In June, 1958, the Most Reverend Victor J. Reed, bishop of the Diocese of Oklahoma City and Tulsa, gave Rev. Ross the task of building a new parish in north Oklahoma City. The parish was to be named St. Eugene, honoring Pope St. Eugene I, who served as Supreme Pontiff of the Roman Catholic Church 654-657, the patron saint of the late Bishop Eugene J. McGuinness, the previous Bishop of the Diocese of Oklahoma City and Tulsa.
Since then, the parish has grown from the original 50 families to over 1,200 with a total enrollment, including children, of some 4,500 parishioners.
The Parish is still dedicated to the children God has given to its care. But the first small school in "temporary frame buildings" has grown into the Catholic School of St. Eugene with over 300 students housed in a new $2 million building.
But there is more to St. Eugene than the new school.
The original parish had only five families over 50 years old but the current parish roles include 900 plus seniors, all eligible to be active in the St. Eugene Seniors. On the other end of the spectrum , St. Eugene has some 900 plus young, unmarried adults, and provides activities and spiritual outreach for this vital group.
The demographics of St. Eugene truly reflect a metropolitan area, including the seniors and the young adults and everyone in between. St. Eugene has always had an extremely active laity. Assisting Father Jacobi are Rev. Ross, Deacon Bill Bawden and Deacon Alejandro Randolph, a professional full-time staff, a dedicated parish-elected parish council and financial committee and literally hundreds of lay ministers and volunteers.
A full calendar of meetings and other organizations takes a great deal of space. St. Eugene has had five additions dedicated by five successive bishops (archbishops). The original church and school dedicated by Bishop Reed; a new Community Center dedicated in 1974 by Archbishop John F. Quinn; and an enlarged Fellowship Hall (gymnasium) dedicated by archbishop Charles A. Salatka in 1978. The new school opened in the fall of 1997.
Over the years, St. Eugene has had many dedicated pastors. As the parish prayerfully enters its 51st year, it anticipates the design and building of a new church.