Brief History of St. Raphael Parish

St. Raphael Parish was founded in 1974 with Fr. Henry Hodges as founding pastor. The first building on the site was a multi-purpose building serving as church, education center, and social hall. In a short time, the first building to be added was the Education Building, next the Administration Building and finally Hibner Hall was dedicated giving the parish a venue for social and educational events.

Priests serving St. Raphael after Fr Hodges were the Carmelite Order for several years. In 2004 St. Raphael and Our Lady of the Valley parishes were placed under the care of one Pastor. The Holy Cross order served the parish until 2024 when both parishes received Diocesan priests again. The renovation of the original building took place in 2021 with the completion of Phase One of the remodeling.

St. Raphael continues to be a vibrant, active parish and enjoys a close relationship with our “sister parish” of Our Lady of the Valley.