Father William Hickey

CUMMING--Father William Hickey, administrator of St. Brendan’s Mission forming off of the Church of the Good Shepherd, is busy preparing for the mission’s first Mass, which will be held June 6 at South Forsyth Middle School at 10 a.m.

Father Hickey said that St. Brendan’s is expected to draw people not only from Good Shepherd in Cumming, which has 1,400 registered families, but also from the Church of St. Benedict in Duluth and St. Thomas Aquinas Church in Alpharetta. “The support of the other pastors has been really encouraging,” Father Hickey said. “Their willingness to help has been very inspiring.”

Father Hickey said that he has been working on preparing the liturgy. Registration forms will be sent out in the next few weeks. “We will have a 10 a.m. Mass each week,” he said. “Hopefully our community will grow from there.”

Though the middle school, located on the corner of Old Atlanta and Sharon roads, will have seating for 300, Father Hickey expects to have at least 500 in attendance at the first Mass.

Plans have not been made as of yet to build a church, but 28 acres have been purchased on Shiloh Road. Father Hickey said religious education classes will begin in September of 2000.

Father Hickey said he is excited about “starting from scratch.” “It’s great to see the excitement of the people who are just waiting for our doors to be opened,” he said. “We’re looking forward to greeting all of the people.”

For more information about St. Brendan’s, contact Good Shepherd Church at (770) 887-9861.