St. Anthony
39221 Highway 13
Highbridge, WI 54846
Phone: 715-274-3701
Year parish was established: 1898
Number of households: 34
Parochial administrator: Fr. Simon Reddy Boyapati
Weekend Masses: Sunday 7:30 a.m.
Describe your faith community
“The faith community of St. Anthony’s was established in the 1880s. Our parish was first served by the Franciscan priests who journeyed to the area from Ashland by train. Baptisms were recorded as early as 1894, the church was built by community members in 1898 and established as a mission church in 1900.
Over the years there have been many improvements to the church, choir loft, and the basement. The story goes that the women of the parish threatened to dig the basement themselves if no one else would.
The priest at the time was Precious Blood Fr. Graf. He took over the project, doing much of the work himself. Other improvements are a new entry and a remodeled interior.
Active lay participation and leadership have enabled this tiny parish to maintain its identity as a vibrant community within its cluster of neighboring parishes, sustaining the generosity, adaptability and self-sufficiency of its founders.
We look forward to the future as we continue to come together as a family in Christ.”
“When visitors come to our parish …
“… they will feel very welcome and treated as members of our faith community.
After Sunday Mass they are invited to join our church family for coffee and conversation.”
In what ways does your parish proclaim the Gospel with its actions?
“The parish participates in many outreach projects through Faith in Action, working with the local food shelf, donating handmade quilts to various charities and participating in the Spiritual Adoption Program.”
What is something about your parish most people might not know?
“We have a history of adult faith formation dating back to the late 1960s, when guest speakers were invited to speak to our members or movies and filmstrips were rented from the Christian Renewal Center.
The tradition continues today with monthly faith sharing from October through March.”
