Ground breaking of new St. Gertrude Church 1954.

Please contact Jeff Thompson if you have more information or photos to contribute to this historical account of St. Gertrude the Great, St. John the Baptist, or, going forward, St. Michael the Archangel parishes.  As you can see, both accounts are not up-to-date.


ST. GERTRUDE THE GREAT CATHOLIC CHURCH   1955 - 2024

Germans settled the town of Des Allemands in 1721. Long before a church building existed in Des Allemands, Mass was celebrated in the homes of several parishioners and occasionally in the school building by a priest from Holy Rosary church in Taft. Riding on horseback, train, or boat, he tended to the needs of his extended flock, recording baptisms, marriages, and deaths. Then in 1901, a mission chapel was built along the bayou on the site of our present cemetery.

St. Gertrude Church, as we know it today, became a parish on June 25, 1955, with its first resident priest, Reverend Joseph B. Pooley. During his service of 19 years, the present church was built with the groundbreaking ceremony held on September 30, 1956. The rectory was added in 1963.

The second pastor of St. Gertrude, Reverend William McCallion, came to us on September 14, 1974, and spearheaded the formation of the Catfish Festival, which was first held in 1975. Des Allemands was declared the "Catfish Capital of the World"  but was soon thereafter upgraded to the "Catfish Capital of the Universe." The festival served our church well, providing financial support to our small church parish. Father "Mac", as he was affectionately known, died on March 23, 1984, leaving the community heartbroken. Mourners packed St. Gertrude church and cemetery where he was laid to rest in the community which he had come to love.

Soon after, Reverend Paul Lamberty came to tend the spiritual needs of our parish. In 1987, he was called to serve the Archdiocese in another capacity. Father Eugene Jacques then led our parish until 1988 when Father Edward Grice came to pastor our congregation. We shared Father "Ed" with the United States Army's servicemen and women at Fort Polk during the Gulf War. In 1996, he was reassigned to a bigger parish. Father Steven Leszczynski served our community for a short time, leaving a big impression on our hearts. Father William O'Donnell was our pastor from 1997-1999. When Father O'Donnell left, we were blessed with Reverend Benjamin Quang. The community was devasted when Father "Ben" drowned in a fishing accident on December 6, 2001. His funeral was one of the most moving ceremonies ever to occur at St. Gertrude. Hundreds of mourners, walked the mile from the church to the burial site next to Father "Mac" in the church cemetery near the bayou.

Reverend James Nquyen Bach came to us on January 5, 2003. He served our parish with love and devotion. He led us to a deeper understanding our our Lord's desire for us to serve Him and each other. Father Bach left us in September 2008.

In addition to the devoted priests who have served St. Gertrude, the parish was fortunate to have had Deacon Landry Matherne who unselfishly served St. Gertrude and our Pastors until his death on March 16,2012.

Father Joseph Duc Dzien joined our parish in September 2008 and served as our Pastor through November 2013. In fact, from September2008 through November 2013, he served as Pastor of both St. Gertrude and Saint John parishes. In July 2011, Father Edward Lauden joined Fr. Joseph and our parish as Parochiol Vicar and served our congregation through June 2013, at which time he was relocated to St. Mark Catholic Church in Ama, LA.

We welcomed Fr. Ray A. Hymel as our Pastor on December 1, 2013 and he remained with us until June 30, 2017.  On July 1, 2017, Fr. John Ryan was appointed Pastor of St. Gertrude and was with us until June 30, 2020 at which time Fr. Ray Hymel returned as Pastor.  During Fr Ray's second tenure with us, we had the COVID scare/lockdown followed by Hurricane Ida.  Needless to say, after those two calamities, we weren't the same. Covid knocked the wind out of her sails and Hurricane Ida, caused lots of damage to the property.

While we waited for the insurance company and FEMA to settle our claim, the Archdiocese asked us to form of viability committee and do a viability study. It was a long drawn out process, but in the end we were told that we would be merging with our neighboring parish,  St John the Baptist. The merge date was set for Saturday, July 6, 2024 and Fr Lance Campo was assigned to pastor the newly merged parish, St Michael the Archangel.

We have truly been blessed at St. Gertrude by the service of these spirit-filled men. It is our prayer that the Lord will continue to bless us in the years that lie ahead.  God Bless.

ST. JOHN THE BAPTIST CHURCH   1968 - 2024

September 9, 1965 is a date that will long remain etched in the consciousness of the people of Paradis. Few families had escaped the fury of Hurricane Betsy, as it left a trail of destruction in its path northward. For the Catholics who had offered Mass at St. Joseph's since 1942 perhaps the most cruel blow was the loss of their chapel. Outwardly it did not seem very damaged. The hurricane had simply lifted it up and laid it down again beside its foundations. Only the "roller-coaster" appearance of the floor attested to the structural damage.

A group of parishioners, sensing that they were losing their identity as a worshipping community, petitioned Archbishop Hannan to help in restoring the chapel. In spite of his preoccupation with the seemingly overwhelming problem of repairing and rebuilding churches and other buildings damaged or wrecked by the storm, he was most sympathetic to their problem. Three years passed, in what seemed like an interminable delay. Finally, on September 7, 1968, he sent Father Raymond Bane to Paradis with the mandate, "See if you can rebuild the chapel, and if not, do what you can for the people of Paradis." After an examination of the building he decided that it would not be worth restoring, especially since its limited seating capacity would not be adequate for future development.

Formidable obstacles stood in the way of providing a new church. The Archdiocese had a large debt, and the only way to reduce it to a manageable size was to decree a ban on all new construction. However, Archbishop Hannan agreed to permit a modest building to be erected, provided that it should be completely paid for on completion.

Deciding to proceed with the building under these circumstances was an act of faith on the part of the parishioners, since the weekly collection at the two Masses being offered at J.B. Martin High School averaged only $220.00. But God provided a means of bringing to reality what might have remained a far-off dream. Miss Margaret Lauer of New Orleans donated eighteen acres of land in the most ideal location in Paradis. Her generosity advanced by several years the time when the building of a church would be possible.

The following year was marked by a whirlwind of fundraising activity. Donations from parishioners, Mother of the Year contests, suppers, raffles and eventually a fair saw the goal of $136.000.00 come nearer. A donation of $35,000.00 from the Catholic Church Extension Society provided moral as well as financial assistance. Building finally began early in 1970. The building chosen was a prefabricated metal building, since it was the least costly type available. It was designed as a multipurpose facility, but eventually the parishioners preferred to use it only as a place of worship.

The first Mass was offered in the new church on the Feast of All Saints, November 1, 1970 and was blessed and dedicated to the patronage of St. John the Baptist by Archbishop Hannan on January 28, 1971. St. John the Baptist was canonically erected as a parish on May 15, 1971.

In 1972 a rectory was completed, and a Parish Hall was added to the church in 1974. Both of these were built under the same conditions as the church, cash on completion. In 1979, it became necessary to construct a Religious Education Building. Classes were first held there in September of that year. During these ten years the parishioners of St. John the Baptist raised approximately half a million dollars apart from regular operating expenses.

The number of families in St. John the Baptist Parish has grown by 50% during the past twenty-five years, though until recently increase had been hindered by the lack of land available for home building. The progress of any parish cannot be measured merely in terms of buildings, finances or growth in numbers, but by its people's witness to Christ in their community by their "testimony of a life of faith, hope and love." This is what the people of God in St. John the Baptist Church have begun to achieve.

For the parishioners of St. John the Baptist Church these twenty-five years of extraordinary devoted work to the building up of God's church in their midst have only been a beginning, a sowing of a mustard seed from which in future years a great tree will grow. Their sacrifices and the resulting spiritual growth springing from them will be the foundation on which many generations will build.

Fr Bane retired in 1995 and Fr James Moragne was installed and served until ??? In September, 2008, Fr Joseph Duc Dzien was tasked with pastoring both St. John and St. Gertrude parishes and did so until December, 2013, at which time Fr. Ray Hymel was assigned to St. Gertrude. So, beginning December, 2013, Fr. Joseph began serving only St. John the Baptist parish and did so until he retired at the end of June 2024. By this time the two parishes, St Gertrude the Great and St John the Baptist, had wrapped up merger preparations and were ready to create our new parish, St Michael the Archangel. On July 6, 2024, Fr. Lance Campo was instaalled by Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond to lead this newly formed parish through the merger and beyond.

- With the exception of details added after 1993, his historic account was written in 1993 by Fr. Bane during his tenure at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church and was provided for publishing on the church website by former Administrative Assistant to the Pastor, Merle Savoie. -

ST. MICHAEL THE ARCHANGEL   2024 - 

Fr Lance Campo was assigned to lead this new merged parish and was installed by Archbishop Gregory M. Aymond on Saturday, July 6, 2024.