About Us

1958

On September 8, Bishop Daly canonically established the new parish of St. Thomas Aquinas, with Fr. Gaul as the first pastor.

The church’s patron, St. Thomas Aquinas, is notably one of the greatest scholars and educators in Catholic history. At the cornerstone ceremony, Bishop Daly said it was appropriate to name a new Catholic church in a college community after St. Thomas Aquinas.

Mass continued to be offered at the American Legion Hall until December 7, when the first Mass was offered in the old church, which seated approximately 325 people. The ground floor provided space for a parish hall, kitchen, restrooms, and equipment rooms. Catechism classes for young people began December 13.

1961

The rectory was completed with volunteer help from the parish.

1966

Fr. Lawrence Burns was appointed pastor. Fr. Leonard Kenkel was appointed Parochial Vicar. There were 80-100 registered families in the parish and Indianola had grown to a population of about 8,000.

Father Burns was a hot air balloon pilot and flew a balloon for Gib McConnell. Fr. Burns was the first and only known priest to be an FAA licensed Hot Air Balloon pilot in the World (piloting many here in Indianola). He served as Chaplain for the National Balloon Championships for many years. Father Burns’ nickname, stenciled on his pick-up truck, was “The Flying Father.”

During Fr. Burns’ tenure Mass was begun at Simpson College for the Catholic students. This was discontinued in July, 1989, but has since restarted.

1978

Fr. Eugene Klein was appointed pastor. The parish had grown to 265 families and the city of Indianola had grown to about 10,400.

1983

St. Thomas Aquinas celebrated its 25th anniversary with a special Mass. Bishop Dingman celebrated with over 200 people attending. A reception followed the Mass in the church basement.

1985

Fr. Burns was again appointed pastor of our parish, serving until his retirement. The parish had grown to 325 families and Indianola’s population was 11,500.

Bob Hoeffler, who had moved from the West Coast and made St. Thomas Aquinas his home, was ordained to the priesthood. Fr. Bob entered seminary after having taught in the Indianola School District for 16 years.

1988

Fr. Don Bruck was appointed Pastor by Bishop William Bullock.

During Fr. Bruck’s time the communion rail was removed, a new altar installed, new sanctuary furniture was made out of pews by parishioner Norman Heck, and the interior of the church was repainted.

Father Bruck reestablished the parish council and involved more parishioners in committee work and as Eucharistic Ministers, Lectors, and Greeters. Father Bruck implemented Children’s Liturgy for pre-First Communion children during the Sunday liturgy in the church hall. He was also instrumental in starting programs such as Renew, week-long missions, pre-marriage sponsor couples and the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults (R.C.I.A.).

Under the direction of Fr. Bruck, the parish purchased 20 acres of land west of lndianola at the intersection of Highway 92 and county road R-63 at a total cost of $210,000. For handicap accessibility and future growth potential it was decided to build new facilities west of town.

1989 

The rectory was remodeled

1995

Ray Higgins, a son of our parish, was ordained a priest. Fr. Ray Higgins first served at St. Ambrose Cathedral as Parochial Vicar.

1996

Fr. Frank Palmer was appointed pastor by Bishop Joseph Charron.

He restarted the parish dinners, beginning with a Spaghetti Dinner during the Balloon Classic, using his mother’s authentic Italian spaghetti sauce recipe. Additional dinners followed, so that by the time Father Palmer retired, St. Thomas Aquinas parish was hosting six fund-raising dinners per year.

Fr. Palmer had a strong focus on using symbols to remind us we are part of God’s holy family. He revised and continued Children’s Liturgy, added a Children’s Blessing to the end of Mass, and distributed a rose to each child celebrating his or her Baptismal anniversary.

1999

Fire scarred the old church on Saturday, October 20. The fire damaged the east sacristy, the ambo and altar, bowed some of the windows, blistered the woodwork and covered the old church with a layer of soot and smoke. Church services were then held at the First Baptist Church on Saturday nights and at the High School Auditorium on Sunday mornings. Then, church services were held in the basement hall until the old church sanctuary was restored by Christmas. The damage was about $300,000 which was mostly covered by insurance. A year later, a fire in a classroom in the old church basement caused some smoke damage. The fire had burned out by the time firefighters arrived. There was minimal damage.

2000

Groundbreaking for the new 18,800 sq. ft. pastoral center

2002

The pastoral center was completed. The first phase of the building project included classrooms for the religious education program, a parish hall, administrative offices, and a maintenance building. The cost was about $2.9 million and was paid off by December 2005.

2006

Fr. Ray McHenry was named Administrator of St. Thomas Aquinas parish by Bishop Joseph Charron.

2007

Fr. McHenry officially became the sixth pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas. There were 480 families registered. He began a capital campaign to build a new church at St. Thomas Aquinas.

2012

The current church was completed, with a seating capacity of 600 people.

2013

Ross Parker, a son of our parish, was ordained to the priesthood. Fr. Parker’s first assignment was in Council Bluffs.

2015

Fr. Chris Fontanini became the pastor of St. Thomas Aquinas.

Fr. Chris led the parish through the COVID pandemic and expanded the facilities to include additional classrooms and the multipurpose room. In July of 2022, there were 518 registered families.

2022

Fr. Adam Westphal was appointed pastor and currently serves in that role.

In July of 2022, there were 518 registered families.

Fr. Adam launched ChristLife at St. Thomas Aquinas in an effort to reconnect with families separated from the church during COVID. The first run of Discovering Christ (ChristLife Part One) had over 70 participants, and today over 200 have begun their journey with ChristLife.

Since 2022, Fr. Adam has guided the parish in making numerous facility improvements, and has worked to integrate technology into the parish life.

Fr. Adam began his ministry at St. Thomas Aquinas by bringing FOCUS to Simpson Campus and by launching the process to hire a new Director of Music Ministry for the parish.

As of October 31, 2025, St. Thomas Aquinas has 600 registered families.