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St. Ambrose Parish, Thessalon
In the late 1880's a Catholic parish was established in Thessalon by the Jesuit Fathers and named St. Francis Xavier. The first church, built in 1865, was a log cabin. In 1893 it was replaced by a wooden frame building and in 1909 a brick structure was erected. The wooden frame building was then moved by horsepower across the ice one winter to Nesterville, several kilometres west of Thessalon. In 1936, due to a stove that was stoked a little too much, the brick building was completely destroyed by fire. Soon after, the existing building was built on the old foundation with a few modifications. It was then, in 1936, that the parish name was changed to St. Ambrose.
St. Boniface Parish, Hilton Beach
The cornerstone of St. Boniface Church in Hilton Beach on St. Joseph Island bears the date 1906. The building was extensively renovated in 1984-85 but none of the historic quaintness of the little church was changed and it retains the pre-Vatican II altar at the back of the sanctuary. The building is now accessible to the physically challenged and many summer residents celebrate weekly Mass together with the year-round group of about 65. The influx of people during the months of July and August necessitate an additional liturgy during those months.
St. James the Greater Parish, Blind River
St. James the Greater Parish was canonically erected on June 28, 1947 following the establishment of Pariosse Ste-Famille as the French national parish in Blind River. Construction of the church began in 1948 and it was officially opened and consecrated by Bishop Dignan in February 1949. In the mid-1950's the impact of the uranium rush struck Blind River and in June 1956 renovations to enlarge the existing building began.
Our Combined History
St. Ambrose Parish always had a resident priest pastor but St. Boniface Parish was a mission of parishes in Sault Ste. Marie. This changed in 1985 when St. Boniface, along with the parish of St. Gregory of Nyssa in Echo Bay joined together in a partnership with St. Ambrose in Thessalon and the small parish of Our Lady of Pity in Bruce Mines. This cluster of four parishes was known as the Central Algoma Catholic Parishes (CACP) as its boundaries coincided with the pre-amalgamation school board of Central Algoma.
In 1999 the geographical area of CACP was enlarged when Bishop Plouffe asked the pastor, Father Eric Pannike, to assume responsibility for St. James the Greater Parish in Blind River. This expansion meant some difficult choices had to be made. The numbers of parishioners at both St. Gregory of Nyssa and Our Lady of Pity had been declining for a number of years and so in the summer of 1999 it was decided those two parishes would close and the parishioners join with either St. Ambrose, St. Boniface, or a parish in Sault Ste. Marie.
Since the cluster now extended beyond Central Algoma and to reflect the new arrangement, the name of the cluster was changed to the Catholic Parishes of Huron Shores. Lake Huron can be seen from all three of the church buildings and so seemed to be an appropriate choice for the cluster name. The cluster is ministered to by the pastor, Fr. Eric Pannike, who resides alternate weeks in Thessalon and Blind River. He is assisted by pastoral assistants Mrs. Lise Maeck at the Blind River office, and by Mrs. Kathryn Ingram at the Thessalon office. Lay ministry is very important and there are many people involved in this aspect of church life as lectors, ministers of communion, lay presiders at Celebrations of the Word and in community outreach with ministry in our hospitals and homes for the aged.
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