St John the Baptist Church is a Roman Catholic church in Toodyay, Western Australia, part of a group of church buildings. It was built and consecrated in 1963. It is the second church of that name, replacing the one built in 1863. Aerial view of buildings in Stirling Terrace, Toodyay. The two buildings linked by a covered walkway are St John the Baptist Church and St Aloysius Convent of Mercy. To the right of the convent is the St Aloysius Convent of Mercy dormitory block with the classroom block in the foreground. On the right is a house originally owned by Dr. Growse.
History The new church replaced the original St John the Baptist Church across the road. The older building was in poor repair, and in 1963, when the standard gauge railway line also came through in close proximity, a decision was made to relocate. After fundraising and support from the shire and local businesses, the church was officially opened on 17 November 1963 with the blessing of M. McKeon, Auxiliary Bishop of Perth. The altar and tabernacle of the new church were donated by the O'Connor estate. A brass plaque, transferred from the former church, commemorates the contribution of the Quinlan family.
Parish leadership Priests who have administered to the Parish since the consecration of the church are:
1958–67 Fr John Chokolich 1967 Fr Alex Morahan 1968–72 Fr Carmelo Di Giorgio 1972 Fr W. de Bruyn 1974–81 Fr John E.C. Lisle 1981–84 Fr Reginald Smith 1984–86 Fr T. McDonald 1986–92 Fr T. Hewitt 1993–94 Fr Kevin Hay April – Nov 1994 Fr Pat Russell
Then served and cared for from :
1995–96 Fr Greg Donovan 1997 Fr Kaz Stuglik 1998–2000 Fr Robert Carrillo 2001-04 Frs Stephen Casey & James D'Souza 2004-06 Fr Geoff Aldous 2006-11 Frs Andrew Bowron & Richard Ye Myint 2012 Frs Dominic Savio & Richard Ye Myint 2013 Frs Pavol Herda & Emmanuel Dimobi
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