On Sept. 15, thousands gathered to celebrate the newly renovated St. Peter Canisius Church which has been renamed Our Lady of Guadalupe. This is the first major expansion of the church since the 1950s.
The $5.5 million expansion was driven by the church’s rapid growth. Its limited seating capacity forced families to kneel outside during Mass, according to the church’s pastor, Father Edgar Villanueva.
“The people that came to worship didn’t have enough space. The capacity for the church was like 220 people, and we were having at least three times that number. So almost 500 people had to be outside or in a classroom, watching the Mass through a TV, through a monitor,” Villanueva said.
The church’s condition was also a concern for Villanueva. On stormy days, rain dripped from the roof. The church had no pews, just folding chairs, and the carpet was likely 30 years old.
“There was no parking lot. And when we had rain, when we had snow, people had to walk on the dirt,” he said.
The church was established in the 1950s on land donated by local benefactor Paul Gepford, originally serving Irish immigrants. As the Hispanic population grew, the parish adapted and started offering bilingual services.
At the age of 19, Villanueva, who is from Sinaloa, Mexico, walked into St. Albert the Great Catholic Church in Reno for Mass with Monsignor Elwood James LaVoy.
“He asked me, ‘Do you know Sun Valley?’ And I was new here, so I said, ‘No, I don’t.’ And he said, ‘Well, you need to find out, because one day you are going to be a priest and you are going to build a church in Sun Valley for your people,’” Villanueva said.
LaVoy’s words became a prophecy. Villanueva was appointed pastor of the Sun Valley church in 2016. To expand the church, Villanueva engaged parishioners in fundraising, which included events like a kermes - a fair with food and entertainment - and a jaripeo or Mexican-style rodeo.
The congregation raised more than $800,000, the remainder came from private donors, including Tom Dolan, owner of Dolan Auto Group.
Dolan’s personal investment and outreach to friends in the business community demonstrated a deep commitment to the church’s mission.
Dolan devoted his time to the project and formed a special bond with the church. He was scheduled to give a speech during the grand opening, but he passed away on Sept.12 - three days before the unveiling.
“I believe that without him, without his contribution, without his support, we wouldn’t have been able to build this church. He was just the person behind this project,” Villanueva said.
Dolan was involved with every step of the process - from the building design to getting permits, Villanueva said.
Dolan chose the color of the paint on the walls and the design of the pews, Villanueva said. Currently, only 10% of the original structure remains. And now the capacity is close to 800 people.
“We didn't have a confessional in the Catholic Church, we didn't have a baptismal font before, for all these years, now we have a baptismal font so children and people can be baptized in the name of Jesus,” Villanueva said.
The renovation was a dream they always had but didn't know how to make it happen, said Raquel Guerra who has attended the church for 15 years.
The last few Masses they've celebrated have been so full again that people have to stay outside, Guerra said in Spanish.
But Villanueva said that's good and spoke to the need families have for God's presence.
“We have groups of support, we have Bible study and sometimes it's just a challenge to find the space for them. And so that's probably something that we have to look at in the future,” he said.
