St. Agatha Parish, still under the leadership of Fr. Peter Casey, entered the 21^st century full of vitality and poised for continued growth and exciting expansion. However, early in the first decade of the new millennium two events changed everything. The first was the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center in 2001 which constituted the first attack by a foreign entity on U.S. soil since the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941. The second was the sexual abuse crisis in the Catholic Church which was first revealed in the Archdiocese of Boston in 2002. These two events presented challenges to both secular and religious institutions. St. Agatha Parish was no exception. Fortunately, both Fr. Casey and his predecessor Msgr. Turke had embraced Vatican II’s emphasis on engaging the laity, so the parishioners had already felt the effects of empowerment. Through active listening to people’s concerns, a series of professionally led “listening sessions” and by complete transparency the parish stayed together as a community and boldly moved forward in faith.

During these early years of the new century the parish developed its Mission Statement which is still very much in use today. It also strengthened its identity as a Milton-Quincy parish, since nearly one quarter of the parish boundary includes parts of West Quincy. In 2004, the entire Upper Church was repainted, every pew was removed and then reinstalled so the floor could be reinforced and carpeted and the altar platform was lowered by one step to enable the installation of a wheelchair ramp to make the sanctuary accessible to those with physical challenges. An elevator was also added to make both the Upper and Lower Churches accessible to those with mobility difficulties. In 2006 plans were developed for the conversion of the 850 seat Lower Church into a Chapel for 150 people and a Gathering Space for parish community events. The planned renovation also included modern restroom facilities, a kitchen, Parish Library, and a complete upgrade of the heating, electrical, and fire protection systems. Great care was also taken to preserve each stained-glass window. Each one was removed during the renovations, completely restored and reinstalled in various locations throughout the new space. Each statue was also completely refurbished, as was the original crucifix that had been hanging behind the altar in 1918 when the Lower Church was first used for Mass. The entire project was designed by architect Stephen Wessling, a longtime parishioner who donated much of his time and expertise to reduce the cost of the renovations. His generosity was nothing new—he had also been the architect for the Upper Church renovation in 1987. The cost of the entire project was approximately $3.9 million, $3 million of which was raised through a capital campaign. A loan was secured from the Archdiocese for the remainder. In the years before Fr. Casey ended his time at St. Agatha’s this debt was erased through a small debt reduction campaign and the sale of the house at 462 Adams Street which had served as a convent when religious sisters worked in the parish but was no longer needed for this purpose since there were no longer and Sisters assigned to the parish. At his last Mass at St. Agatha’s on May 31, 2015 it was announced that the debt had been eliminated and the Gathering Space had been named in honor of Fr. Casey whose vision and leadership had led to this massive undertaking which had a transformative effect on parish life.

During this period the efforts of the parish to reach out to those in need were expanded. As mentioned above, Msgr. Turke had begun this trend with the advent of the Outreach Committee which had undertaken several projects in the 1980s and 1990s such as serving meals at Long Island Shelter, working in collaboration with My Brother’s Keeper, clothing, food and toiletry drives and welcoming orphans from the region devastated by the Chernobyl nuclear plant accident for rest, recuperation and medical care. Another initiative begun by Msgr. Turke and then expanded and enhanced during the new millennium, was the role of the Pastoral Associate. Each of the women who held this position had a profound impact on the establishment of “service to others” as a hallmark of the parish. Involvement with the St. Rock Haiti Foundation, St. Matthew’s Food Pantry and the Germantown Neighborhood Center were begun and ongoing efforts with My Brother’s Keeper and other organizations were expanded. There was also a concerted effort to reach out to the homebound. Numerous spiritual opportunities were offered as well such as Women in God’s Spirit (W.I.N.G.S), small group sessions and Parish Retreats. Lay-led groups also became very active, including the Parish Pastoral Council, Parish Finance Council, the Bereavement Support Team and the Art & Environment Team.

Upon Fr. Casey’s departure on June 1, 2015, Fr. Kevin Toomey was appointed as Pastor. Unfortunately, Fr. Toomey, who had been Pastor at St. Raphael Parish in Medford for 17 years, was only able to stay for one year and was succeeded on September 1, 2016 by Fr. William Palardy who became the 8^th Pastor in the parish’s 100 year history. Fr. Palardy, a Milton native who grew up in St. Mary of the Hills Parish, came to St. Agatha’s from Pope St. John XXIII National Seminary in Weston where he had served as Rector. Thus far he has faced numerous challenges, such as the declining enrollment in the School and the onset of the worldwide Covid-19 pandemic which completely altered the daily life of each person and the parish as a whole. His response, like his predecessors, was to face the challenges undaunted and with Faith in God. He revamped the staff, empowered people to make strategic decisions and continued to exert enormous spiritual leadership. Happily, the School has rebounded beautifully and is now fiscally stable and is providing outstanding Catholic education to over 350 students. As the pandemic has begun to dissipate, the Parish community has held together and has begun to rebound and is poised to enter its second century with deep faith and enthusiasm.