{"id":135791,"date":"2026-03-11T20:58:07","date_gmt":"2026-03-11T20:58:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/135791\/"},"modified":"2026-03-11T20:58:07","modified_gmt":"2026-03-11T20:58:07","slug":"final-mass-planned-at-one-of-multiple-catholic-churches-being-closed-in-local-parish-wpxi","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/135791\/","title":{"rendered":"Final Mass planned at one of multiple Catholic churches being closed in local parish \u2013 WPXI"},"content":{"rendered":"

TURTLE CREEK, Pa. \u2014 Parishioners will gather Wednesday night for the final Mass at St. Coleman Church, marking the last closure among seven churches the Catholic Diocese of Pittsburgh decided to close<\/a> in St. Joseph of the Worker Parish.<\/p>\n

The 7 p.m. service ends decades of operation in Turtle Creek, a move the diocese said was driven by declining attendance and rising maintenance costs.<\/p>\n

PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> Diocese of Pittsburgh bishop approves plan to close all but one of a local parish\u2019s churches<\/a><\/p>\n

Kelly Gibson of Turtle Creek said her goddaughter was baptized at St. Coleman years ago, and Gibson said she had hoped the church would remain part of her life.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019m going to be really sad that we can\u2019t see her get confirmed there, or married there,\u201d Gibson said.<\/p>\n

PREVIOUS COVERAGE >>> \u2018It\u2019s been my home\u2019: parishioners react to Diocese\u2019s decision to officially close 7 churches<\/a><\/p>\n

The diocese cited significant repair needs at the church, including storm damage to the roof and interior damage that officials said exceeds what the parish can afford to fix. <\/p>\n

Church leaders also pointed to declining participation across the parish\u2019s churches.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere just isn\u2019t a lot of support,\u201d Gibson said. \u201cThey even talked about that at my church on Ash Wednesday \u2014 that he had never seen so many people come to that church. But then there are churches like this that are failing, and it\u2019s just so sad.”<\/p>\n

According to the diocese, sacred items inside St. Coleman \u2014 including stained glass \u2014 will be removed and may be reused at other churches.<\/p>\n

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