St. Cecilia Church in San Francisco

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St. Cecilia Church in San Francisco is a parish of the Archdiocese of San Francisco in San Francisco, CA. The parish primarily serves the Sunset District and neighboring Parkside District, West Portal, and St. Francis Wood. It is one of four parishes serving the Sunset District, along with Holy Name, St. Anne, and St. Gabriel. The parish was established in 1915, with the first masses held in a two-story house. A donation from then-Mayor James Rolph to the parish gave them their first permanent church building, in what used to be the Parkside School. In the late 1940s, Rev. Harold Collins was named pastor of St. Cecilia's. Under his leadership, the parish grew, necessitating the construction of a larger church. The new church was built in 1954. The beautiful church, made with a Spanish Colonial design reminiscent of Mission Dolores Basilica, graces the corner of 17th Avenue and Vicente Street. The church features a red-tile roof, a bell tower topped with a gold leaf cross, and a reinforced concrete structure. The neighboring school building is home to 600 students and includes the school's parish center gymnasium/auditorium.

I attended St. Cecilia's and we had classes in the old lower church where the parking lot is next to the former O'Callaghan home. It was a great time in San Francisco to belong to this parish. Msgr. Collins was a saint and I was proud to be one of his "Little Pigeons", although it was many years before I would acknowledge that fact. I graduated from St. Cecilia's in 1962. Bob Clancy, Class of '62.