Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church stands on West Market Street in Greensboro, North Carolina, as one of the most striking Gothic-style sanctuaries in the Piedmont. A parish of the Diocese of Charlotte, it serves more than 1,600 registered families with a schedule of Masses in English, Spanish, and Latin, a celebrated sacred music program built around a German-built Kleuker organ, and an attached Catholic school. Its mission, as stated on the parish materials, is to unite God's people in the sacraments, steward his generosity, and evangelize the community.
A Church Built as a Living Memorial
The story of Our Lady of Grace begins with a marriage between two Christians of different traditions. Ethel Clay, a young student at Notre Dame Academy in Maryland, converted to Catholicism and later became a nurse at Watts Hospital in Durham, where she met Julian Price, a Baptist who chaired the Board of Jefferson Life Insurance. They married in 1897 and settled in Greensboro, where they raised two children. When Ethel died in 1943, Julian approached Bishop Vincent S. Waters of the Diocese of Raleigh - which at the time included all of North Carolina - to build a church in Greensboro as a living memorial to her.
Bishop Waters gave Price a file of architectural models drawn from churches across the United States. Price selected the Church of Our Lady of Refuge in Brooklyn, New York, and contacted its original architect, Henry V. Murphy, who agreed to scale the design to a seating capacity of 500. Price then presented the Bishop with $400,000 for construction. Before building could begin, Julian Price died in an automobile accident. World War II further delayed the work, and rising costs made the original plan unattainable. An additional gift of $300,000 from the Prices' children, Kathleen Bryan and Ralph Price, brought the project back to life, and construction began in the spring of 1950 with the George W. Kane Construction Company of Greensboro.
The exterior walls were built with granite from Salisbury, North Carolina, and artisans from New York, Indiana, Illinois, and Canada contributed to the work. More than 30,000 pieces of cut stained glass were imported from Belgium for the windows, and the marble for the sanctuary and side altars came from Italy. A special Legion of Mary altar was included in honor of Mrs. Price's devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary. The first Mass was celebrated on July 13, 1952, and on September 14, 1952, the Apostolic Delegate to the United States, Cardinal Ameleto Cicognani, dedicated the church. The Most Reverend Charles H. Helmsing, Auxiliary Bishop of St. Louis, preached the dedication sermon before Bishop Waters accepted the church for the Diocese and Cardinal Cicognani urged his listeners to "unite yourselves with the beauty of the church and lift up each of your hearts and minds to God."
The Kleuker Organ and a Sacred Music Tradition
The instrument that defines the worship space is a 47-rank, three-manual pipe organ built by the Detlef Kleuker Organ Company of West Bielefeld, Germany, and installed in the fall of 1977. Known as "The Jubilee," it was a gift of the Bryan family to mark the Silver Anniversary of the parish and the Golden Anniversary of Joseph and Kathleen Bryan. With 2,226 pipes, the organ was designed to withstand extremes of temperature and humidity and was voiced pipe by pipe by master builder Herr Blonigen. It includes a Hauptwerk, Ruckpositiv, enclosed Brustwerk, and Pedal division, with a range of stops from Bourdon 16′ and Principal 8′ to Trompete 8′ and Rankett 16′.
Our Lady of Grace has built one of the more distinctive parish sacred music programs in the Diocese of Charlotte around this instrument. The parish choir sings at the 11:30 AM Sunday Mass, the Schola Cantorum sings at the 1:30 PM Latin Mass, the Spanish Choir leads the 5:00 PM Spanish Mass, and the Family Choir sings on the second and fourth Sundays at the 8:30 AM Mass, with parents and children welcome together. A Teen & Young Adult Vespers Choir sings occasionally for Solemn Vespers. The Children's Choirs - St. Cecilia for the English Mass and Chorus Mater Gratiae for the Latin Mass - are open to children ages 6 through 18. The parish's stated purpose is to adorn and support the sacred liturgy through weekly chant and polyphony, including motets and the Mass Ordinary.
The parish quotes the Second Vatican Council's Sacrosanctum Concilium on the inestimable value of sacred music, Pope Benedict XVI on beauty as an essential element of the liturgical action, and Pope Saint Pius X's Tra le Sollecitudini on the primacy of Gregorian chant. Recordings of chant settings, polyphonic Masses by composers such as Palestrina and Monteverdi, and motets by Ola Gjeilo and Thomas Luis de Victoria are shared on the parish site.
Mass Schedule in Three Languages
The parish keeps a full weekly schedule. On Saturdays, a 5:00 PM Vigil Mass is celebrated in English. Sundays bring Mass at 6:45 AM in English (without music), 8:30 AM in English, 11:30 AM in English, 1:30 PM in the Latin Ordinary Form, and 5:00 PM in Spanish. Daily Mass is offered Monday through Friday at 7:00 AM and 12:15 PM, with an additional Wednesday morning Mass at 8:45 AM and a Wednesday evening Mass at 6:00 PM that rotates between English on the first and third Wednesdays, Spanish on the second Wednesday, and Latin Ordinary Form on the fourth Wednesday. Saturday morning Mass is at 8:00 AM.
Confessions are heard Monday through Saturday, with multiple windows each day. Monday and Thursday confessions run from 6:15 to 6:45 AM, 11:30 AM to noon, and (Tuesday and Thursday) 5:00 to 6:00 PM; Tuesday and Friday also offer early morning and late morning times; Wednesday confessions are 5:00 to 5:45 PM; and Saturday confessions are 9:00 to 10:00 AM. Eucharistic Adoration is held on Wednesdays from 10:00 AM to 6:00 PM and on Fridays with varying hours through the month.
Office hours run Sunday from 9:30 to 11:30 AM, Monday through Thursday from 8:30 AM to 4:00 PM (with Wednesday opening at 10:30 AM and closing at 6:00 PM), and the office is closed Friday and Saturday. A Sacramental Emergency Line is staffed at 336-790-1810.
Education and Formation Across the Lifespan
The Education and Formation Commission, chaired by Darrell Boan, frames its work around the principle Lex orandi, lex credendi - the prayer of the Church is the belief of the Church - and aims to facilitate a lifetime of constant conversion through a rightly ordered understanding of Catholic teaching centered in the Mass and the Holy Eucharist.
For children and youth, Religious Education and Faith Formation offers catechists, assistants, and substitutes for students in grades 1 through 12 on Sunday mornings from September through April or May, with the goal of adding Pre-K and kindergarten in the future. Caritas Youth Ministry leads middle school and high school students into the Heart of Jesus through Youth Nights on Wednesdays from 7:00 to 8:30 PM, with the middle school and high school groups meeting on alternating weeks. The core team is asked for a one-year commitment.
For adults, Adult Catechesis Small Groups meet weekly or every other week, ideally in a host's home or at a restaurant, with materials approved by the Director of Religious Education. The Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults (RCIA) meets Tuesday evenings from 7:00 to 8:00 PM, September through April or May, with godparents walking alongside catechumens toward the Easter Vigil. Credo Café invites parishioners to listen to one of the priests explore the rich teachings of the Catholic Church over coffee and light refreshments on Sundays from 10:45 to 11:30 AM. The Women's Gospel Encounter gathers on Tuesdays from 11:00 AM to noon in Parish Life Center Room 4 to share the upcoming Sunday's Gospel. Celebración de la Palabra meets on Thursdays at 7:00 PM in Room 5 of the Parish Life Center to discuss Sacred Scripture, and the Divine Mercy Cenacle meets on the first and third Thursdays from 10:00 AM to noon to study St. Faustina's Diary, Scripture, and the Catechism. Marriage Preparation mentors walk with couples as they prepare for the sacrament, and a weekly Our Lady of Perpetual Help devotion gathers on Wednesdays from 11:00 AM to noon in the church to pray the novena, the rosary, and the Divine Mercy Chaplet.
Liturgy and Worship Ministries
The Liturgy and Worship Commission is concerned with discerning, training, scheduling, and renewing the laity in their participation in the Mass and the sacraments, especially Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, lectors, servers, ushers, cantors, greeters, and all those involved in musical planning and participation.
The Altar Committee forms four- to five-member teams that clean and dust the altar, baptistry, Pietà, and side altars; replace holy water, altar cloths, and candles; polish candle holders; and remove spent flowers. The Altar Flowers Ministry decorates and maintains floral arrangements through the week, while the Altar Linen Ministry soaks, launders, and irons purificators, corporals, and finger towels at home on a rotating schedule. The Altar Serving Ministry trains young men of the parish who have made their First Communion to assist the priest at the altar, with the hope of inspiring vocations to priesthood or religious life. The St. Maria Goretti Altar Society brings together young ladies in grades 3 through 12 to serve as sacristans, preparing the sacred vessels, linens, books, and vestments before Mass and removing them afterward.
Outside of Mass, the Immaculate Heart of Mary Rosary Group prays the rosary and Divine Mercy Novena on Fridays before the 12:15 PM Mass, and the Saturday Morning Rosary gathers to pray the Joyful Mysteries - with a 7:15 AM start on first Saturdays before the 8:00 AM Mass and a 45-minute rosary after Mass on the second, third, and fourth Saturdays. The Seven Sisters Apostolate dedicates one hour per week to praying for the parish priests, seminarians, bishop, and pope. The One-on-One Ministries visit, pray with, and bring Holy Communion to homebound and institutional parishioners, typically one hour a week on Sundays.
Parish Life and Community Outreach
The Parish Life Commission, chaired by Rebekah Zomberg, helps build a strong parish family by identifying and coordinating social and recreational opportunities and supporting a vibrant liturgical life both in homes and in the parish community.
The Bereavement Committee prays for the sick and prepares or purchases food for funeral receptions. Donut Sunday hosts a reception on the first Sunday of every month in the Kathleen Price Bryan Banquet Hall, with ministries taking certain months and individual volunteers handling the rest. The Knights of Columbus council at Our Lady of Grace supports the parish, school security, and the school's special needs program, attends pro-life events, and holds socials. Meals for Moms provides home-cooked or digital gift card meals to families bringing home a new baby. The Prayer Shawl Ministry knits and crochets shawls for funerals and baby blankets for baptisms, meeting on the second Tuesday of the month from 10:30 AM to noon. The Greensboro Chesterton Society meets monthly in members' homes at 7:00 PM to discuss G.K. Chesterton and other Catholic and literary works. Young Adult Ministry fosters community among adults 18 to 35 through a monthly potluck, rosary, and Theology Thursday. Young Moms Ministry gathers at homes, parks, and museums for fellowship and faith sharing. The Well Read Moms Book Club reads one book per month and meets on the third Friday from about 7:00 to 10:00 PM. The O Women's Club connects the women of the parish through meetings, charitable causes, and planned events.
The Community Outreach Commission, chaired by Andrew Wong, coordinates the parish response to Christ's call in Matthew 25 to feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, clothe the naked, shelter the homeless, and visit the sick and imprisoned. The Angel Tree Ministry provides Christmas gifts to screened and approved families through wish-list tags hung on trees at all weekend Masses from the first through the third weekend of November. The Night Shelter Ministry sends 10 to 15 volunteers to serve dinner at Greensboro Urban Ministry / Weaver House on the first Wednesday of every month from 5:30 to 8:00 PM. The Thanksgiving Basket Program distributes reusable bags of donated food items to families in the community before Thanksgiving.
Hispanic Ministries and the Spanish Mass
The Spanish-language life of the parish centers on the 5:00 PM Sunday Mass in Spanish and the Ministerios Hispanos commission. Spanish lectors proclaim the Word at the Sunday evening Mass and at bilingual or special Spanish Masses, coordinated monthly through a WhatsApp group. Monaguillos de la Misa en Español trains the young men of the parish to serve at the Spanish Mass. Ujieres de Misa en Español greet, seat, and guide the assembly, take up the collection, and tidy the church afterward. The parish also offers Celebración de la Palabra in Spanish, Religious Education and Faith Formation catechists for grades 1 through 12, an Altar Flowers Ministry, the Seven Sisters Apostolate, and the PLC Cleaning Ministry - all named in Spanish on the parish site.
The School on West Market Street
The original school building beside the church was constructed in 1953 and dedicated by Bishop Waters on November 15, 1953, designed to match the Gothic style of the church. It opened with grades K through 8 staffed by the Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary from Scranton, Pennsylvania, who ran the school for 26 years. Beginning with the 1980-81 school year, the school continued under lay staff. Our Lady of Grace Catholic School now operates as a parish school with its own admissions process and faculty and staff directory, and remains an integral part of parish identity on the West Market Street campus.
Becoming Part of the Parish
Parishioners and newcomers find multiple ways to plug in. Small groups, Bible studies, and ministry teams are listed on Realm, the parish's online engagement platform. Visitors seeking Mass, the sacrament of Reconciliation, a meeting with a priest, registration as a parishioner, or information about becoming Catholic can reach the parish office at 336-274-6520 or olgfrontdesk@rcdoc.org. Online giving is set up through Realm, and the parish also supports the annual Diocesan Support Appeal of the Diocese of Charlotte. Reflections on the Sunday Scriptures by parish contributors and outside writers are posted through the year, and a podcast of homilies and music is available through Spotify.