The parishoners were scattered over a wide rural area
and it became necessary to establish a new church from the
"parent church" of Ege. This church became St. John Bosco in
Churubusco. Dedication ceremonies were held on April 13, 1958,
in the fromer York Theater on Main Street which had been
transformed into a place of worship.
Father Anthony Reszutek, the pastor at the time, choose the name for the
new church because of the similarity in sound to the name of the
town "Busco" and the heroic deeds of the saint himself. He was a
Salesian who studied for the priesthood in New Jersey. He came
to America and initially worked in the Austrian Embassy, went to
war, came back and studied for the priesthood. Salesians are
followers of St. John Bosco.
In July of 1970, Fr. Dennis Blank was
appointed by Bishop Leo A. Pursley to the dual
pastor-ship of Immaculate Conception and St. John Bosco.
Late fall of 1970, a committee of parishioners and
Father Blank met to set up the format and electoral
procedures for the formation fo the first St. John Bosco
Parish Council. By December of 1970, the Parish Council
and their committees were formed.
After thirteen years, the membership had grown from 65 members to around
445 and the facilities were no longer adequate. The
Parish Council began the process of purchasing the
church and rectory of what was formerly known as the
Faith United Methodist Church at 220 Main Street. The
Parish as a whole indicated their preference to buy the
above-mentioned property. Almost all of the
redecorations were completed prior to moving into the
new facilities. It was all done under the guidance of
Fr. Blank. He was the first pastor to occupy the present
rectory. Just to quote "Yes, the times are changing for
St. John Bosco primarily due to the renewed spirit of
ecumenism and participation by the pastor and
parishioners of the parish. It has been hard and busy
year but a fruitful one that has brought together the
Parish of St. John Bosco. First Mass services will be
held in the new church facility at 10:00 a.m. on Sunday,
September 12, 1971. An open house will be observed after
the services. Refreshments in the basement of the
church. The rectory will be opened at this time so that
those interested may tour all the facilities. St. John
Bosco invites all to share at this time of joy." The
former church (the York Theater) was redecorated and
transformed into classrooms for grade school instruction
in Christian Doctrine. The gas station situated
next to the church was purchased and turned into the
parking lot.
Then after...
Father Camillo Tirabasi succeeded Fr. Blank on September 1, 1972. Father Camillo moved, Father James Seculoff was the Administrator of the parish from February 1978 until September of 1978 when Father Patrick Durkin was appointed Pastor. Father Donald Isenbarger succeeded Father Durkin on July 7, 1980. Father Isenbarger was ordained on May 3, 1955. Father Isenbarger was instrumental in the rebuilding of the Ege church after the fire and helped bring out its beauty with the help of the parishioners. He went to his eternal reward on October 31, 2005. The present resident priest, Father Danney Pinto, succeeded Father Isenbarger on October 2, 1995.
The parish of St. John Bosco continues to grow
in faith and membership. The enthusiasm of that hardy
pioneer who placed the first seed of the Catholic Faith
in Ege over 147 years ago has continued to
flourish and a spirit of ecumenism has prevailed.
With the grace of God and our patron and the help of the Finance
Committee, we have a beautiful Church, renovated and
modified to our present needs: decorated sanctuary with
marble flooring and altar, newly painted cross and
corpus; renovated choir loft; newly painted Stations of
the Cross (helping to make the church look more
Catholic); completely renovated basement; renovated
Religious Ed Building; and a rectory with additional
rooms for priest. St John Bosco - Thank you so much.
Bless our Parish and all the people who come here
to worship.
