Never was the need for a new parish more sorely felt in the Woodbury area than in the late 1950's. Many new housing developments were being completed and a large percentage of these new Gloucester County residents were Catholic. It was decided that the existing facilities of St. Patrick's Parish in Woodbury and the Church of The Incarnation in Mantua could not absorb the influx. Since property had been purchased in Woodbury Heights, in parish, the Church of St. Margaret Mary, was conceived, and formally incorporated on January 21, 1960. The first trustees were Michael Reitenberger and William Murphy. Mr. Murphy remains a trustee to this day, joined now by Jack Kinnarney.

The parish of St. Margaret Mary was established on June 10, 1961, by order of His Excellency, Archbishop Celestine J. Damiano, Bishop of the Diocese of Camden.

There came to the parish in that first year a man all would come to know well, respect, and love over the course of his twelve-year pastorate. This was Father William L. McKeever, St. Margaret's first pastor.

Those first years at St. Margaret's were interesting ones indeed. When the parish was first established, temporary arrangements were made to hold Mass on Sundays in the Wood Theatre in Woodbury. After six months, however, these facilities were no longer available. Through the kindness of Monsignor Paul Fairbrother, pastor of St. Patrick's Church, Mass was then held for the parishioners in the cafeteria of St. Patrick's School in Woodbury.

In December, 1961, the present rectory on Beech Avenue was purchased. With the help of the men of the parish, a two-car garage was converted into a chapel where morning Mass could be celebrated. Many of the furnishings in the rectory were acquired with stamp books which were contributed by members of the Parish.

In June of 1962 groundbreaking took place for the construction of the first building of the parish complex. This building was to consist of a multi-purpose hall and eight classrooms. Less than a year later, the work had been completed.

On Saturday night, February 18, 1963, the first parish social was held in the new hall. A benefit performance was given by the Woodbury Chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Encouragement of Barber Shop Quartet Singing in America. No sidewalks had as yet been constructed and wooden planks were laid in the mud to gain access to the new building.

The day following the social, Sunday Mass was said for the first time in the newly constructed hall at Third and Beech. It was a triumphant moment, coming as it did after almost two years of Masses in a theatre and a cafeteria. Among those present that day were the first named associate pastors of St. Margaret's, Reverend Michael Doyle and Reverend Louis Battisti.

In September of 1961, three months after the establishment of St. Margaret's Parish, Archbishop Damiano paved the way for three nuns belonging to the order of St. Francis of the Infant Jesus from Assisi, Italy, to come and establish their first American Mission in the Camden Diocese. Today, a beautiful twenty-four-room convent with chapel stands on the church property, a true tribute to the work done by the priests and parishioners of St. Margaret's. The convent serves not only as quarters for the teaching nuns, but also as a Mother House of the Sisters and any vocations that they receive.

Despite its spiritual rewards, the act of creating and expanding the parish complex placed a heavy financial responsibility upon the parishioners. In an attempt to reduce the large parish debt, Father McKeever authorized the Finance Committee to engage the services of a professional fundraising corporation to promote and run an increased giving campaign. On February 23,1971, the first meeting was held. One hundred and sixty volunteers attended, and the goal of cutting the parish debt in half within a four-year period was decided upon. It was felt that this could be accomplished by increasing each family's weekly offering by one dollar. This donation was collected by volunteers.

Father McKeever remained our pastor until August, l973, at which time he left to assume his new duties as pastor of Our Lady of Peace Parish in Pitman, New Jersey. St. Margaret parishioners gave him a farewell reception on August 16, 1973. It was a sad time because they were losing their first pastor, one who had always expressed great personal concern for his parishioners' individual, as well as their collective, needs.

As much as St. Margaret's hated to see Father McKeever leave, his departure did pave the way for another strong personality under whose leadership this parish has met - and will continue to meet - prosperity. Monsignor David F. Budney arrived in August, 1973, leaving his pastorate at St. Michael's Parish in Cedarville.

The people wanted and needed a new house of worship, so Monsignor Budney met with the parishioners in the early part of l976 to discuss the idea. Meetings were held with Greenfield Village and Greenfield Heights parishioners on January 29, 1976; with Oak Valley parishioners on the fifth of February, and with those of Woodbury Heights on February l2th. One of the first positive things to evolve was the formation of a building committee, which held its first meeting on February l8th of that year. The, following steps were decided upon that evening:

First, the property adjacent to the school and hall would be sold to raise needed capital. In conjunction with the selling of the property, a major fund-raising campaign was instituted that would be run by a professional organization. Also, boundary changes were decided upon and, finally, regionalization of the school was sought. Under Monsignor Budney's guidance, and complemented by the able assistance of the trustees and a committee of chairmen formed from amongthe men and women of the parish, a building-fund drive was started in the early part of 1977 with the hope of realizing three hundred thousand dollars for the construction of a church. The drive consisted of three phases; advanced gift phase, memorial phase, and general phase.

Groundbreaking for the new church, attended by His Excellency, the Most Reverend George Guilfoyle, Bishop of Camden Diocese, took place on Sunday, March 20, 1977, during the kick-off of the general phase of the drive. Charged with the construction of the new church was the firm of John Raffa and Sons. The architect was Lawrence P. Polillo, and the stained-glass windows were executed by Kenneth A. Crocker. The initial campaign goal of three hundred thousand dollars was not only met, but was exceeded by fifty thousand dollars. In addition to being successful monetarily, the drive also acted as a revitalizing agent for the spirit of the parish.

Chronological History

• 1961 - Parish established
• 1962 - Rectory purchased
• 1963 - School and Hall opened
• 1966 - Convent dedicated and four new classrooms opened
• 1970 - Four additional classrooms opened
• 1977 - Groundbreaking for church
• 1978 - Dedication of new church
• 1988 - Fire destroyed church and chapel
• 1989 - Refurbished church opened
• 1991 - Thirtieth Anniversary celebrated
• 2010 - Merged to form Infant Jesus Parish