“We have come together to offer this new church and parish center to God,” Bishop O’Leary said during the dedication Mass.

At the time, the church was a mission of St. Anne Parish in Gorham, but with the North Windham community growing, Our Lady of Perpetual Help became a parish of its own in 1974. It was that milestone that the community came together to celebrate this August, on the Solemnity of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary.

“It's great to reminisce about the Church of the past but also to talk about the Church of the present and how it's so good to remind ourselves that Our Lady of Perpetual Help, Mary, the Mother of Jesus, mother of the churches, is here for us,” said Bishop James Ruggieri, who celebrated the 50th anniversary Mass. “Mary is ever willing to respond to our needs as a loving mother always does.”

The celebration brought together dozens of parishioners, some who attended the first Mass at the church 50 years ago, others new to the area.

“What I found most personally moving at the anniversary Mass was looking out at the congregation and seeing parishioners who were here in this very church 50 years ago for the Mass of dedication and also seeing so many young families in attendance and, of course, several other generations of parishioners in between.  Knowing that we will continue to leave a legacy of faith for future generations of parishioners makes me proud to be a Catholic, and I think that many of our parishioners feel the same way,” says Father Louis Phillips, pastor.

Longtime parishioners who attended the Mass and the reception that followed recalled the days before the church was built. Then, attending Mass meant gathering in the Lakeland Dance Hall, the Windham Union Parish Hall, or even the vacant Federal Supermarket.

“We went to different places to attend church, even the dance hall and the grocery store, and once in a while, we could go across the street to Saint Joseph’s College. The people were good to us. They let us come there,” says Florence Allen, a longtime parishioner. “Once in a while, my husband would drive me down to St. Hyacinth’s [in Westbrook].”

When Our Lady of Perpetual Help became a parish in 1974, Msgr. Robert Lavoie was appointed as its first pastor. He would serve there for the next 12 years.

“We were very joyful because we finally had a pastor, and we didn’t have to rely on St. Anne’s to send us a priest every weekend to celebrate. There were a lot of young families at the time in Windham, so there were a lot of people there and a lot of growth over the years,” says Greg Smith, a longtime parishioner.

Msgr. Lavoie guided the parish through a period of growth, which also included a major move. As it turned out, building the church close to Route 302 wasn’t the best idea.

“It was right next to the road, and traffic was so bad on Route 302 on a Sunday that you couldn’t hear anything in the church,” says Smith.

As a result, in 1980, the church was lifted and moved farther back on the property.

“I remember a story that Father Lavoie told me. He said he was talking to the builder who was moving it, and he said to the builder, ‘What is the biggest building you guys have ever moved?’ The builder was smoking a cigar, and he took out his cigar, and he said, ‘You’re looking at it,’” recalls Smith.

Fortunately, the move went smoothly. Along with its repositioning, the church also had its wings modified to increase capacity, and a parish hall, sacristy, and offices were added, along with a narthex connecting the areas.

Longtime parishioners say from the beginning there has been a sense of connectedness and welcome at the church, something that remains today.

“You walk through the doors and everybody is so welcoming. They make you feel so special,” says Carol Kennie, a parishioner from Standish.

“Everybody’s included. Everybody is welcome here. When you walk in the door here, you feel welcomed,” says John O’Brien, business coordinator and a parishioner for the past 20 years. “It’s the level of support and commitment and mutual love that we all have for each other. If you’re having any type of difficulty in your life, the parish is right here to support you.”

“The parish community is the most wonderful parish community that I have ever belonged to, and I have belonged to a lot of parishes. It is like a huge family. We are a family. And Father Lou is the best pastor you could ever have. He's the father of the family. He gets involved in everything with us,” says Maureen Carrellas, a parishioner from Windham.

These parishioners say Our Lady of Perpetual Help has always been a place where people get involved and help out.

“If you were there, you were supposed to do something,” says Allen.

The church has a vibrant Ladies Guild and an active Knights of Columbus council.

“It just helps your faith whenever you become active, and it’s good to share that faith with others and for them to share their faith with you. So, that motivates us, and hopefully, we motivate a few others,” says Smith, a member of Knights Council 10020.

“Nobody does everything. It is a team,” says Kennie, who is president of the Ladies Guild, as well as an extraordinary minister of holy Communion, a reader at Mass, and an altar server. “They pull what they call ‘your gifts’ out of you, and you don’t even know it. It’s like you come in, and you think you’re going to sit down, and the next thing you know, you’re running a committee, and you don’t even know how you got there.”

Those who attend Our Lady of Perpetual Help Church now have a more expansive community in which to share their gifts. In 2021, under the leadership of Father Phillips, the parish merged with St. Anne in Gorham and St. Anthony of Padua in Westbrook, remaining under the patronage of St. Anthony.

“We marked the 50th anniversary of a beloved church building, but what we celebrated was a parish family milestone,” says Father Phillips. “What we recognized and celebrated was the Church as the people of God, as was evident in so many parishioners in attendance at the Mass and reception who usually attend Mass at one of our other churches: St. Hyacinth or St. Anne.”