Saint John Bosco Parish was established on 27 March 1953 by the Archbishop of Philadelphia, John Cardinal O’Hara who named Father Peter J. Keenan as the first and founding pastor. The newly established parish was situated within the boundaries of County Line Road from Township Line (Blair Mill Road) to Jacksonville Road to Street Road to Davisville Road to County Line Road to Davisville Road to the Penn-Central Railroad Bridge then by air line to the Reading Railroad Station at Fulmore Heights to Warminster Road to Mill Road to York Road to Horsham Road to Township Line (Blair Mill Road) to County Line Road.
Father Keenan converted the first floor of the rectory at the corner of Warminster and East County Line Road to be a chapel for Baptisms in the new Parish. Sites in Lacey Park (now Warminster Heights) and Fulmor Heights served as chapels where the parishioners participated in Sunday Mass.
On 3 August 1953 ground was broken for an auditorium and classrooms. In September 1953 the auditorium which Father rented in Lacey Park became the first school building. Four large rooms were divided into eight classrooms for the first school year. The desks and benches that the original students used were made by members of the parish. Five Sisters, Servants of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and two lay teachers staffed the school, with an approximate enrollment of 350 children.
On 7 November 1954 the auditorium, which served as the church until 1991, and the classrooms were dedicated by John Cardinal O’Hara. Six hundred students and their teachers moved into the new building. The parish grew throughout the fifties and sixties. In September 1962 over twelve hundred students attended Saint John Bosco School. This growth necessitated two additions to the original school building which brought the classroom total to twenty five rooms. A declining enrollment due to changes in population, the building of new public school, and constriction of classes took place in the late sixties and early seventies. In 1974 the library, kitchen and Nurse’s Office were renovated.
In the ensuing years the empty classroom space has been utilized by parish organizations in an effort to deepen the Catholic formation of all parishioners.
Groundbreaking for a new church took place on 11 June 1989 under the leadership of Father Joseph D. Dougherty, our fourth pastor. Parishioners watched the building with great anticipation. Anthony Cardinal Bevilacqua dedicated the church on 14 July 1991. The new Church, in addition to its primary purpose as a space to worship the Triune God, was designed with ease of physical accessibility such as curb cuts, wide and gradually sloping ramps, 2 wheel chair accessible restrooms with equally accessible sinks and grab bars.
During the years 1992 and 1993, the auditorium Church was renovated as an all purpose room and given the name Neumann Hall. The room is now used for various parish programs and events and is wheel chair accessible
The parish of Saint John Bosco is dedicated to supporting our community with many spiritual, formational and cultural experiences that will attract new members to join us in our worship of God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit on Sundays. This is a vibrant community of believers who welcome all to encounter Christ through the excellent example of our patron Don Bosco.
The mission of Saint John Bosco Parish is to be a Roman Catholic Community of faith called together by our Baptism and bound to each other through love. We responded to the call of Jesus by: celebrating His presence in prayer and worship, proclaiming His word, calling His people to personal ministry thus affirming their gifts, building His community through loving service and by reaching out to all people.