Holy Infant Jesus Parish History

Holy Infant Jesus Parish -- la paroise du Saint Enfant Jesus -- was established in October 1909, the third French "national" parish in Nashua, after Saint Louis de Gonzague (1871) and Saint Francis Xavier (1885). The Crown Hill neighborhood at the heart of the new parish was a fairly new, almost suburban area outside the traditional heart of the city.

Land for the parish buildings was acquired on the west side of Allds street approximately opposite Gillis street. First to be constructed was a chapel-school building, to which was later added a convent wing for the teaching Sisters of the Holy Cross. A house on the property, used for a time as the first rectory, was sold after the current rectory was acquired in 1916, along with land extending as far as Harvard Street. That land was reserved for the parish's later construction of a free standing church.

By the spring of 1930, the parishioners had paid off their debts and saved some $2,300 toward the new church. Then -- disaster. The Crown Hill fire of May 4, 1930, destroyed all the parish buildings except the "new" rectory, at the same time that it destroyed the homes and, in many cases, the livelihood of parishioners.

A tract of land was secured along Crown Street just east of the rectory property. An existing home on the site became the new convent, and a second combination school-church building was erected, with the first services held on April 5, 1931, Easter Sunday. And as the Great Depression wore on, followed by the rigors and sacrifices of the World War II years, the people of Infant Jesus kept working at growing the parish and reducing the debt.

Under the fifth pastor, the Reverend (later Monsignor) Henri-Albert Blanchard, the mortgage was at last burned on the school-church building, and the free standing church became a reality, opening for services for the first time on November 7, 1954. The now-vacant church section of the combination building on Crown Street served one other use -- as a temporary convent -- while the new one was built in the late 1950s, before at last reverting to classroom usage.

The second Vatican Council (1962 - 1965) brought great changes at Infant Jesus, just as it did the entire Catholic Church. Mass was now celebrated, not in Latin, but the local language -- at Infant Jesus, that meant both French and English. The altar was turned so the celebrant faced the congregation, now an integral part of the liturgy. Further illustrating this point was the institution, in 1970, of the first Parish Council, uniting the laity and religious with the clergy in the running of the parish. That council remained active until its reconstitution, in June 1997, as the Pastoral Council, reflecting the Church's renewed focus on evangelization and outreach.

The 1970s saw major improvements and renovations to the parish facilities. Besides the sanctuary work necessitated by turning the altar around, the communion rail was removed, the sanctuary was raised and carpeted and, later, the entire church was carpeted. During the pastorship of the Reverend Wilfrid G. Demers, a reconciliation room was established in the rear vestibule, replacing the confessionals along the sides of the church. Stained glass windows replaced what had simply been frosted glass.

A fire in the sanctuary in Advent 1981, mercifully caught and put out by the Reverend Marcel Martel, the associate, resulted in further remodeling of the sanctuary to the way it looks today.

Another major change within the parish was the incorporation, in 1973, of the parish school into the Nashua Catholic Regional School System. The school went from offering grades one to eight to, initially grades one to four. A joint school board was responsible for the several schools in the system, including the new Catholic Regional Junior High, established at Saint Louis School on Vine Street.

In 1984, Infant Jesus Parish celebrated its 75th anniversary with a weekend of activities highlighting the many activities and interests of the parishioners. Special Masses were celebrated all three days, with the culminating Mass of Thanksgiving on Sunday, October 7, celebrated by Bishop Odore Gendron along with Father Demers, many past and present associates, and several sons of the parish who have taken holy orders.

Since then, much has continued to take place at Infant Jesus Parish, whose pastor since 1989 has been Reverend Raymond E. Gagnon. In 1992, the school became once again a parish school, with its own locally elected school board. Within five years it was operating in the black, filled to capacity, with an enrollment (November 1999) of 365 students and a staff of 46. Improvements to the school building have included replacement of the entire roof and roof insulation, resurfacing all three staircases, renovation of the school kitchen and cafeteria, installation of a state-of-the-art computer lab, and expansion into the convent (School Annex).

At least some of these renovations have been funded by the parish's weekly bingo games, which in January 1993 were relocated from the church hall to Spartans Hall on East Hollis Street. Three times as many parishioners are needed to run the bingo; but revenues have increased ten-fold. In addition to building work, the money raised has also made it possible for the parish to meet its subsidy obligations for parishioners attending Catholic schools.

The parish grounds and buildings can boast additional changes in the past decade. The Religious Education Program has been relocated to the former convent section of the rectory building, with a lower meeting room turned into a Youth Group Room. Windows and the roof have been replaced at the convent on Crown Street, and a chair lift has been installed. More work inside the church building has seen the two former confessionals renovated into reconciliation rooms, while the room established in the 1970s has been converted into a Sunday vestry. A new organ and keyboard have been installed in the choir loft, thanks to the generosity of Mrs. Jeannette Joyal and her family, who also paid for the replacement of all the windows in the parish hall. Renovations to the church hall kitchen and restrooms, establishment of a dividing wall in the the hall and, most recently, installation of sconces along the sides of the church interior are all visible changes.

On the outside, major changes have been landscaping and an irrigation system, relocation of the statue of the Child Jesus on the rectory grounds, and the installation of two signs -- one for the Scripture quotes, the other for listing Mass hours as well as special events.

But as important as it is to be good stewards of the physical plant, the true indicator of the health and strength of Infant Jesus Parish lies elsewhere. It lies in the smiles of the children at each month's birthday Mass; in the activity, year after year, in the parish's RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) program; in the visits by pastor and parishioners to the elderly and homebound; in the faith-filled and joyful gatherings for Parish Day and the annual Workers party; in the parishioners hope-filled entrance into the Disciples in Mission program.

Our forerunners in the parish believed firmly that what they did for Infant Jesus Parish was done for the greater glory of God and not for any personal gain. That often leaves us with but a face here, a name there, organizations and committees whose memberships we don't know. All too often all we can do is wonder at what they accomplished en masse but also as individuals known to only a few besides God. And to strive to be their worthy successors.