To lead his new flock, Bishop Beavan appointed Rev. William E. Ryan from St. Paul’s. Father Ryan came from a distinguished and religious family in Cranston, RI. He was educated in public schools until entering first St. Charles and then St. Mary’s Seminaries in Maryland. He was ordained in Emmitsburg, Maryland in June 1894.
He started his parish work in St. Jerome’s Holyoke, and was loaned out to a Bayonne, NJ parish for a few months. Subsequently he served in Holy Rosary Parish, Holyoke, and St Charles, Pittsfield, before being sent to St. Pauls’ in Worcester, MA.
Fr. Ryan served at St. Paul’s for ten years and was very popular. He was well acquainted with many parishioners who eventually became the back-bone of the newly formed Blessed Sacrament Parish.
Fr. Ryan preached his farewell sermon at al the Masses in St. Paul’s on Sunday, June 23, 1912.
Learning that they were to lose him, the congregation was moved. Men and women sobbed as though they had lost a relative. Even Father William Goggin was visibly affected at the last Mass when he announced the boundaries of the new parish and the departure of his curate. He spoke of their many years of service together and referred to Fr. Ryan as a bother.
The first Mass for the new parish was celebrated in a vacant store, known as the Middlemas Storage Shed, at 260 Park Avenue, Sunday morning on June 30, 1912. There was a second Mass at 10:00 AM. The two masses were attended by about six hundred people.
At the second Mass, Fr. Ryan was presented with $4700 to be used toward the erection of a new church. The parishioners contributed $1500 and the remainder was a gift from the people of St. Paul’s as the result of a collection taken up the previous Sunday.
The store front church was so small that “The Catholic Messenger” in a retrospective article in 1936 said: “the tiny building could not hold all of those who wanted to hear Mass, so they knelt outside in the dust and blazing sun, when it rained or snowed, the faithful who knelt outside were out of luck, but observers remarked how remarkable it was they stayed.”
The decision to build a structure combining both church and school was mandated to Fr. Ryan by Bishop Beavan. The bishop, acting in accordance with the 1884 Baltimore Council’s commitment to parochial education, had been struggling with resistance from strong willed older pastors. Particularly in Worcester, pastors and laity alike were very satisfied with the public schools, perhaps because so many of the teachers in them were Irish Catholics.
Consequently the bishop was forced to exert extra influence on the younger pastors.
Ground was broken for the new temporary home of the parish in August, 1912 by the McDermott Brothers, builders who were also parishioners. The new building, combining a church on the first floor with classroom space on the second floor, was dedicated by Bishop Beavan on October 5, 1913. Fr. Ryan thought that including in the ceremony the pastors from the three adjoining parishes, whose populations had been tapped to make up Blessed Sacrament, would be a good idea. Consequently, assisting Bishop Beavan were Rev. Dr. William H. Goggin of St. Paul’s as celebrant, Rev. Dr. Daniel H. O’Neil of St. Peter’s as deacon and Rev. James Donahue of Immaculate Conception as sub-deacon. Sunday night vespers were sung in the church for the first time followed by Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament.
As the west side continued to grow, the parish increased in numbers. Fr. Ryan foresaw the need for a larger, permanent church. To this end he secured an option on the Dr. W. H. Nason estate (also known as the Perkins estate) on Pleasant Street at the foot of Newton Hill.
When the parishioners became aware of Father’s plans, they eagerly participated in many concerts, lawn parties and other fund-raisers. With heavy bills to meet and a large debt to pay, the long list of contributors grew. In six years, there was finally enough cash in hand to start.
The Nason property was bought, and John W. Donohue of Springfield was selected as the architect. Around this time the property which adjoined the Nason land on the east was purchased. “The Catholic Messenger” reported on October 13, 1922: “A tract of 14,000 square feet of land at 551 Pleasant Street was bought last week by Father Ryan from the Ann Robinson Estate. The land adjoined the Nason Estate which is to serve as the site for the new church and the new tract was found necessary as plans fo the erection of the new edifice were being completed.” The rectory was built on this site by the McDermott Brothers of Worcester.
At about this time the frame building, located where the church is now, was moved to the rear of the planned church and that became the residence of the Sisters of Mercy when they came from St. Paul’s to run the school. Excavation for the estimated $300,000 Blessed Sacrament Church started September 14, 1922. By December, 1923 the foundations had been laid and the grounds put into shape for the winter. The building commenced in the summer of 1924.
By Late 1925, even though the completion date was set for 1926, Fr. Ryan felt that the anxious parishioners could plan to celebrate Christmas Mass in the still unfinished building. Stained glass windows and a permanent organ and alter had yet to be installed, but a temporary alter and organ were in place for the occasion.
Long before the hour of the first Mass, the church was crowded with worshipers from here and many surrounding parishes. There were five Masses on that Christmas morning. Charlie Moriarty served the first Mass and his mother was the first to receive Communion. The church was decorated with flowers and evergreens. Special music was sung under the direction of Miss Mary Hehir.
“The Catholic Messenger” reported on Fr. Ryan’s sermon on that Christmas: “The pastor alluded feeling to the way God has blessed the parish in the work of erecting the new church, and he thanked his parishioners from the bottom of his heart, he said, for their loyalty and devotion. ‘Without your cordial cooperation, my dear people, this beautiful church would not be here today.
The formal dedication took place on Sunday, June 6 1926. The most Reverend Thomas Mary O’Leary officiated at the impressive ceremony.
The local press at the time reported: “The dedication marked the culmination of fourteen years of effort by Reverend William E. Ryan, pastor of the church and his parishioners. At the time the parish was started fourteen years ago the first mas was said in a little shop on Park Avenue. The beautiful new structure is a fitting tribute to their unflagging efforts. More than twelve hundred parishioners gathered for the dedicatory exercise held in front of the church, followed by a pontifical solemn high mass celebrated by the bishop.“
“Escorted from the rectory by forty members of the Bishop O’Reilly Assembly, Fourth Degree Knights of Columbus, a procession of altar boys bearing lighted candles and a large delegation of priests, the bishop proceeded from the rectory to the church where he donned his vestments. He was escorted to the platform in front of the church where the dedicatory exercises were held.“
“After the sealing of the parish documents in the corner stone, prayers were said, the pontifical psalms were chanted and the ceremonies completed. The procession, headed by the cross bearer and acolytes, followed by the priests in double file and then the bishop with cope and mitre, marched around the exterior of the church, the bishop sprinkling the walls with holy water.“
“In his dedicatory sermon the bishop congratulated Father Ryan and the parishioners on their work in the building up the parish and erecting the new edifice. ‘Law and order could never be preserved were we without churches.’ he conduced. Reverend Father Ryan in a brief address told of the early struggles of the parish. ‘Fourteen years ago in the month of June, I celebrated the first mass of the parish in little shop on Park Avenue, where we remained for nine months. In the summer we roasted and in the winter we froze but at last we have a church were we can enter and worship in comfort.’ ”
“Special Music was rendered by the Blessed Sacrament Choir assisted by a string quartet under direction of William A. Farrell, organist and choir director. In the afternoon at 3:30 the bishop confirmed a class of nearly 200 children and adults.”
The permanent pipe organ was installed by the Skinner Organ Company of Boston just prior to the Christmas in 1928. The organ first pealed out at the 11:00 AM Mass that Christmas accompanied by fifty voices with special vocal and instrumental soloists.
Funds for the organ were raised through concerts given by the parish. One was played at Mechanics Hall in February, 1928 by William A. Gaylord, a noted organ expert of the time.
The grand new church was more like a cathedral rather than a simple parish church. In keeping with this grandeur, Blessed Sacrament has been the scene of several ordinations, the first being Rev. William Stuart Shea, son of Mary M. Shea of Commodore Road. Rev. Shea graduated from Louvain University in Belgium in 1929 and was granted permission to be ordained at home. The event took place precisely the same day that his classmates ere ordained in Belgium.
The second ordination during Father Ryan’s tenure took place on July 10, 1932 when three local seminarians were ordained. Bishop O’Leary ordained Rev. Leo Shea, son of Mr. and Mrs. Dennis Shea of Southbridge Street, John Lucey, son of Mr. and Mrs. John M. Lucey of Monroe Ave, and Rev. Joseph Carey, son of Mr. and Mrs. Maurice Carey of Beaver Street. On July 19, 1936, the church was again used for an ordination. That year, Arthur J. Faucher, son of Mrs. Mary Faucher of Paine Street and John P. Farnon, son of Mr. and Mrs. James O. Farnon of Vernon street along with two other seminarians from the region were ordained. Most recently, Rev. Joseph J. Jurgulonis and Rev. Gerald F. Amyot were ordained on May 11, 1973.
Father Ryan’s predictions of major growth came true by the time the new church was completed. His parish had grown to number 3000 with 450 Sunday School students.
At this time the former church was used for Sunday school and as a parish hall. Soon the Sisters of Mercy arrived to finish the work of reshaping the building into an adequate school, which opened in September 1926 with 210 students. The first principal and superior was Sister Mary Michael Callahan, who maintained that position until 1944.
In November of 1926, “The Catholic Messenger” reported that the new convent for the Sisters of Mercy was occupied for the first time. The parents of students in the newly-formed Blessed Sacrament School gathered to give a musical in Alhambra Hall “to secure funds with which to furnish the new convent.”.
On May 26, 1970 the pastor, Monsignor Haddad, with the principals of the tree schools staffed by the sisters of Mercy, Blessed Sacrament, St. Paul’s and Sacred Heart met with Rev. John Thomas, superintendent of the Catholic Schools, Father Martin Donahue, Bishop Harrington, and Mother Mary Victoria to discuss the future of these schools.
During the following year a proposal was made that Holy Name, St. Paul’s and Blessed Sacrament be merged with Our Lady of the Angels. This proposal was not immediately approved by the Blessed Sacrament Parish Council, but by 1974 the council realized the need to close the school due to extensive repairs and renovations needed in at a time of declining enrollment and increased costs.
The school and convent were vacated on July 13, 1974 after serving the parish for forty-eight years.
When asked to remember a few highlights from Blessed Sacrament School, the sisters pointed to a few dates:
May 22, 1965 when the first Confirmation class received the sacrament using the “New Liturgy”.
May of 1967 when Grades One through Four were taught to square dance by Sr. Mary Consilii and gave a recital for the parents.
September of 1967 when the Sisters appeared for the first time in their modified habits.
One of the most publicized events which took place at Blessed Sacrament School occurred on Feburary 16, 1967. As winds gusted to fifty miles per hour just as recess ended, a one hundred pound sheet metal chimney cap crashed into the school yard. Sara Mullaney, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Paul V. Mullaney, was struck by the cap. Christina Earley, Sheila McCready, Ann Marie McCarthy, Elizabeth Kelleher, and Kathleen Early were also injured, none of them seriously. Although, the Mullaney child was hospitalized.
By 1932, the parish had grown to 4,486 members, so large that a new parish was organized on August 2, 1936. Much of the western section of the parish was taken to form a new parish named Christ the King. “The Catholic Messenger” said on Saturday, August 22, 1936, “It is only 24 years since Father Ryan established Blessed Sacrament. There are 5 masses at Blessed Sacrament and they are usually overcrowded. Worshipers may be found kneeling behind the back pews and the choir gallery is crowed with others.”
Father Ryan accomplished many things as pastor of Blessed Sacrament Parish. The building of the church, the rectory, and the founding of the school gave his parishioners a great sense of pride in their parish. Those who were among the first parishioners fostered a sense of establishment and “rootedness” for the members yet to come
When Fr. Ryan died in 1941, his parishioners gave hi a very special tribute. They made arrangements to have this beloved and respected first pastor laid to rest on the church grounds directly in front of this beautiful stone church. The parishioners erected an impressive headstone engraved: “In loving memory of Rev. William E. Ryan, Founder and First Pastor of the Church of the Blessed Sacrament. Born 2/2/1861. Ordained 6/22/1894. Died 1/20/1941.”