A Locust Lake Mission Becomes a Parish
St. Bernadette Church began as a summer mission for Cincinnati families who kept weekend retreats on Locust Lake in Amelia, Ohio. On June 6, 1944, about twenty families gathered for the first Mass in a small house in the woods on a five-acre tract. With the encouragement of Fr. Claude Nevins and a $6,000 gift from St. William Parish in Price Hill, the mission grew to more than sixty-five acres. The first sanctuary, now known as Stievenard Hall, was built later that same year by parishioner Francis Stievenard. Many believe the church was named for his sister, Bernadette, though some say the name reflected Fr. Nevins' devotion to the Virgin Mary; he had made a pilgrimage to Lourdes, France, and returned with a "barrel" of healing water.
Fr. Nevins built a replica of the Lourdes Grotto with rocks hauled from local creek beds, fulfilling a promise he made to the Blessed Virgin. Three Sisters of Charity opened a school for grades one through eight in the rooms of a farmhouse next to the new church. In 1950, with the assignment of Fr. Bernard Piening as pastor, the mission was raised to the status of a parish church. Fr. Piening added a new altar, tile floor, pews with padded kneelers, running water, bathrooms, drinking fountains, a kitchen, a cafeteria that doubled as a bus garage, and six classrooms. Fr. Buddlemeieer, who arrived in 1957, built the convent and a new rectory. By 1968, about 600 people attended a typical Sunday Mass.
Over the following decades, successive pastors added a multipurpose building (now Venture Hall, completed in 1996 at a cost of over $500,000), additional classrooms, and a new church. Archbishop Pilarczyk dedicated the present church on November 22, 2009. Today the parish numbers more than 800 families and is part of the Stella Maris Family of Parishes, which also includes St. Peter in New Richmond, St. Mary in Bethel, and St. Thomas More in Withamsville. Fr. Timothy W. Ralston has served as pastor of St. Bernadette since July 2017 and was named pastor of the wider family in 2022.
Mass Times and the Weekly Rhythm
Weekday Mass is celebrated Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday at 8:15 AM, and on Thursday evening at 6:45 PM. Saturday morning Mass is also at 8:15 AM. The Sunday schedule offers two Masses, at 9:00 AM and 11:00 AM. The 9:00 AM Sunday Mass is livestreamed on the parish's Facebook for those unable to attend in person.
Parish office hours run Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8:30 AM to 2:30 PM. Confessions are heard on Thursday from 5:30 to 6:30 PM and on Saturday from 9:00 to 10:00 AM, and additional times can be arranged by appointment. An emergency line at 513-549-2198 is staffed around the clock for priestly needs.
Eucharistic Adoration and the Open Chapel
The parish's Eucharistic Chapel is open every day from 7:00 AM to 8:30 PM, except during Mass. First Friday evenings bring a special hour of Eucharistic Adoration from 7:00 to 8:00 PM. As part of the wider family's Eucharistic Revival, Tuesdays at St. Bernadette have also been set aside for daytime adoration, with volunteer guardians signing up to keep the chapel open for prayer.
The Seven Sacraments
St. Bernadette prepares parishioners for each of the seven sacraments. Parents seeking infant baptism complete an inquiry form and attend a Baptism Preparation class, typically held on the first Wednesday of the month. Both parents are asked to attend, and godparents are strongly encouraged. Older children and adults follow the OCIA process, the new name for the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults. Children preparing for First Reconciliation and First Communion work through a family-focused approach coordinated by Courtney Smalley, the family faith coordinator, with sessions shared with the wider Stella Maris family.
Confirmation preparation for eighth graders takes place through IGNITE, a monthly gathering on the second Sunday of the month from 6:00 to 8:00 PM in the St. Thomas More cafeteria. Couples preparing for marriage meet with Fr. Tim Ralston over nine to twelve months, complete the FOCCUS marriage survey with a trained parish couple, and attend a Pre-Cana or Engaged Encounter experience. The parish welcomes couples who wish to have a civil marriage convalidated in the Church. The Anointing of the Sick is available by contacting the pastor.
Catechesis of the Good Shepherd
St. Bernadette hosts a Catechesis of the Good Shepherd atrium, a Montessori-based Catholic faith formation program that nurtures a personal relationship with God through a prepared environment and hands-on materials. In the atrium, children ages three through six encounter the Parable of the Good Shepherd, learn the gestures and colors of the Mass, and study the model altar, the geography of Israel, the Last Supper, and the Empty Tomb. The atrium is described as "a joyful space in between the church and the home where children (and adults) can grow and rest in relationship with Christ." Parents, catechists, and donors assist through prayer, teaching, donating materials from a registry, or hand-crafting atrium pieces. Older youth and adults also train to become catechists through a two-year commitment.
Parish School and Religious Education
St. Bernadette School offers Catholic education for preschool through eighth grade on the parish campus. Children who do not attend the parish school gather with their families once a month for the Parish Religious Program, following a Family of Faith model. The morning begins with the 9:00 AM Mass, followed by a family meeting in the cafeteria, after which children break into age-level groups with their catechists. The registration fee covers the whole family, and financial assistance is available.
The athletic boosters support CYO basketball and volleyball for the school and work with neighboring parishes so students can play football, track, and other sports. The boosters meet on the third Wednesday of each month at 7:00 PM in the gym and run several fundraisers throughout the year, including a Walk-a-thon, a Fish Fry, and a Mulch Sale.
Becoming Catholic
Adults who have never been baptized, those baptized in another Christian tradition who seek full communion, baptized Catholics who wish to complete the sacraments of initiation, and those who have been away from the practice of the faith are all welcome to enter the OCIA process. The journey does not follow a school-year calendar; inquirers may begin at any time. Brad Bursa, the director of evangelization for the Stella Maris Family of Parishes, accompanies the journey.
For children seven and older who have not yet been baptized, a parallel process called RCIC prepares them in the most appropriate classroom, with additional formation meetings and ritual events. Confirmation for older youth is offered every other year for students in grades eight through ten, with monthly Sunday evening gatherings and service events.
Serving at the Altar
The parish invites parishioners to take on a variety of liturgical roles. Greeters are the first friendly face visitors encounter at the door. Extraordinary Ministers of Holy Communion assist with the distribution of the Body and Blood of Christ at weekend and holy day Masses, and many visit homebound parishioners on Saturday evenings or Sunday mornings; training is provided. Lectors proclaim the readings from sacred Scripture and lead the General Intercessions. Ushers keep order, take up the collection, and secure the offering in the parish safe after Mass. Altar servers, both children and adults, assist the priest once they have received First Eucharist and have reached the third grade. Jeannie Stephens coordinates the lector ministry, and new volunteers are welcome at any time.
Music and Choir
Music is central to worship at St. Bernadette. The choir sings at all three weekend Masses, holy days, and holidays, and rehearses on Wednesday evenings at 7:00 PM for about an hour, with a break during the summer months. Choir director Bob Bridges welcomes new members at any time. The ability to read music is helpful but not required, and perfect attendance is not expected. Instrumentalists and singers of all experience levels are invited to share their gifts. The parish also visits homebound parishioners through a ministry to the homebound that was started in 1990 by Sister Mary Assumpta Koesters, a retired Sister of the Dominican Sister of the Sick Poor, and continues today.
The Annual Festival
Each August the parish hosts a two-day festival featuring rides, kiddie games, games for teenagers, a casino for adults, food and drink, and live bands each evening. The festival also includes a Grand Raffle with multiple cash prizes and a Bid 'N Buy. Volunteer chairs lead booths for the raffle, split-the-pot, and over-21 envelope pull, and many more hands are needed for setup and teardown. Proceeds support the parish and school.
Care for Neighbors in Amelia
The St. Vincent de Paul Society is a person-to-person ministry that assists families in temporary need in the Amelia area. Through a confidential helpline, Vincentians respond with food, help with utility bills or rent, prescription assistance, furniture, clothing, or referrals to other area agencies. Visits to clients are always made by two members. The society provides Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets, hosts a yearly yard sale fundraiser, and assists with the parish's Giving Tree program. Meetings are held on the second Monday of each month at 7:30 PM in the Parish Center.
The Knights of Columbus council supports both the parish and broader community through service and fellowship. Other groups include the Prayer Circle, which prays for those in need, and His Mercy Prayer Group, a charismatic gathering that meets on the second Friday of each month from 7:00 to 9:00 PM in Stievenard Hall with praise and worship music, prayer, scripture sharing, and witness.
Stewardship and Giving
Online giving through eCatholic is available for the regular Sunday collection, special collections, school donations, maintenance, and St. Vincent de Paul. Donors may also direct contributions to St. Bernadette School through the Catholic Education Foundation's Scholarship Granting Organization, an Ohio tax credit program that allows individual donors to give up to $750 and married couples filing jointly up to $1,500 with a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit. Donations of appreciated stock can be made through Fifth Third Bank. Parishioners can also enroll their Kroger Plus Cards in the Kroger Community Rewards program to direct a portion of grocery spending back to the parish and school. Online giving is available at any time. FORMED, a subscription platform offering Catholic movies, children's programming, audio dramas, books, Bible studies, and documentaries, is available free to parishioners.
A Welcoming Family of Parishes
St. Bernadette is one of four parishes that make up the Stella Maris Family of Parishes in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, alongside St. Peter in New Richmond, St. Mary in Bethel, and St. Thomas More in Withamsville. Fr. Tim Ralston serves as pastor of the family, with parochial vicars Fr. Benjamin Packer and Fr. William C. Wagner and Fr. David J. Endres as a weekend celebrant. Many faith formation events, Confirmation gatherings, the Eucharistic Revival talks, and the parish festival draw parishioners from across the family. Those who work or volunteer in any capacity are certified through SafeParish, the child protection program of the Archdiocese. New parishioners are warmly invited to register with the parish and become part of a community that, after more than eighty years, continues to grow on the Locust Lake tract where it began.