Saint Benedict, Duluth
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Parish History
The parish of St. Benedict was established by the Archdiocese of Atlanta in July 1987, under the leadership of its founding pastor, The Reverend Joseph L. Peacock. The Archdiocese of Atlanta had purchased 13.5 acres of hilltop property on Parsons Road in north Fulton County, and thereafter sent Father Peacock to establish a parish community from the burgeoning neighborhoods in the area.
The small group of ten founding families began to meet for Sunday Mass at Epiphany Byzantine Catholic Church in Roswell. As the parish grew, a School of Religious Education was created and began to meet at Northminster Presbyterian Church in Roswell on Tuesday nights. Expansive growth soon occasioned the need for a Saturday Vigil Mass which was offered at Pleasant Hill Presbyterian Church in Duluth.
The parish was never static and continued to experience rapid growth. In 1990, the first building of the parish plant was erected at the Parsons Road site; the first Mass celebrated in the new building was the solemn Easter Vigil. The spacious new building included a worship space offering seating for more than 500, parish offices, a nursery, a 2,000 square foot gathering space and ten classrooms for the School of Religion. At the time of the August 14, 1990 blessing of the building, the parish had grown to 600 families.
Father Peacock retired from the pastorate in September 1992. He was succeeded as pastor by The Reverend Terry W. Young, who was assisted by The Reverend Ronald J. Fuchs. Father Fuchs served the parish until January 1994, when The Reverend Gregory D. Goolsby was assigned as the parish’s second parochial vicar. Father Young was named a Monsignor in December of 1994. In June of 1996, The Reverend Daniel J. Fleming was assigned to the parish as parochial vicar. Fr. Simon Assamoah became our fourth parochial vicar in January of 1998.
Under the leadership of Msgr. Young, St. Benedict grew to 2,600 families by the summer of 1995. The parish School of Religion included over 1,200 children in pre-kindergarten through Senior High. Full time ministers of Music, Elementary Religious Education, Youth Ministry, and Adult Education and Formation were added to the parish staff between 1992 and 1994 to assist the more than 8,000 members of the parish family.
In March 1995 the parish began an extensive campaign to build a new church, as well as remodel the first building to allow for several adult education areas, a new sacristy, conversion of the temporary worship space to a real parish hall and expanded administrative offices for the parish staff as well as the more than 500 volunteers who staff the various ministries and community life organizations of the parish. On February 1, 1998, the church was dedicated to the glory of God by Archbishop John Francis Donoghue.
The Church of Saint Benedict has been blessed with tremendous growth, and continues to anticipate growing well into the 21st century.