Immaculate Conception Parish began as St. Mary’s Church, Union, Missouri, was dedicated on December 26, 1866, as a mission church with an assembly of 12 families.
From the very earliest days of St. Mary’s Parish, accomplishments have been forged from the dedication and commitment of its people.
This was evidenced when the growing congregation built a new church and rededicated it to Our Blessed Mother under the title of Immaculate Conception. In 1902 the parishioners met and made plans to open a Catholic School. Miss Emma Reymer of Hermann, Missouri, was hired as the teacher and Immaculate Conception School convened on October 1, 1902, with 30 students. The enrollment increased and, by 1904, an additional classroom was opened and Miss Elis Jacquin, a Teacher from Morrison, Missouri, was employed.
Early in January, 1905, a Parish meeting was called and a decision made to invite the Sisters of St. Francis of Lafayette, Indiana, to teach at the school. The Franciscan Sisters accepted the invitation and Sisters Andrea, Maura, and Eutropis arrived in Union on August 12, 1905.
Until the pastorate of Reverend Bernard Zehnle, O.F.M. began on January 14, 1914, the Sisters held classes in the basement of the church. The new pastor immediately started to develop plans for the construction of a long awaited school building. Father Zehnle broke ground on the Feast of the Annunciation, March 15, 1915. The building, which was completed and dedicated on January 6, 1916, is still used today housing classrooms for preschool, kindergarten, first, fourth, and fifth grades as well as music classes.
On September 10, 1955, Reverend Raymond Schuermann was officially installed as pastor of Immaculate Conception Church. During his tenure, the need for additional classrooms became evident. Construction of another building began in the fall of 1960 and the cornerstone was laid on April13, 1961. This structure was to accommodate four classrooms, cafeteria/gymnasium, bathrooms, and administrative offices. His Eminence Joseph E. Ritter, Archbishop of St. Louis, participated in the dedication on Sunday, February 11, 1962.
The first student from St. Joseph Parish, Neier, Missouri, was enrolled at Immaculate Conception School in 1986. Since then the number of students from St. Joseph Parish has grown to 31.
The Sisters of St. Francis were recalled by their Community in 1988 at which time Reverend Theodore Bughoff, pastor of lmmaculate Conception Church, hired a Sister of St. Joseph, Sister Kathleen Eggleston, as principal of the school.
In 1989, fifty-four additional students from Holy Family Church, Port Hudson, Missouri, registered at Immaculate Conception School. With this increase of students, all possible school space was utilized.
Three factors: lack of lavatory facilities, utilization of every space possible beyond its capacity, and a study of the future population growth in the Union Area, were paramount in Father Burghoff’s decision to ask the parish to build an addition to the school.
This addition was to connect the two existing separate structures housing lavatory facilities and new rooms: four homerooms, resource room, science lab, library, and meeting room/faculty lounge.
The ground breaking ceremony occurred on July 1, 1990, and classes convened in the combined facility August 26, 1991.
At the same time the parish built this addition, approximately one acre of land south of the school was acquired. It extended the playground area and provided a driveway which afforded easy access for vehicles carrying students to and from school.
In late summer of 1995, ground was broken to begin a Parish Center. The Parish Center included a new gymnasium, stage area, a concession stand, and restroom facilities. It was dedicated by Bishop Paul Zipfel in September, 1996.
When Mrs. Patricia Corley became the principal of Immaculate Conception, she initiated the tradition of having the entire 8th Grade Class participate in the pilgrimage to our Nation’s Capital for the National Pro-Life March that commemorates the Roe vs. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion. There are many parish-wide events throughout the year that helps to raise money in support of this annual trip.
In 2004, the old gymnasium/cafeteria was transformed into a new cafeteria, 4 new classrooms, computer lab, office, conference room, and a new kitchen. At the same time, a storage area was added to the Parish Center.
In 2006 the storage area that was once a meat market, was torn down and a new storage facility was built in its place. This now houses the quilters, which freed up space in the lower level of the old school building for an additional preschool classroom. The building also houses the Vincent’s Angels resale shop.
As houses adjoining the school playground came up for sale on the market, the church purchased them for the added playground space. The houses were razed and the playground was expanded. In 2011 a covered pavilion was built on the northeast quarter of the playground.
At our 2015 annual Dinner Auction, funds were raised to increase security at the school. Many security upgrades and improvements have been made to the parish property and buildings to insure that our students are protected from an increasingly violent culture. Teachers and staff have been trained in Standard Response Protocol.
During the 2017-2018 school year, the Main Street Lounge (corner of North Washington Avenue and Main Street) was purchased by the parish with plans to use it for parish offices and a Perpetual Adoration Chapel.
At the present time (2017-2018) the enrollment of Immaculate Conception is 297 students which represents 180 families. This includes 31 students (17 families) from St. Joseph Parish in Neier. The present faculty includes 5 teachers who are, themselves, graduates of Immaculate Conception as well as 10 teachers whose own children have attended or are attending Immaculate Conception.