The long-awaited golden age for the parish had arrived at last, beginning in 1955 and culminating with the building of the second church in 1965.
It was the unique confluence of many factors. Fr. Carter’s skills and foresight, combined with the post-war baby-and-immigration boom that resulted in an economic surge and an explosion of veteran housing in the area.
Parish collections now hit its peak, generating a surplus of around $17,000 annually. With the archbishop’s blessing, Fr. Sutton and his vigilant wardens seized the day and prepared to build, finally!
At the same time, there was a change of curates. When newly ordained Fr. John Baxter arrived at Holy Family Parish in September 1959, it was the best of times.
New curates usually were assigned the thankless task of overseeing the altar servers. There were about 18 at most when Fr. Baxter arrived. Other than serving mass, there was little else for the lads to do.
Fr. Baxter started making parish visits, a standard practice at the time. Fr. Sutton suggested he begin east of Christophe-Columbe Street, where the new housing units for veterans had been built, home to lots of young families. So, Fr. John set to work.
As a result, within five years the number of altar servers grew to 70, but the young curate added a twist. In addition to assisting at mass, the servers met regularly for sports, often at Jarry Park, as there were no local facilities or organized community sports such as exist today, to keep the boys active, interested and engaged.
Meanwhile, other groups were thriving, including Youth-in-Action, which enrolled about 100 elementary girls and boys and was operating out of the school.