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• 1 media/Fr Ken Reed Appalachia - flipped.jpg media/Fr Ken Reed Appalachia - flipped vignette crop.jpg 2020-08-26T10:15:28-07:00 Missionary work in Appalachia begins 62 Divine Word Missionaries were sent to staff parishes in West Virginia image_header 2020-10-16T18:15:31-07:00 10/1973 The history of the SVD presence in rural Appalachia begins in 1972 when the Provincial Superior of the Eastern Province, Rev. Donald Ehr SVD, decided to look for different ministries for priests and Brothers returning from their foreign mission assignments. In addition to the social upheaval in the early 1970s, there was a back-to-the-earth movement afoot, especially in West Virginia. This movement, along with rural poverty and the sparse numbers of Catholics in the area, was a consideration for Father Ehr as he began his search. He sensed that working in West Virginia would be a welcome opportunity for those returning from overseas. Here they could continue to be active, doing much-needed ministry without the hassle of too much administrative responsibility.
  
  So it was that in October 1973 the first two Divine Word Missionaries—Revs. Kenneth Reed and Edwin Daschbach—took simultaneous charge of the small-town West Virginia parishes of St. Thomas in Gassaway and St. Anne’s in Webster Springs.
  
  The hope of Fr. Ehr to send older missionaries returning from overseas was quickly confronted with a new reality: if the work was to succeed in a rural mission environment, younger men would be needed. The environment, the travel, and the prejudices encountered would require youth and great vitality.
  
  
  Helping area people with many of their physical, social, and economic needs was going to take patience, as well as muscle, stamina, and many good ideas. Frs. Reed and Daschbach involved themselves not only in their clerical duties, but also in social ministries such as housing rehabilitation. Several religious from the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur made themselves available from their Connecticut Province, arriving to teach and to administer a food pantry and secondhand clothing center.
  
  In 1978 Rev. Anthony Hemphill SVD was assigned as pastor of St. Thomas, and by 1979, Fr. Daschbach was appointed full-time pastor at St. Anne in Webster Springs, separating the responsibility for the two parishes. Under Rev. Edward Wald SVD’s leadership beginning in 1984, St. Thomas grew to roughly 150 parishioners. After Fr. Wald’s resignation in 1992, Rev. Elmer Nadicksbernd SVD was able to organize a program to raise funds for repairing the church. By 2006, the renovations were completed and a re-dedication ceremony was held. 
  
  
  The Eastern Province’s mission office, located in Pittsburgh, became the administrative hub of the district in 1985 after the creation of the new Chicago Province. Opened in 1960, the Pittsburgh House’s main function was to raise funds for the Society’s global mission work, though occupants had also worked closely with the Pittsburgh Diocese to provide chaplains to several local hospitals.
  
  
  Though the Pittsburgh House closed in 2016, the Society’s work in Appalachia continues undiminished. In addition to the original two parishes of St. Thomas and St. Anne, the SVDs have expanded to more parishes. The priests and Brothers assigned to these rural American missions continue to spread the charism of the Society while assisting with the physical, social, and economic needs of the communities of Appalachia in which they serve.
  
  
  
  The text of this page is an adapted version of Communities of the Word, The Appalachia Story by Rev. Elmer Nadicksbernd SVD and The Pittsburgh House by Rev. Dennis Logue SVD