Life at St. Ita's
From its earliest days in the Guild Hall, St. Ita’s has had a rich and diverse community culture. In addition to worship, the parish hosted a variety of events to enrich and help the community of Edgewater, like Bingo Wednesday, which raised money for the parish.
School Life at St. Ita's
The parish also served as a center of education. The parish school’s first class had sixty-five students, but enrollment would grow to 542 students by 1909. By 1954, the school had grown so much that St. Ita’s priest, Rev. Gerard C. Picard, inaugurated a fundraising campaign to expand the school further. The parish raised these funds through a variety of dinners around holidays like Oktoberfest and St. Patrick’s Day and other special auction events. In addition to classes, the new school sponsored numerous clubs and athletic opportunities like football, cheerleading, and basketball.
The Chimes of St. Ita's
All of the church’s activities were announced in its regular newsletter, The Chimes. Beginning in 1956, The Chimes ran until 2012 and featured different events, advertisements, and masses that the church offered.
Events at St. Ita's
St. Ita’s continues to have an active social life today. In addition to regular pancake breakfasts after mass, the parish hosts monthly game nights for young adults, coffee socials, crafting groups, and other social activities for parishioners. These weekend activities seem to keep a sense of community among attendees of St. Ita Church even in the broader context of a larger parish. The church is now also home to the parish school, St. Thomas of Canterbury Catholic School.