Parish History

In 1966, there was a need for a new parish in the east Arlington area. The Church of the Holy Spirit became a parish on January 27, 1966 with Fr. Bowles as its administrator.

Fr. Richard Bowles celebrated the first Mass on February 13, 1966, in the Beacon Hills clubhouse. At that time, the congregation numbered about 60 families. On March 20, 1966, a home was leased which served as a meeting area, chapel and rectory.

In October of 1969, Fr. Joseph James became the pastor. Under his leadership, the first parish church was completed in 1971. Fr. James was given permission in February 1970 to construct the present church and hall (i.e., current school cafeteria) by Bishop Paul Tanner. The present church building was dedicated on October 3, 1971 and the new rectory which is now the church office was completed in June 1974.

Msgr. James Heslin became the next pastor in 1985. With the fast growing faith community in our area, a new bigger church building was needed. The current church building was completed and dedicated on September 20, 1992 by Bishop John J. Snyder.

It would have been completed sooner, however, while digging; 23 human remains were discovered buried in the ground, and all work came to a complete stop. The remains were eventually exhumed by the state and moved to Tallahassee at the expense of the parish.

Under Msgr. Heslin’s tenure as a pastor, a new school was built – one class at a time. The old church was converted into a lunch room for the children. It now also includes two Pre-K classrooms for four-year-olds.

We are proud of our church building which holds a lot of diocesan history. The arresting stained glass windows on the wall behind the altar are from the old Holy Rosary Church on Laura Street – as are the base relief stations of the cross that adorn the side walls. Our statue of Kateri Tekakwitha in her full Mohawk dress at the back of the church was a gift from a parishioner. Her image reminds us that years ago, Timucuan Indians lived along the river here and she lived a life that led her to sainthood.

Msgr. James Heslin went to his heavenly reward on July 23, 2020. (The Funeral Mass was at Holy Spirit Church and can be watched here.)

Fr. Anand Maddineni, MSFS was the pastor for six years, 2006 – 2012 in which the church added another gift from a parishioner – the Baptismal fountain in the back of the church. During his leadership, we paid off the debt of our Msgr. Heslin hall, or gym.

Msgr. Keith Brennan was the pastor from July 2012 to June 2013.

Fr. Anthony Bonela, MSFS was the pastor from 2013 – 2017. Under his leadership, we have paid off the new rectory’s mortgage and completed the new electronic church sign. His competitive spirit allowed for the continued growth between the school and church that the previous pastors had established.

As our church needs grew, the need of a new social hall became more imminent. The ground breaking for the Family Life Center was done in 2017.

Fr. Amar Nagothu, MSFS served as pastor from 2017-2023, the parish was blessed with many initiatives during his time.

His warm, genuine attitude and dedication to being our shepherd allowed for the enhancements in the Family Life Center (FLC) plans, the completion of the FLC, major visual and auditory technology improvements in the church building, and guiding our community through the Pandemic in 2020.

Fr. Amar also saw to the renovations of our adoration chapel, top baptismal area, the sacristies, bride’s room and gathering area.

Our school also became a Blue Ribbon school and Purple Ribbon school under his tenure.

Fr. John Peter Arul, MSFS is our current pastor since 2023.

We thank the Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Amen.