dougherty, our fourth pastor. Parishioners watched the building with great anticipation. Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua dedicated the church on July 14, 1991. 1992-1993 the auditorium church was renovated as an All Purpose Room bearing the name Neumann Hall. The room is now used for various parish programs and events.

The parish of Saint John Bosco is dedicated to supporting our community with many spiritual, formational and cultural experiences that will attract new members to join us in our worship of God on Sundays. This is a vibrant community of believers who welcome all to encounter Christ through the excellent example of our patron Don Bosco.