St. Rita's Catholic Church has been a presence on South O Street in Tulare since 1945, when a small mission chapel was erected on land purchased for $300 by the pastor of St. Aloysius Church. Eight decades later, the parish serves a growing, bilingual community in the San Joaquin Valley and is preparing to dedicate a new 1,500-seat church two miles east at 1051 Morrison Street. The parish has outgrown its current facilities and is in the middle of a multi-phase capital campaign that will eventually add classrooms, a youth center, a day chapel, and a new rectory.
Eight Decades on South O Street
St. Rita's began as a mission of St. Aloysius Church in 1940, when Rev. William Stuhlmann saw the need for a new place of worship for Catholics in southeast Tulare. Five years of building led to the dedication of the original mission chapel in 1945. By 1950, the growing population had outgrown the chapel, and Rev. Ramon Guerras became the mission's first resident priest. Within five years, the chapel was replaced by a new St. Rita's Church that seated 300 and was completed in 1955 at a cost of $34,788.
By 1966 the original mission chapel had been converted into what is now the parish hall. A year later, in 1967, the mission was elevated to parish status with Rev. Charles A. Dorn as its first pastor. The 1970s brought debt relief under Fr. Antonio Gonzales, who also built a new rectory, two parking lots, and acquired additional property for future expansion. In 1972, Fr. John Murphy acquired three new buildings to be used as CCD classrooms.
Fr. Tim Cardoza, who arrived as parish administrator in 1988, oversaw a major renovation through the 1990s. His work installed the stained-glass windows, added a parking lot on the north end of the property, expanded the sanctuary with a new wing, added restrooms, and brought in centralized heating, cooling, and a fire alarm system.
In 2005, Fr. Ignacio Villafan began negotiations to purchase a 7.99-acre parcel on the corner of Bardsley Avenue and Morrison Street for a future church, and Bishop John T. Steinback authorized the purchase in 2009. Three years later, Fr. Ivan Hernandez Melchor became parish administrator and set in motion a building and strategic planning process that grew into the new-church campaign now underway.
Mass in English, Spanish, and Bilingual
St. Rita's offers weekend Masses at the new church at 1051 South Morrison Street: Saturday at 4:00 pm in English and 7:00 pm in Spanish, and Sunday at 7:30 am in Spanish, 10:30 am in English, 1:00 pm in Spanish, and 5:00 pm in a multilingual celebration. The five weekend Masses give shape to the life of the parish, and the bilingual and multilingual celebrations reflect the makeup of the Tulare-area community.
Daily Masses and a Liturgy of the Word with Communion are celebrated at the old church at 954 South O Street, all in a bilingual format. Tuesday brings the Liturgy of the Word with Communion at 6:00 pm. Wednesday's bilingual Mass is at 8:00 am. Thursday's bilingual Mass is at 6:00 pm, preceded by a Holy Hour from 5:00 to 6:00 pm. Friday's bilingual Mass is at 8:00 am.
Confessions, Adoration, and the Old Church
The Sacrament of Reconciliation is heard at the old church on Wednesday morning from 8:30 to 9:00 am and on Thursday afternoon from 4:00 to 7:00 pm. The parish has maintained the building because it remains useful even after the new church opens, and it will continue to host weekday Masses, weddings, quinceaneras, and other special occasions.
Exposition of the Blessed Sacrament takes place in the old church on Tuesday from 5:00 to 5:30 pm and on Thursday immediately following the evening Mass. Perpetual adoration is also available in the chapel, and parishioners can apply for an access card through the parish office.
Religious Education and the Sacraments
The Religious Education Office, located at 954 South O Street, prepares parishioners for First Communion, Confirmation, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and Children, and adult formation. Director of Religious Education Javier Figueroa leads the St. Rita's program. The office is open Tuesday through Thursday from 5:30 to 8:30 pm and Friday from 5:00 to 7:00 pm, and can be reached at (559) 686-0802. The St. John's program, led by Carmen Sanchez, has its own office at (559) 752-4544.
Sacramental preparation is also offered for infant Baptism, Holy Matrimony, Quinceaneras, and Anointing of the Sick. Application forms and lists of dates and requirements for both St. Rita's and St. John's are available through the parish office. The parish defines the sacraments in the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church: efficacious signs of grace, instituted by Christ and entrusted to the Church, by which divine life is dispensed to us.
Building the New Church on Morrison Street
The parish has outgrown its current facilities, and a capital campaign is raising money for a larger church that will seat 1,476 in the nave and transepts, with an estimated first-phase cost of $7.2 million. Bishop Joseph Brennan, the sixth bishop of the Diocese of Fresno, offered the parish a diocesan loan to include the transepts in the first phase rather than build them later and risk tearing down newly built walls. Construction on the seven-acre property at the northwest corner of Bardsley Avenue and Morrison Street began in 2020, with the new sanctuary expected to seat 1,500 to 1,600 once complete. Future phases will add a youth center and parish hall, classrooms, a parish office, a day chapel, and a rectory. Sacred items, stained-glass windows, religious artwork, and statues from the present church will be incorporated into the new building.
Plans call for a large stained-glass window that may depict the Nativity, ramps for accessibility, raised circular steps, an outdoor ambo for plaza activities, planters for future outdoor statues, and cruciform LED lighting on the church tower. Pledges, volunteer time, and prayer are the three ways parishioners can participate in the campaign.
Two Mission Communities
St. Rita's shepherds two mission communities in outlying areas. St. John the Evangelist in Tipton-Pixley meets at 232 Adams Road, Tipton, and offers a Wednesday evening weekday Mass at 6:00 pm and Sunday Masses at 9:00 am in English and 10:30 am in Spanish. Confessions and adoration are held Wednesday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm. The St. John's Religious Education office can be reached at (559) 752-4544, with office hours on Tuesday and Wednesday afternoons. All mail for the mission should be sent to St. Rita's main office.
St. Francis of Assisi in Woodville, at 16410 Avenue 168, offers a bilingual Tuesday evening Mass at 5:00 pm and a Spanish Saturday vigil Mass at 5:30 pm. Confessions and adoration are available Tuesday from 5:00 to 6:00 pm.
Parish Life, Office Hours, and a Warm Welcome
St. Rita's describes itself as a welcoming, loving, and humble community of believers serving the spiritual needs of people for miles around, drawing on 1 Corinthians 12 to remember that you are Christ's body, and individually parts of it. Volunteers are always welcome to assist with fundraisers, hospitality, publicity, mailings, and other events. The parish frames ministry as a way for parishioners to actively serve God and our community, citing 1 Peter 4:10: As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God's varied grace.
The parish office at 954 South O Street is open Tuesday through Thursday from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, closed for lunch from 12:00 to 1:00 pm, and Friday from 9:00 am to 12:00 pm. The office is closed on Monday. Online giving is available through the Diocese of Fresno, and the weekly bulletin can be subscribed to via Parishes Online. Visitors can register with the parish through the office.
Pastors and Staff
The parish is led by Pastor Rev. Gonzalo Siller-Ramirez, with Parochial Vicar Rev. Jose Padron. Permanent Deacons Mario Vasquez, Jose Cortez, and Jose Alvarado assist with Mass, sacraments, and parish life. The Diocese of Fresno, which includes Kern, Inyo, Merced, Mariposa, Madera, Tulare, and Kings counties, is led by Bishop Joseph Brennan.