A Brief History of Holy Family Catholic Community

Since its establishment in 1985, Holy Family Parish has grown into a strong Catholic presence in Middletown Valley. We began as a mission of St. John’s in Frederick and rapidly grew into an independent parish. We continue to grow in numbers and faith and look to the future with hope. On September 9, 1985, a small group of Catholics met with Monsignor Edward Echle to discuss growth in Middletown Valley. These meetings continued along with a number of interested Catholics until they eventually met with Archbishop Borders who approved their planning report. The first Mass was celebrated at Middletown High School on January 5, 1986. The independent mission of St. John the Evangelist was established and was called The Catholic Community of Middletown. Archbishop Borders appointed Fr. John Moore Coordinator of the mission a month later, on February 11. Subsequently, a house was purchased as rectory/parish office at 3240 Old National Pike, Middletown. After two years of research and negotiation on July 15, 1988, twenty acres of land was purchased for a building site. The Archdiocese granted full parish status to the community on January 4, 1989. Three months later, on April 2, 1989, Archbishop Borders officially installed Fr. John Moore as pastor of Holy Family Catholic Community, the name chosen by its members. The Building Design and Development Committee was established in April of 1992, and on January 20, 1995 the Archdiocese approved the design of the new church. Cardinal Keeler signed the contract for construction on August 8, 1995, and groundbreaking took place on the 20th of that month. The new church was dedicated on March 14, 1997. At that time there were approximately 440 households in the parish. Those families that made pledges toward the construction of the new church have their names inscribed in stones along the walls of the building. By 2004, significant growth had occurred at Holy Family, mirroring the growth of the Middletown Valley. Fr. Moore decided to retire and on September 12, 2004, Rev. J. Kevin Farmer was installed as second pastor of Holy Family Catholic Community. By the end of 2006, Holy Family had grown to just over 800 registered families and the parish was in the process of adding a 20,000 square foot addition to be named the John C. Moore Center. The addition is scheduled for completion in the fall of 2007.