Our History

Saint Edward Catholic Parish, named for Edward the Confessor, was established in 1995 by Archbishop Edward McCarthy in one of his final acts before retirement. The church would become the first religious institution built west of Interstate 75 in Broward County. The community would grow rapidly from a few dozen parishioners to thousands in less than five years.

Rev. Michael J. Eivers, a charismatic missionary priest originally from Ireland, left St. Boniface in 1994 to become the founding pastor of the church the following year. For the first several months, liturgies were held in private homes in Silver Lakes before weekend services were held at a movie theatre located near Pines Boulevard and Flamingo Road. After briefly using the facilities of Walter C. Young Middle School, in 1997 the parish moved west to larger space in the cafeteria of Chapel Trail Elementary School.

On October 4, 1998 a Groundbreaking Ceremony was held at 19000 Pines Boulevard and construction was started on a multipurpose building. The first liturgy was held on St. Edward’s grounds on October 24, 1999. A formal Dedication Mass was officiated by Archbishop Emeritus McCarthy and Archbishop John Favalora on January 22, 2000.

The completion of construction was marked as one of the fastest to occur for a new parish in modern times within the Archdiocese of Miami. St. Edward has previously been identified as the first church built west of Interstate 75 in Broward County. In 2004, additional work took place on the property with expanded parking facilities to the west.

In June 2011, Rev. Msgr. Michael J. Eivers retired from active ministry at the age of 83. A month later, Father John Peloso was appointed pastor by Archbishop Thomas Wenski. With continued growth and development, the community celebrated a milestone with the payoff of the mortgage of the church property in May 2019. Extensive renovations of specific areas of the church building took place between June 2019 and March 2020.

Rev. John Peloso retired on June 14, 2021 due to ongoing health concerns. Rev. Albert Lahens Jr., Parochial Vicar for over a decade, was appointed Parochial Administrator by Archbishop Wenski the same day.