Saint Agnes Catholic Parish in Butler: A Century of Stewardship and Service
Saint Agnes Catholic Parish sits on West Fairmount Avenue in the village of Butler, just northwest of Milwaukee, where it has served Catholic families from Butler, Brookfield, Menomonee Falls, Milwaukee, and Wauwatosa for more than a century. The parish church, school, parish offices, food pantry, Resource Center chapel, and activity center all share the same stretch of Fairmount Avenue, giving the parish the feel of a small Catholic campus. Saint Agnes is known throughout the Archdiocese of Milwaukee as a "tithing parish," a stewardship model adopted in 1989 that has shaped everything from the parish budget to its long-running ministries of service.
Mass and Reconciliation
Weekend Masses are celebrated on Saturday at 4 p.m. and on Sunday at 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. Weekday Masses are offered on Tuesday, Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8:15 a.m., and on Wednesday evening at 5:30 p.m. Reconciliation is heard on Tuesday and Thursday at 5 p.m. in the church, and is also available by appointment through the parish office. Eucharistic Adoration takes place every Thursday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. in the chapel of the Resource Center across the street, where parishioners and other guests sign up to be regular or substitute adorers.
A Parish Built on Tithing and Stewardship
The parish was organized in May 1914 by Archbishop Sebastian G. Messmer to serve the families drawn to "New Butler" by the opening of the Butler railroad yards. Father Joseph Delaney was appointed the first pastor, and the original land for the church was donated by George and Jennie Clarke, whose eldest daughter, Agnes, became the parish's patroness. A barracks church went up in a single day that summer, and the permanent brick church was dedicated on December 19, 1915.
From the beginning, stewardship has been the through line of parish life. The Clarke family gave the land; the school's first teachers were their daughter Agnes Clarke and Jessie Hayes. Stained-glass windows were donated by parishioners over the decades. The school has been supported, expanded, and reopened by parish generosity, including its 1942 reopening under Father Gabriel Hafford after the Depression-era closure. In 1979, the original brick church was razed and a parish activity center was built in its place, again with the gifts of time, talent, and treasure of the parishioners.
The most defining stewardship decision came in 1989, when the parish introduced tithing. Parishioners were encouraged to return the first ten percent of their income to God, with five percent directed to Saint Agnes and the remaining five percent to other charities. The traditional fund-raising model was set aside, and the parish gained a reliable source of income to fund its ministries. Saint Agnes is still cited across the Archdiocese of Milwaukee as an example of a tithing parish for others to follow. The parish marked its centennial in 2015.
St. Agnes School, K3 through 8th Grade
St. Agnes School has been part of the parish since September 1915, when classes met in a local hotel and then in two rooms at the back of the new church. The school closed during the Great Depression in 1934 and reopened in 1942. By the early 1960s, enrollment was approaching one thousand students, and an ambitious building program transformed the campus. Today the school serves children from K3 through eighth grade, with classes in religion, math, language arts, science, social studies, Spanish, art, music, and physical education.
Karen Papador serves as principal. The school defines its work through four pillars: Mission and Catholic Identity, Academic Excellence, Governance and Leadership, and Operational Vitality. Teachers and staff describe their collaboration as centered in the person of Jesus Christ and committed to academic excellence, supported by the prayer, scholarship, and dedication of the educators.
St. Agnes participates in the Milwaukee Parental Choice Program and the Wisconsin Parental Choice Program, which makes tuition affordable for many families. Amy Retzer is the Director of Admissions and Choice Administrator. The school also runs St. Agnes Lambs, a before and after school care program directed by Jean Reed, that serves families whose children arrive early or stay late.
Breakfast and lunch are now free for all students through the National School Lunch Program, with meals prepared under contract with the Elmbrook School District. Families order monthly through Boonli. Students in fourth through eighth grade can take part in athletics, with teams formed in collaboration with other nearby Catholic schools.
Christian Formation for the Whole Family
For families whose children attend public school or a non-Catholic school, Saint Agnes offers a Family Formation program that brings parents and students together to learn about doctrine, the creeds, moral values, scripture, the sacraments, the liturgical seasons of the Church year, Mary, and the saints. Family Formation and High School classes meet on Sunday mornings from 9:00 to 10:15 a.m., in the gap between the two Sunday Masses, so the whole family can attend Mass together.
Children in second grade prepare for the sacraments of First Reconciliation and First Eucharist, with preparation beginning in first grade. A parent meeting is held for each sacrament, and the sacraments are celebrated during Advent and the Easter season. Students in their junior year of high school prepare for Confirmation, following Archdiocese of Milwaukee guidelines that ask for two years of prior religious instruction and a year of immediate preparation. Confirmation class meets Sunday evenings from 6:00 to 7:30 p.m.
Shelly Fellin is the Coordinator of Formation and Liturgy, and Michele Matthews is the Youth Minister. Peggy Ferch serves as the formation administrative assistant. There is also a Children's Liturgy of the Word program for younger children during Sunday Mass.
St. Vincent de Paul and the Food Pantry
The St. Vincent de Paul Society at Saint Agnes has been helping neighbors in and around Butler since 1956. Members offer immediate, person-to-person help with food, clothing, furniture, household items, housing, utilities, transportation, budgeting, rent, utility and medical payments, and counseling. Vincentians visit the sick in homes, hospitals, and nursing homes, and they coordinate the SHARE food program, the Waukesha Surplus Commodities Program, and the AGAPE Food Program. The St. Agnes conference also extends help to the needy at St. Michael and St. Thomas parishes, while keeping its own parishioners first.
The parish Food Pantry has been operating for more than forty years, providing short-term emergency food assistance to people facing illness, unemployment, divorce, or other difficult situations. Food and funds come from parishioners, parish and school groups, and a long list of local partners including the Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, Butler postal carriers, the Butler Fire and Police Departments, Butler Library, Sendik's in Elm Grove, Karl's Country Market, Java Train, Food for the Hungry Inc., and the annual Souper Bowl of Caring. The Food Pantry is open on Mondays from noon to 2 p.m. and again from 5:00 to 6:30 p.m., with the entrance on the west end of the building on Fairmount Avenue.
Adoration, the Prayer Network, and Grief Ministry
Eucharistic Adoration is a central prayer devotion at Saint Agnes, with quiet time before the Blessed Sacrament in the Resource Center Chapel every Thursday from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. The Resource Center, at 12745 W. Fairmount Avenue, is the former St. Agnes Convent built in 1957 and home over the decades to the School Sisters of Notre Dame and the Salvatorian Sisters. After a 2021 renovation that included new flooring and paint, the chapel was restored for adoration and the rest of the building now houses small group meetings and Catholic faith-building programs.
The Prayer Network is a long-standing chain of parishioners who pray for anyone in need, whether inside or outside the parish. Requests are phoned in and passed from person to person across six prayer chains. The Grief Ministry meets monthly to offer comfort and support to sorrowing families, notify parishioners of deaths and funerals, post notices of retreats and seminars, recommend helpful books, and list local support groups. Each December, the ministry hosts a Mass and breakfast for everyone who has lost a loved one during the year.
Liturgical Ministries and the Parish Altar Society
The celebration of the Eucharist is the central focus of parish life, and many ministries support it. Altar Servers, trained both through the school and the Christian Formation program, assist the priest at Mass and other ceremonies. Ministers of the Word, or lectors, prayerfully prepare the readings and proclaim them at Sunday and holy day liturgies. Ministers of Hospitality, the ushers, greet worshippers, distribute song materials, manage the table of hosts and wine, collect donations, and prepare the church before and after liturgies. Eucharistic Ministers, who must be fully initiated Catholics, distribute the Body and Blood of Christ at weekend and holy day Masses after a training session and serve roughly once every three or four weeks.
The Altar Society, which has been active for more than sixty years, was founded to pray for vocations and to care for the priests' vestments and altar linens. Over time the society expanded to refurbish vestments, sew and embroider Baptismal gowns, service the vigil light stands, and cater funeral meals, all supported by fundraisers and the gift shop it once ran. The society is open to both men and women and welcomes new members at any time.
Sacraments at Saint Agnes
Saint Agnes prepares parishioners for all seven Catholic sacraments. Infant Baptism is celebrated after parents, who must be registered parishioners, attend an instructional session through the Christian Formation Office. First Reconciliation and First Eucharist are usually celebrated in second grade, with preparation beginning in first grade. Confirmation is typically celebrated in the junior year of high school. The Sacrament of the Sick is offered after the 4 p.m. Mass on the first Saturday of each month, and priests visit the homebound on request. Couples preparing for marriage are asked to contact the parish priest at least eight months before their desired wedding date. The parish also accompanies those discerning a call to Holy Orders.
Visiting Saint Agnes for the First Time
Saint Agnes welcomes visitors warmly. Worship aids and missalettes are distributed by ushers and are available in the book racks just inside the entrance, so anyone can follow the order of the Mass without prior experience. Visitors who are not Catholic are welcome to remain in their pews during Communion, or to come forward with their hands crossed over their chests for a special blessing. There is no expectation to give financially; the offering is passed and visitors are welcome to let it pass them by.
Handicap parking is located on Fairmount Avenue in front of the main entrance, with additional parking on Fairmount and in the parking lot accessible from Cameron Avenue. The parish office is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. and can be reached at 262-781-9521 or info@stagnesparish.org. Newcomers and visitors are encouraged to stop by the Welcome Desk during Fellowship Sunday, held on the fourth Sunday of each month, to pick up an information packet and register with the parish.
Leadership and Pastoral Council
Father Carlos Londoño serves as pastor of Saint Agnes. Mary Lemirande is the Director of Liturgical Music. The Pastoral Council is chaired by Butch Brockman, with Tanya Bissen as vice-chair and Mary Engerson as secretary. Parish trustees are Dave Nadolski (treasurer) and Tom Ortman (secretary). Other council members serve as liaisons to Liturgy, Evangelization and Christian Formation, Stewardship, the School Advisory Committee, Human Concerns, the Festival, and the Finance Council. The Finance Council, together with the Parish and School Endowment Committee, oversees the long-term financial health of the parish and school.