In July 1960 St. Athanasius was established as a new parish on part
of the farm of Charles Besse on the Outer Loop. Father Francis E.
Bossung was appointed pastor in August. After meeting at St. Rita for
some months, St. Athanasius’ first Mass as a parish was celebrated on
November 6, 1960, in the loft of Whispering Hills Country Club. Masses
were offered there each Sunday until May 1961, when the faith community
moved to the basement of the just-finished rectory.
The location of the church on the Outer Loop set the stage for the
parish to serve the ever-increasing families who moved into the area and
worked at nearby General Electric, Ford and International Harvester.
These families desired a Catholic school education for their children,
and the school began operating in 1961. At one time St. Athanasius was
the largest Catholic elementary school in Jefferson County.
The parish school programs include pre-kindergarten to eighth grade
and an after-school care program. Along with existing buildings, the
church complex comprises parish center offices, a garage, a parish hall
(gymnasium), a ball field and a booster club building. In 1991 the
church underwent renovation, and fifteen years later it received a
much-needed facelift. In 2004, the parish acquired the remaining four
acres of the Besse farm, space which will figure largely in the future
expansion of St. Athanasius.
Today, with continuing housing development, the school remains a
significant part of the parish’s ministry. United Parcel Service and the
expansion of the airport provide many job opportunities. With church
membership at 3,100 parishioners, and a steady school enrollment, St.
Athanasius is planning to forge ahead into the future, bolstered by its
strong foundation of many unsung volunteer heroes of the past and
present.