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Mission Statement

"Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations; baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you until the end of the age." - Matthew 28:19-20

St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish

History

Since the creation of the diocese of Lafayette in Indiana by Pope Pius XII in 1944, Catholics in Hamilton County were cared for by parishes in Cicero, Lebanon and Noblesville. In 1955, however, Bishop Bennett foresaw the potential for growth in the Carmel area and established Our Lady of Mt. Carmel Parish to serve Washington and Clay Townships of Hamilton County.

In 1981, further growth in the community of Carmel led Bishop Raymond Gallagher to issue a decree establishing the parish of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.

Fr. Leo Piguet was named the first pastor and served the parish for seventeen years. Upon his retirement in 1998, Fr. Ted Rothrock was named pastor and is serving the spiritual needs of the parish with Fr. Brendan Okechukwa Mbagwu, Parochial Vicar, Fr. Melvin Bennett, Senior Associate Pastor, and Fr. Brian Doerr, Vocations Director for the Lafayette Diocese. Click here for a short biography of each of our priests and click here to view our beloved Fr. Fred Schroeder's memorial page.

Beginning with only 254 households in July, 1981, there were 885 registered households in July, 1986 and 1775 households by October, 2006. Growth is expected to continue.

Located on the corner of Haverstick Road and 106th Street, in southeastern Carmel, the building was dedicated on October 20, 1985, by Bishop William Higi.

The Parish Facility

The parish facility is set on 33 acres surrounded by trees and Blue Woods Creek. The layout of the parish facility is a cluster similar to many farm buildings in Indiana. The simplicity of the design blends with the setting of an agricultural community. The driveway opens with a boulevard from Haverstick Road and gently guides you into the campus to the church. Looking across the pond, a lighted grotto with a statue of Our Lady and a waterfall adds to the beauty of the campus. The waterfall was donated by the Women's Club.

The beautiful statue of Our Lady was donated by a parish family in honor of their parents, Mr. and Mrs. Larry Ricci and Mr. and Mrs. Donald  Burkhart. Click here for a larger view of the Grotto

To complete an Eagle Scout project in 2003, Ben Blotsky took on the building of the grotto around the statue, which is set off beautifully by the night lighting. Another Eagle Scout project by Jim Merchum, is a Rosary Walk along the west parking lot ending at the Grotto. It depicts the twenty mysteries of the Rosary. Thanks to the many donors of the projects, this makes a wonderful area for a quiet spiritual walkway on our grounds.

The low walls extending from the front of the church building form friendly arms of welcome to all people. For person with disabilities, there is a ramp at the front entrance and a specially designed covered entrance at the rear of the building. Reserved parking spaces are available at both entrances.

The completion of the new parking lots in 2002 around the church building provides an additional 440 spaces to our existing lots, and the new lighted drive through the parish campus exiting on 106th street completes our need for a second exit. Construction of the Parish Rectory, positioned in the wooded northeast corner of the campus was completed in 2003 giving the priests a much needed on-site home.

The construction of our Parish Life Center located on the east side of the church began in August of 2004 and was completed in the latter part of 2005. The church building itself is divided into several areas. The Commons, the Nave, the Mary Chapel, the Blessed Sacrament Chapel with Confessionals, the Day Chapel, the Wake Chapel, the West Wing, the Administrative Wing, the Social Hall, the Parlor, and the Nursery.

The Commons

The Commons is a gathering space that encourages friendly interaction of the community before and after liturgy. This area allows access to all other areas of the building without ever having to go outside. The Commons is large enough to hold 850 people standing; room enough for gatherings preceding and following weddings, funerals, baptisms, and special liturgies such as the Easter Vigil.  Click here for a larger view.

The many varied ministries of the parish community publicize their activities in the Commons before and after Sunday liturgies, making this area the "information center" of the building.

The Baptismal Font 

Water is a major Christian symbol and the ever flowing water in this font reminds us of life and of our baptism. The central location in the Commons is both symbolic and practical. It is the central axis of the facility and relates to all we do in the parish.

The Nave (top)  

The design of the main worship space was purposely kept simple so that it needs people to complete it. The seating arrangement allows the assembly to participate more fully in the liturgy.

The Stations of the Cross plaques, placed along the north wall of the Nave, are bronze and were designed by the late Gerald Bonnette of Afton, Minnesota. The wood on the ceilings of the nave and chapels is fir. The doors of the three prayer spaces are white oak, which identifies these as special places for worship.

Our new crucifix is a unique creation of artist/sculptor Wiktor Szostalo. Made possible by the gift of a single donor family, this piece of sacred art was installed and dedicated on September 14, 2003, the Feast of the Triumph of the Holy Cross. Both crucified and resurrected, both ancient and modern, the Christ figure in this piece of sacred art is both evocative and compelling in its form and design, taking a center position in the sanctuary between the ambo, altar, and the presider's chair. Made chiefly of stainless steel with colored glass, this corpus stands over ten feet high and weighs over 800 pounds. The completion of this piece was the result of almost five years of research, design and production. We are grateful to the donor family for making this sacred art possible. Click here too see a larger view of the crucifix.  The lighting features for the corpus were made possible through the generosity of the Thomas Linnen family as a memorial to Mary J. Linnen.

The Blessed Sacrament Chapel (top) 

The Church has had an ancient tradition of reserving the Blessed Sacrament. The purpose of this reservation is to provide Communion to the sick and to the devotion of the faithful.

This chapel has a seating capacity of approximately 12 people and is open to meet the spiritual needs of the faithful 24 hours a day. Located in the Blessed Sacrament chapel is the tabernacle. It is also made of white oak and the interior is lined with teak. Our tabernacle is surrounded by pillars of granite that match the altar, ambo, and chair of the major worship space. The sanctuary light was donated by a parish family.

The Confessionals

Two individual reconciliation chapels (rooms) are located on the right side of the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. These two confessionals provide the opportunity for the traditional celebration of sacrament or the more familiar "face-to-face" confession.

The Day Chapel (top)

Daily Mass is celebrated in this chapel, as well as small weddings and funeral, music rehearsals, Children's Liturgy of the Word, Rite of Christian Initiation for Adults, Communion Services, Morning and Evening Prayer
and various meetings.  The furnishings in this multi-functional space are all moveable for greater flexibility.

The Mary Chapel (top)

This small chapel is located at the northeast corner of the Nave. It provides an intimate prayer space with Vigil candles available for use. A new  sculpture depicting the Blessed Mother as "Our Lady of Perpetual Help" was commissioned through the generosity of a family in the parish. This new addition to the religious art in the church was fashioned by Wiktor Szostalo. Click here to see a larger image of the sculpture.

The Wake Chapel (top)

Originally designed as an area to accommodate the casket for wakes prior to funerals, this area has become multifunctional, being used for preparation for weddings, small meetings, and various educational activities. Our history has shown that families are better served by placing the casket on the Sacristy side of the Commons, giving more space for visitation.  Our beloved Senior Associate, Fr. Fred Schroeder was waked here.

The West Wing (top) 

The West Wing houses the working sacristy, vesting sacristy, the Parlor, the Nursery, and the Wake Chapel on the lower level. The upper level currently houses additional offices for the parish staff.

The Administration Wing (top) 

The administration wing houses the offices of the pastoral staff, a reception area, resource room and office workroom. The second floor was designed as a multipurpose room for meetings and educational activities. An elevator makes the space accessible to all.

The Social Hall (top)

The social hall in our building provides a space for large gatherings, with the added convenience of a commercial grade kitchen. The capacity of the room is 175 for a sit-down dinner. Currently the social hall is used for continental breakfast on Sunday, parish dinners, meetings and various educational and social functions. A paired panel operable partition has been installed to accommodate two meetings being held at one time.

The Parlor (top) 

The parlor is a small room in which grieving families may relax, brides may prepare for weddings, or small meetings can take place.

The Nursery (top) 

This is a carpeted area with large windows, toys and furniture designed for young children during 9:30 a.m. Mass, it serves as a "co-op" nursery so little ones can be left in safety - not far from their parents. Parents of participating children take turns with child care.

The Parish Life Center (top)

This 24,000 square foot building houses a full size gymnasium with a stage which will be a hub for our athletic and social activities. Nine classrooms are situated around the perimeter of the building. Four of the classrooms are for Pre-School students and the additional five classrooms, two of which have a removable wall to become one large room, provide space for our children's religious education, adult formation, parish meetings and social activities. In addition to the above, the Parish Life Center's 1,100 square foot basement will provide storage space for the parish's equipment.

For the centerpiece of the PLC Contribution Panels located in the main hall of the Parish Life Center, Fr. Ted commissioned Carmel artist, Karen Glanders, to design and create a beautiful 3 foot by 6 foot mosaic, titled “The Holy Family.”  Karen is a parishioner of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton as is her husband, Geoffrey and her three sons, Eric, Sam, and Charles.  Click here for a larger view of the Mosaic. 

Materials Used

The brick used throughout the buildings is Alwine White brick from Pennsylvania; a handmade brick of red clay hand rolled in white lime. The exterior brick will eventually take on a warm weathered look while the interior brick will be maintenance free. The altar, ambo, baptismal font, and pillars for the tabernacle are constructed of Carnelian granite from Milbank, South Dakota. The presider's chair is constructed from the two major materials in the worship space, Carnelian granite and the red oak of the benches.