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Holy Family Parish was founded on November
14th, 1959. The first masses were offered in the Red Feathers Farm in North Miami. Ground-breaking for the first
Church took place on February 11th, 1950 - the feast of Our Lady of Lourdes. Construction was entirely by voluntary
help of about 20 parishioers under the supervision of James Lynch. The first Mass was celebrated in the nearly-finished
building on July 30th of that year. In November of that same year, Archibishop Hurley of St. Augustine dioces gave the
Church its official name - "The Church of the Holy Family" and Msgr. Rowan T. Rastatter was named its first pastor.
Fr. Tom Larkin (now Bishop of St. Petersburg) was named its first assistant pastor in February, 1951.
The area continued to grow so rapidly that Archbishop Hurley started the building of a school and a convent, with the ground-breaking
for the school on January 7, 1951 and for the convent a year later.
Msgr. Ronbert Scheifen
was named Holy Family's second pastor under whose supervision a new Church was begun in 1965. It was to be the first
Church constructed in line with the new driectives of Vatican II. the first Mass was celebrated in the not yet fully
completed Chruch on Christmas Eve 1966. On May 21, 1967 Archibishop Coleman Carroll dedicated the new Church and the
old Church became Holy Family's Pairsh Hall.
During its early history, Holy Family covered
what is now St. James Parish, St. Mary Magdalen Parish, St. Lawrence Parish, Visition Parish and Holy Redeemer Parish.
Today Holy Family has approximately 1150 families and continues to meet the changing face and new challenges of North Dade.
Its history has been one of dedication and sacrifice from its early pioneers to today's loyal stewards. The parishioners
have truly been a "family" of caring and sharing as they nurtured the growth of the Catholic Faith in this part
of the Lord's Vineyard.
Each family and member have played thir part in building up
the Body of Christ either as a Cornerstone, a Pillar or a mere Pebble.
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