Eighty years ago there was no Catholic community in the immediate area and the land was tenanted principally by industrious Quaker farmers. However, after the building boom at the end of the 1920s, the number of Catholic families in the area made it mandatory that a parish be established.
In 1930, the parish of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament was officially formed, with Reverend James Dolan as pastor. Mass was held in the clubroom of the Matowac Democrat Club and later in the Victory Movie Theatre on 32nd Avenue.
On October 19, 1931, one year from the day of the first Mass, the consummation of a years strenuous work was commemorated by the solemn blessing and dedication of the beautiful new Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament Church.
The parish grew rapidly and two curates aided Father Dolan with parish work. In May 1941 Bishop Molloy dedicated the new rectory and, one month later, Reverend Charles Reilly was assigned as the new pastor. After the end of World War II, Father Reilly dedicated himself to building a parish school.
Under the leadership of Father Thomas Masterson, who had a gift for fund-raising, the parish ran bazaars and raffles to help fund the school. In October of 1949, ground was broken and the school was officially opened in February of 1951, with and enrollment of 428 children for the first 5 grades.
The parish continued to flourish under the pastorate of Reverend Martin F. Tully who succeeded Msgr. Reilly in 1967. Father Tully devoted himself to carrying out the work of parish renewal outlined by the Second Vatican Council. This work was continued by Msgr. Francis B. Donnelly, who succeeded Father Tully as pastor in 1976.
Upon Msgr. Donnellys retirement, Msgr. George T. Deas took charge. For eighteen years Msgr. Deas concentrated on parish outreach. Many programs designed to serve the needs of our parishioners were started under his auspices. Msgr. Vincent A. Keane became pastor in January 1997. He won the hearts of the parishioners with his humble spirituality. Msgr. Keane retired from active parish work in the Spring of 2001. Msgr. John E. Mahoney became pastor in June 2001, and worked tirelessly to keep the parish of Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament an exciting, vibrant community in faith.
Father Bob Whelan was appointed pastor in July 2008 and is working diligently with parishioners to build upon the solid foundation which previous pastors and generations have established. Together, OLBS Parish will continue to thrive and build up the kingdom of God here in Bayside.