St. Edmunds Building Fund

St. Edmunds Catholic Church, located in the town of Ranchester, WY, is seeking funding support for building a new facility to serve the needs of a growing Catholic community in a very rural area. We are a mission church of Holy Name Catholic Church in Sheridan, WY; St. Edmunds Catholic Church is incorporated as a separate entity. We serve the rural communities of Ranchester, Dayton and Parkman, in the Tongue River Valley, with a combined population around 2000.

The church facilities are limited in size and configuration, hampering our ability to minister to current and prospective parishioners. The current church was built in 1948 and has a capacity of approximately 95 people, which is less than our current number of registered parishioners. Our parish has grown by 11 new family units in the last there years. The parish house, moved from Monarch, WY in 1954, is located on the same property. It provides an office, a small meeting space, limited classroom space for Faith Formation classes and has a single bathroom. The church and parish house are not adequately handicapped accessible and there is not a restroom or running water in the church building. The crowded sanctuary discourages attendance at liturgy and lack of a larger social space limits our opportunities to gather for funerals, weddings, youth groups and other ministries. Simply put, both facilities are in substandard condition and don’t meet our current and future growth needs.

As we look to the future, our goal is to build a new church facility, which meets the needs of our current and prospective parishioners, and serves the Tongue River Valley by opening up the fellowship hall for community use. According to the Wyoming Community Development Authority, population increased in Ranchester by 26.5% and in Dayton by 9.6% between 2000 and 2020. This growth only reflects the incorporated areas of the Valley and is expected to steadily increase over the next 10 years.

Comprehensive planning has developed the new church facility design. One facility on our current property will house a worship space, fellowship/community hall with restrooms, classrooms and office. Due to frequent fluctuations in building material and labor costs, the estimated cost range of a new facility is $1.7 million to $2.1 million. Thanks to consistent generosity, St. Edmunds has raised a large percentage of the current balance of our building fund from within the parish, and we are now seeking funds outside our parish.

We ask that you consider joining us in our vision, as we move forward to meet the spiritual, sacramental, and social needs of our growing Catholic community. We appreciate your time and consideration of this worthy effort. Please let us know if you have any questions or would like any other information or documents.