St. Vincent Ferrer Catholic Church, Vallejo, CA

Since its founding in 1855, the parish of St. Vincent Ferrer
has stood firm and continued to grow amidst fire,
earthquakes, wars and plagues. The church was established
under the auspices of the Dominican Fathers to address the
spiritual and pastoral needs of the thriving Catholic
community in Vallejo (due mainly in part to the California
Gold Rush in 1848). In the decades that followed the church
transferred from the Archdiocese of San Francisco to the
Sacramento diocese. After one hundred and twelve years,
leadership changed hands from the Dominican Fathers to the
diocesan clergy. Lay people were invited to join the
Dominican staff as educators of the children enrolled in the
school. An explosion of lay ministry also opened up a lot of
opportunities for the laity to be more actively involved in the
liturgical, pastoral and administrative life of the parish. At
the same time a growing diversity of people moved into the
parish.

In its earlier history, the parish was home to Irish, Spanish,
German, Portuguese and European descents. Over the years,
people of African-American, Mexican, Latin American,
Filipino, Tongan, and Guamanian descent have come to this
place and called it home. In the 1980’s the Hispanic Office
was opened and to this day continues to expand its service to
the growing population of Spanish-speaking residents in the
parish. The Filipino population in the parish also continues to
rise. In fact, parish statistics show that Filipinos are no longer
the minority. A growing Tongan community thrives in the
parish though they primarily worship in the mission church of
St. Louis Bertrand in Southern Vallejo.