Saint Agnes Parish stands at 1680 Dixie Highway in Fort Wright, with parish boundaries that include Fort Wright, Park Hills, and nearby areas of Covington and Fort Mitchell. It is known for a Catholic school that has long been its largest ministry, a perpetual Eucharistic adoration tradition, and a parish life centered on Sunday Eucharist and service. The welcome expressed by greeters, ushers, educators, clergy, and volunteers is a practical part of that identity.
Eucharist at the Center of Dixie Highway
Father Mark Keene identifies the Sunday Eucharist as the center of parish life, a time to encounter the Lord in Word and Sacrament and to grow as the Body of Christ. The wider mission of Saint Agnes is equally clear: be a welcoming and loving community, strengthen faith among adults, youth, and children, respect all human life, and witness the love of Christ through service.
- Saturday: Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
- Sunday: Mass at 8:30 a.m. and 10:30 a.m.
- Monday through Friday: Mass at 6:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.
- Holy Days: Mass at 7:00 p.m. on the vigil and at 6:30 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. on the day.
The 6:30 a.m. weekday Mass is celebrated in the daily Mass chapel, a room built with the present church that seats about 70. The larger sanctuary accommodates the principal Sunday celebrations. Music is intended to involve the congregation and is led by volunteer singers and instrumentalists. The choral group serves the 4:00 p.m. Saturday Mass and both Sunday Masses, while the 8:30 a.m. Sunday Mass features a cantor with organ or piano. Saint Agnes also has children’s and memorial choirs.
Those arriving for Sunday Mass are greeted by volunteers who open the door, say hello, and remain from about 20 minutes before Mass until roughly three to five minutes after it begins. Ushers help people find seats, collect the offering, distribute materials, and assist in emergencies or special needs. Servers prepare the sanctuary and assist the priest and deacon. Adults generally serve weekday Masses other than school Masses, while children and teenagers serve Sunday and weekday school Masses.
Reconciliation is offered every Saturday at 9:00 a.m., following the 8:30 a.m. Mass, and on the first Friday after the 11:30 a.m. Mass. Communal celebrations are also held once during Advent and once during Lent. Baptism is normally celebrated on Sundays at noon.
For directions, Exit 189 leads toward Fort Wright and Park Hills and then to Dixie Highway. The church stands a few hundred yards along Dixie Highway at the corner of Sleepy Hollow Road. A Saint Agnes video collection is also available on YouTube.
From a Sears Chapel to an Independent Parish
Saint Agnes began as a chapel annex to Saint Mary Cathedral Parish for Catholics living in Park Hills and the surrounding area. Msgr. Gerhard Geisen, the diocesan chancellor, organized the community. Approximately 11 acres were assembled for the chapel, with part donated by August Knochelman and the remainder purchased from him. Mr. Knochelman had hoped the chapel would honor Saint Philomena, but Bishop Howard selected Saint Agnes as its patron.
The first parish Mass was celebrated on October 5, 1930, in a framed building constructed on the north end of the property. The structure had been sold by Sears Roebuck and Company and came to be known as a Sears Church. It served the chapel congregation from 1930 until 1939. A bell donated by the City of Covington arrived in 1931. As the congregation grew, construction began on the present church in 1938, and Bishop Howard formally dedicated it on February 5, 1939.
Assistant pastors from the cathedral continued to serve as curates until 1954. On August 9 of that year, Bishop William Mulloy established Saint Agnes as a parish in its own right, and its name changed from Saint Agnes Chapel to Saint Agnes Church. Msgr. Charles A. Towell became the first pastor and served until 1971. He was followed by Msgr. Edward Hickey, Msgr. John Murphy, Msgr. Donald Hellmann, and Father Mark Keene, who has served as pastor since 1999. A new rectory next to the church was completed in 1956; at its busiest, as many as six priests lived there.
Saint Agnes continued to alter its church and grounds as attendance increased. Stained-glass windows and new pews were installed in the early 1960s. A west-side annex opened in 1964, the sanctuary was remodeled in 1980, and a new altar was consecrated during the community’s fiftieth-anniversary rededication. The former undercroft became Murphy Hall in 1990, while an old basement gym was divided into offices. Rectory rooms were also converted into offices in 2001.
The School That Has Long Anchored Parish Life
Saint Agnes School opened on September 8, 1930, with 26 pupils and Sisters of Notre Dame teachers. Early classes were held in houses on the property and at Saint Joseph Heights. A four-classroom framed building with a basement recreation area followed in 1941, and a larger permanent school was dedicated in 1957. A convent was built near the school in 1960 to house the sisters who taught there.
Enrollment continued to rise. Six classrooms and storage space were added in 1964, and the school reached 939 pupils in 1967. At that point, seventeen nuns and eleven lay teachers used every available classroom, including rooms in the church and its basement and space at nearby Covington Catholic High School. A major addition opened in 1990 with a multipurpose center, regulation-size gymnasium, science and computer labs, expanded kindergarten facilities, offices, and a faculty workroom.
The Sisters of Notre Dame ended their administration in 1995 after 65 years. Their relationship with the parish continued, and 138 sisters served the school and parish between 1930 and 2014. Saint Agnes remained the parish’s largest ministry and continues to receive substantial financial support from parish offerings.
A 2011 capital campaign, Faith for Generations, raised more than $3 million for school improvements. Work completed in 2013 included air conditioning, a new heating system, electrical rewiring, carpet, ceilings, doors, computer networking, cable and wireless stations, and a walk-in refrigerator and freezer. The Msgr. John F. Murphy School Endowment Fund, established in 1984, provides continuing support for general operations and helps control tuition costs.
An Unbroken Week of Eucharistic Adoration
After the Sisters of Notre Dame left, the former convent continued to serve the community in another way. Beginning in 1995, Saint Agnes joined the Interfaith Hospitality Network, later known as Family Promise of Northern Kentucky. Parishioners refurbished the building, which hosted families experiencing homelessness regularly until 2013. The convent chapel was then converted for perpetual Eucharistic adoration. The practice began in January 1998, and Bishop Roger Foys dedicated the room as the Divine Mercy Adoration Chapel on October 5, 2014.
Perpetual adoration continues around the clock from Sunday evening at 7:15 p.m. through Saturday afternoon at 3:00 p.m. Hundreds of people have committed themselves to a specific weekly hour, while others visit at unscheduled times. The chapel and its schedule remain open to all.
Faith Formation from Preschool to the Easter Vigil
Saint Agnes names liturgies, sacraments, religious education, scripture study, small-group sharing, and personal prayer as central ways it strengthens faith. That work is divided among several age-specific ministries.
Pre-School Religion welcomes children ages three, four, and five during the 10:30 a.m. Sunday Mass from September through early May. Parents bring children before Mass and collect them afterward. Bible stories and age-appropriate activities help the children experience God, while volunteer catechists prepare through training sessions. At the same Mass, the Children’s Liturgy of the Word serves children in grades one through four. Parish volunteers adapt the Sunday readings and homily using material from Liguori Publications.
The CCD Evening Religion Program serves students in grades one through eight who do not attend a Catholic school. Classes meet in the school on Mondays from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. The program provides sacramental preparation and grade-level instruction in Christian doctrine. Its catechists are trained parish volunteers, with other volunteers serving as organizers, fundraisers, substitute teachers, and aides.
The Youth Group is for students in grades seven through twelve. Meetings are usually held every other Sunday during the school year and combine spiritual talks, prayer, discussion, games, and food. Leaders from Dynamic Catholic guide the group, which has also taken part in a diocesan ski trip and Youth Weekends at Franciscan University.
The sacraments form another dimension of formation. Baptism initiates a person into the Catholic community and is completed in full membership through First Communion and Confirmation. Reconciliation restores grace through confession and absolution and is recommended at least monthly. Children receive First Reconciliation and First Communion after preparation in grade school or CCD, while older children and adults make arrangements through religious education. Confirmation strengthens the life received at Baptism through prayer, catechesis, retreat, and the bishop’s ceremony.
The Order of Christian Initiation of Adults welcomes people who are not baptized, baptized Catholics seeking full communion, and others who want to understand the faith more deeply. Weekly sessions meet in the parish conference room. The process includes inquiry, acceptance, deeper catechesis, election, purification and enlightenment, the Easter Vigil celebration of Baptism, Confirmation, and Eucharist, and a period of reflection afterward. Its aim is to bring participants into the life, mission, and prayer of the Catholic Church.
Stewardship Measured in Service
Father Mark Keene describes stewardship as recognizing that life itself is a gift from God and that time, talent, and treasure are entrusted to people for the benefit of the world. This conviction leads Saint Agnes to make service a practical expression of faith. The annual Stewardship Awareness Program renews that commitment through education and opportunities to give of time, talent, and money.
The Christian Service Committee formed in 1973 to assist people in need in the parish and beyond. It collects food for area agencies and financial assistance for people experiencing hardship. A Bereavement Committee under the same ministry helps families plan a funeral liturgy, celebrate it, and arrange the reception that follows. The committee and other outreach are supported in part by the parish’s We Are His Hands fund.
Saint Vincent de Paul Chapter members focus especially on people in need who are not registered in the parish. Poor-box donations and We Are His Hands funding support that assistance. The outreach fund has also supported tuition assistance for Saint Agnes School, the Notre Dame Urban Education Center, Faith Community Pharmacy, City Heights Mission, Rose Garden Home Mission, Catholic education projects, and mission efforts including the Sisters of Notre Dame Uganda Mission and Mary Rose Mission.
Saint Agnes coordinates meals for priests two days each week through the Take the Meal schedule. Parishioners can reserve a meal slot and follow the associated drop-off instructions. This steady ministry arose from a practical need: the priests did not have a cook at the rectory.
Parish giving supports the church, school, diocesan collections, and outreach. Donations can be made through online giving. The parish also invites people to remember Saint Agnes, the school, or its endowment fund in their wills and provides a free Catholic-centered will resource.
Sacraments, Welcome, and Shared Responsibility
Father Mark Keene serves as pastor. Deacons Robert Stoeckle, Gary Scott, and Adam Feinauer assist parish ministry, with Deacon Stoeckle also serving as pastoral associate. Rev. John Opoku serves as parochial vicar. Anita Dunn coordinates religious education, Mark Nutter coordinates OCIA, and Regina Mason directs music ministries.
Baptism, Reconciliation, Eucharist, Confirmation, Marriage, Holy Orders, and Anointing of the Sick all belong to the parish’s sacramental life. Preparation for sacraments is connected to the mission of forming adults, youth, and children in the faith. Adults preparing for full communion through OCIA receive the sacraments of initiation at the Easter Vigil.
Marriage celebrations are part of the church’s ministry, and Saint Agnes gives particular attention to helping couples understand the religious and spiritual character of the ceremony. At least one party is normally expected to be a parish member. Couples who live outside the parish must register and be active, contributing members for one year before scheduling. Exceptions may be considered for children and grandchildren of parishioners and on an individual basis. Initial contact is requested at least nine months before the anticipated date, and weddings are discouraged during Lent.
Anointing of the Sick is offered every Thursday after the 11:30 a.m. Mass unless a funeral takes place. It is also part of the parish’s Advent and Lent celebrations and may be provided for serious physical, mental, emotional, or spiritual illness, significant surgery, severe injury, the effects of aging, or approaching death. The priest ordinarily brings the sacrament to the person wherever they are staying.
Funerals begin with consultation between the funeral home, the family, and a member of the Bereavement Committee. The parish community expresses its care for one another through the funeral liturgy and the gathering that follows.
Parishioners can also serve as lectors, Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion, servers, ushers, greeters, gift bearers, and musicians. Lay lectors read the Word of God at Mass. Extraordinary Ministers assist priests and deacons with distributing Holy Communion. Gift bearers bring forward the bread, wine, and offertory collection. Volunteers for the parish or school complete diocesan safe-environment training, formation, and a background check before serving.
Music ministry remains centered on congregational participation. In addition to the principal choral and cantor ministries, Saint Agnes has opportunities for instrumentalists, a children’s choir, and a memorial choir. Murphy Hall, named for the parish’s third pastor, is also available for parishioners’ weddings, large formal events, family gatherings, celebrations, and other gatherings, with spaces suited to groups of different sizes.
Why Saint Agnes: A Young Roman Martyr
Saint Agnes is also known as Agnes of Rome. The name Agnes resembles the Latin word for lamb, which explains why a lamb often appears in her imagery, while its Greek roots convey chastity, purity, and sacredness. She is one of the virgin martyrs of Rome and is named in the Roman Canon of the Mass. Her feast day is January 21.
Saint Agnes is the patroness of chastity, gardeners, girls, Girl Scouts, engaged couples, and victims of rape. A medallion containing a primary relic is displayed beneath her statue in the church, while another primary relic and relics of Saint Agatha and Saint Anthony of Padua are kept in the chapel. Her patronage joins the parish’s history to a young woman whose feast was remembered for her purity, faith, and bodily integrity.
At 1680 Dixie Highway, Saint Agnes Church continues to join Sunday Eucharist, daily Mass, Catholic education, perpetual adoration, sacramental care, and service to people in need. Its history stretches from the first parish Mass in 1930 to a community whose school, adoration chapel, ministries, and volunteer service remain central to parish life.