When Italian Americans moved out of the Bottoms area along the South Platte River to north Denver, many began to attend St. Patrick’s Church. The mostly Irish parish sufficed for a while, but the Italians wanted their own place of worship. They found a champion for their cause in Father Mariano Felice Lepore.
Father Lepore, a native of the province of Avellino in southern Italy and the founder of the newspaper La Nazione, already had a reputation as an advocate for the Italian community. Assisted by the Mount Carmel Society, Father Lepore bought seven lots on Palmer Avenue (now Navajo Street) in 1894. There, he built a small wood-frame church in honor of Our Lady of Mount Carmel. The structure burned down in 1898, but the parish didn’t despair. In 1904, they dedicated a new Mount Carmel Church.
Today, Our Lady of Mount Carmel remains a predominantly Italian parish that continues to unite Denver’s Italian community. Former residents of Little Italy return for fellowship and friendship. Even the less active members return for the annual bazaar and the monthlyLa Prima Domenica (First Sunday) celebration, which includes a cultural reception following an Italian-language Mass. By: Alisa DiGiacomo
