Rev. James D. Conley, D.D., S.T.L. | Diocese of Lincoln website

Members of St. Stephen Parish, located south of Lawrence, marked the parish’s 150th anniversary on September 28. The event began with a Mass celebrated by Bishop James Conley and concelebrated by Father Denton Morris, the parish’s pastor, along with Father Thomas Schultes, Father Adam Sparling, and Father Christopher Eckrich.

Following the Mass, attendees gathered for a dinner in the parish hall. Among the special guests were Sister Eloise Hertel O.P., Sister Ann Metzen O.P., and Sister (Sabina) Martina O.P. from the Dominican Order of Great Bend, Kansas. These sisters served at St. Stephen School between 1962 and 1982. Sister Susan Biegert, SSND, of the Notre Dame sisters who taught at Sacred Heart School in Lawrence, was also present.

After dinner, parishioners and guests visited the church, rectory, and school grounds to view memorabilia dating back to the original frame church built in 1885. A shuttle service took visitors to see the dugout where the first Mass in Nuckolls County was celebrated. In a nearby barn, logs from the original 1876 log church were displayed; these had been reassembled to show their construction.

The day concluded with a performance by musician Tony Meléndez. Born without arms and with a clubbed foot, Meléndez plays guitar with his feet and shares stories of hope through his music. The event ended with Eucharistic adoration.

St. Stephen Parish traces its roots to 1870 when settlers established a community near Liberty Creek in Nuckolls County. The area was later renamed Beachamville after its first settlers and eventually became known as St. Stephen. The first Mass was celebrated in 1875 by Father Ferdinand Lechleitner of Crete at Louis Schumm’s dugout.

A log church was built in 1876 and named St. Stephen Catholic Church. Initially, Masses were held only when missionary priests visited until Father Kuppenbender became the first resident pastor in 1878. Over time, as the railroad expanded westward, parish membership grew and necessitated larger facilities. By 1885, a new frame church was constructed.

Catholic education has played an important role for parish families since 1893 when a two-story school replaced an earlier log structure. The school’s enrollment peaked at around 100 students by 1920. Economic hardships during the Depression delayed further building projects until 1946 when Bishop Louis B. Kucera laid the cornerstone for a new church building, which was dedicated in 1947.

A new parochial grade school was constructed in 1960, staffed by Dominican Sisters from Great Bend. The building now serves as the parish hall. Since becoming a mission of Sacred Heart Church in Lawrence in 1983, St. Stephen Parish currently serves 29 families.

Many original statues from the 1885 church have been restored and remain part of today’s church interior.

Parishioner Kaci Empting reflected on what makes St. Stephen special: “It has fed the flocks of people who gathered for the famous picnics, and warmed the working hearts and hands at the Thanksgiving meals, often after leaving the fields during harvest,” she said. “This has been refuge for souls needing peace, truth and tradition.

“Countless baptisms, weddings and prayers for our loved ones who have left this world have filled the walls of this dear church,” she continued. “It is a special place; no, not the most ornate or spectacular one to visit, but just like the simple, quiet lives of those who sacrificed to build it and those of us who still put those kneelers down yet today, St. Stephen’s is that steady constant, welcoming souls into the quiet peace of our Lord.”