Page 119 - WILMINGTON

holy angelS
1956
NEWARK
It was not until the the 1940s that large numbers of people moved into the the Newark area WWhen they they settled in in in in in Newark they they found Saint John the the Baptist on Main Street to to minister to to their needs But by the the early 1950s there was need need for another church The vision also included a a a a grade school and and a a a a a a convent The land on on Possum Park Road was purchased and construction began The Sisters of Saint Francis of Glen Riddle (Pennsylvania) agreed to staff the new school when it opened on September 17 1956
The church originally designed as as a a a a gymnasium/
auditorium was equipped with pews and an an altar to to serve as a a a a a temporary worship space Due to various
constraints it served as a a a a a a a permanent worship space for many years The rst Mass celebrated at at Holy Angels Church took place on December 25 1956
at midnight In 1984 a a a a library and multipurpose room were added to Holy Angels School Sadly in in 1985 the Sisters of Saint Francis withdrew from leadership of the the the school With their withdrawal the the the convent was remodeled as a a a a a rectory with several of of ces In the Fall of of 1989 a a a a a major asbestos problem surfaced at at Holy Angels School Fortunately the entire school was able to to relocate to to Linden Hill Elementary School on on Skyline Drive which was unoccupied Nearly a a a million dollars was spent to eliminate the the problem and upgrade the the school The children returned in May of 1990 to the present facilities During the the 1990s the the dream of building a a new Holy Angels Church once again surfaced That dream along with a a a a a a a a gymnasium for our school was realized in in 2004 During the the late 1990s the the Diocese designated Holy Angels Church as a a a a a place to house Hispanic Ministry
for the Diocese and and it continues to grow in in scope and and number to the present day Notable celebrations such as Our Lady of Guadalupe in December draw nearly 1 000 people to the Possum Park campus Holy Angels has seen further renovations and major aesthetic improvements in recent years When the the new church opened in 2004 many areas were left un nished Since then a a a a a beautiful baptismal font has been been added The interior has gradually been been realized with rooms being completed one after another and decorative touches added throughout Beginning in in in 2017 work began on the the Saint Michael the the Archangel prayer room an an additional meeting room and the the gathering area in in in Holy Angels Church along with storage space completing the the master plan for the the main oor of the new church 117