Larchwood, Rock Rapids parishes prepare for merger

By DAWN PROSSER
Director of Communications
 
Leadership from Holy Name Parish in Rock Rapids and St. Mary Parish in Larchwood and Father Sunny Dominic, pastor, have been meeting for several months in preparation for a proposed parish merger as of July 1, 2025.
 
Due to the continued reduction in registered Catholics, participation in the sacraments and the number of priests, diocesan parish groupings are being restructured to accommodate these changes. Deacon Mark Prosser, director of pastoral planning and Bishop Walker Nickless’s chief of staff, asked Father Dominic to work with his leadership to canonically merge the Larchwood and Rock Rapids parishes with parish records and administration centered in Larchwood.
 
The pastor explained after initial guidance from Deacon Prosser, Father Dominic created a committee with leadership from each parish. Recruiting two directors plus one representative each from both Holy Name and St. Mary, Father Dominic formed the “merge committee” last fall to help guide the process.
 
“I thought at the beginning to simply call a town hall meeting,” the pastor said. “Then I called the directors.”
 
He explained by educating a small group of parish leaders, the leadership group could assist in informing their fellow parishioners as the planning continued.
 
“Shortly after our initial meeting with Father and (Deacon) Mark Prosser from the diocese, we knew eventually the word would get out,” explained Paul Konechne, one of the Holy Name directors. “We put a brief notice in the bulletin … That was our approach so people were aware something was happening.”
 
Shelly McCarty, lay director for St. Mary Parish, said the leadership initially received a few comments and concerns about a future merging of the two parishes.
 
“People are wondering what is happening and how is it going to be (afterwards),” she said.
 
As questions arose regarding parish finances with a canonical merger, the leadership committee met in early January with Royce Ranniger, diocesan director of administration and finance, and Deb Conley, director of parish accounting. The pastor and parish leaders said the meeting with diocesan staff was very helpful to understand how a merged parish would move forward.
 Above, St. Mary Larchwood. Top photo Holy Name, Rock Rapids.“There were no surprises and we got some further clarification on the guidelines,” Konechne said, noting Ranniger and Conley were able to answer specific questions from the committee. “The meeting was really productive and both parishes felt confident we could move forward without any major hurdles.” 
Konechne and Larchwood lay director Don Burwicz both made brief announcements at the weekend Masses Jan. 11 and 12. They had similar presentations explaining how the merger would work and what that might mean to the parishioners in Larchwood and Rock Rapids.
 
“The good news for our parishes is that there will be no changes to the Mass schedule, facilities or personnel because of the merger,” from the directors’ presentation. “This will require that both parishes be merged into one business entity with a new parish name. We will mostly operate the same as we do today.”
 
The leadership team supplemented the presentations with comprehensive bulletin announcements regarding the merger. Response from the parishioners was relatively quiet, the leaders said.
 
“As soon as people knew that nothing was really changing as far as Mass times and churches both being open and available it settled a lot of people’s concerns and nerves,” McCarty explained, noting the two parishes already share a bookkeeper and administrative assistant, which would not change.
 
Parishioners were advised that in the near future, parish gatherings will be scheduled to provide more information and allow parishioners to ask questions of the leadership committee and diocesan staff.
 
Parishioners were asked to submit potential names for a newly-formed parish. Three names will be selected to forward to Bishop Nickless for a final selection.
 
“We set out some suggestion baskets and announcements in the bulletin,” the Holy Name director said, pointing out it offers the chance for parishioners to be involved in the process.
 
Parishioners are aware of pastoral planning activities including parish mergers throughout the diocese and other parts of the country, McCarty acknowledged.
 
“Most people are aware of what’s going on (in the church). Look at your priests, the number is continuing to become less and less. Something definitely has to change,” she said.
 
The new parish name will be selected prior to the anticipated July 2025 merger decree. Father Dominic explained the civil merger of two parishes will most likely be completed in early 2026.