Church Construction

Today turns the focus of a missionary heart in Grainger and Union County, TN to the process of constructing the first Catholic Church buildings in the history of these two counties.

The story really begins in August 2011 when the Glenmary Home Missioners under the invitation of Bishop Stika of the Diocese of Knoxville, TN sent a team of three to these two counties.  Whereas both congregations are working on construction, St. Teresa of Kolkata, Maynardville, TN serving Union County, TN is ready to begin moving dirt, with the blessing of our Lord.

First Meeting in August 2011 to organize a Catholic Community in Union County, TN

In August 2011, 26 individuals attended the first Mass in the carport of the rented house of Fr. Steve, Br. Craig and Br. Joe.  Each needed to bring their own chair.  The next step was to find rental space to begin Sunday worship.  This was achieved in October of 2011.  After a month of Sunday worship in Miller's Chapel United Methodist Church, the first Mass held in the rental  space was the feast of All Saint's Day on November 1st.  This rental space was a combination of storage units and hot dog stand.   The first Spanish Mass was held December 12, 2011 in honor of  Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Spanish Sunday Mass began the first Sunday of January 2012 with only 11 people present. Yet, both worship hours grew rapidly.  Today we have over 125 registered families and over 300 members. Therefore, after several stages of expansion by renting more and more storage spaces, construction of a permanent church home became an obvious need.

The first public Mass in the carport

In September of 2014, the community gathered for three sessions to discuss what we wanted in a church complex.  In 2015 an architect was hired to draw up a master plan.  Around the same time, the diocese of Knoxville decided it was time for them to build a Cathedral, since the church named as the Cathedral was never designed to be a cathedral.  Thus a capital campaign was started.  The community of St. Teresa of Kolkata (known at the time as Blessed Teresa of Calcutta) enthusiastically participated in the campaign.  In this time we also grew sufficiently to no longer be considered a mission, but a parish.

Fr. Aaron leading a church planning session in 2014

Once we had an idea of what we needed, the next challenge was to raise funds.  We held fundraisers, the capital campaign, and sent begging letters to over 1,000 churches.  We thought we were ready in September of 2017.  We actually held the ceremonial ground breaking.  Then there was a slow down which when all the bids were in, the cost estimate for our dream church was double of what was the projected budget.  This was an emotional blow to everyone after over three years of planning and sacrificing.  Yet, with trust in God, we moved forward.


Bishop Stika elevates the mission to parish status with Deacon Sean Smith assisting and Fr. Steve accepting this declaration.

Thus we have redesigned the building.  We have kept worship space the same, changed the entrance eliminating offices and a larger kitchen.  Our hope is to have a modular unit to serve for office and some classrooms.

Deacon Larry, Bishop Stika and Fr. Steve at Sept. 2017 ceremonial ground breaking

  We are currently waiting for the final bids of the new design.  Once we have this, we hope to begin in early March.

The dream church now redesigned (lower roof and less square feet)

Therefore, please say a prayer.  Watch for regular updates ... both the highs and lows of this project.  In the end we hope to build a church that God desires of St. Teresa of Kolkata.  We hope it honors Him with a simple and reverent structure.  We hope it will serve as a sign that the Catholic Church is here to stay.  Furthermore, that it serves as a beacon of hope for the lost, lonely and poor in honor of our patroness.  We hope many who are inactive Catholics will return.  We hope many who do not worship anywhere may find the beauty of faith in the Catholic Way of Life.  We hope that this building will strengthen and unite our faith community.

Why we need more space

Please join us in prayer that God's will be done for the people of St. Teresa of Kolkata and those living in Union County, TN area.