While the nation fell into the depths of the Great Depression, Monsignor William R Griffin was chosen to become the 3rd pastor of Saint Andrew parish. He was ordained in 1907 and was assigned to Holy Angels parish on the Southside for 16 years. In 1923, he become the pastor of Mary, Queen of Heaven parish in Cicero, Illinois. In 1926, he was granted the title of Very Reverend Monsignor by Pope Pius XI. In 1930, he was named pastor of Saint Andrew.
He was an ideal pastor for a parish facing the grips of hard times. He had dedicated his life to helping the needy and the poor and set about activities that aided the poor both within and outside the boundaries of Saint Andrew. Through the efforts of Monsignor Griffin and the Saint Vincent DePaul society, money, food, and clothing were made available to many needy families during the Great Depression.
Monsignor Griffin was faced with a large debt due to the massive building program headed by Monsignor McDonald. In 1931, the school squeezed a total of 1,016 students led by 24 sisters who lived in the convent. Again, the parish was outgrowing itself. Monsignor Griffins first concern was to alleviate the overcrowding in the church on Sundays. Both the church and the chapel were too small to handle the attendance at Sunday Masses.
Monsignor William Griffin
Not to be outdone by his predecessors, Monsignor Griffin worked with the building committee and some architects and decided to stretch the existing church an additional 60 feet to accommodate seating arrangements for up to 1,100 people at Mass. Monsignor Griffin also renovated and redecorated the church, featuring the marble altar brought from Italy. The addition made Saint Andrew church one of the largest in the city in the Archdiocese of Chicago. The newly expanded church was dedicated on October 23rd, 1932.
In 1934, the parish census taken by the priest registered 3,000 families and some 10,000 members. Monsignor Griffin’s main task was to pay off the parish debt from all this construction. While achieving this goal, he also saved $15,000 in Catholic bonds to be used for the construction of a new gymnasium in the memory of Monsignor McDonald. A task he was never able to complete.
A bittersweet moment came to Saint Andrew in 1935 when Monsignor Griffin was selected by the Pope to be the Auxiliary Bishop of Lacrosse, Wisconsin. The parishioners were sad to see Monsignor Griffin go but at the same time they were very happy about his promotion. Saint Andrew parishioners prepared a large farewell reception for Monsignor Griffin that was held at the Drake Hotel.
