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Our parish of St. Thomas Aquinas was established on December 4, 1921, by Bishop Muldoon. Father William McMillian was the first pastor. Previous to this time, Catholics who lived west of West Avenue belonged to St. Mary's territorially, or if they chose to, those of German descent could belong to the German parish of St. Joseph,
The corner stone of the one-story church building was laid in May 1921. The building was completed the following year and dedicated May 28, 1922. In September, 1929, Father Daniel O'Connell was appointed to succeed Father McMillian. During his pastorate, a second floor was added to the building, providing four classrooms, two rooms of which were opened in September, 1931, by the Dominican Sisters of Sinsinawa. Father Alex McIsaac became pastor in August, 1936, during a period of expansion for the church. In 1954, there were one hundred and eighty-one pupils in the school. The population of the parish increased in these years to three hundred families.
Father James Murphy became pastor of St. Thomas Parish on June 9, 1967. He worked with the parishioners in paying off the parish debt and making plans for a new church. Because of the continues increase in the number of parishioners, serious thought was given to the possibility of constructing the new church on a new site to the west of the city. Father Louis Pesut became pastor on June 15, 1971., time lay committees were established, an architect was contracted , the new church and plans put out for bids. On October 2, 1973, Msgr. Raymond J. Wahl became pastor of the parish. Taking advantage of preliminary work that had been done, it was possible to have ground breaking ceremonies for the new church on October 21st, and laying of the cornerstone on June 30, 1974. Former pastor, now Bishop, O'Neill returned to his former parish and dedicated the new church building on December 15, 1974. Monsignor Wahl's pastorate at St. Thomas Aquinas ended in February, 1978, when he accepted a new assignment in the diocese. Father Richard Kramer then administered the parish until the appointment of its eighth pastor, Father Thomas Dzielak, in March, 1978. During Father Dzielak's pastorate the people were able to eliminate the debt for the new church building and to turn attention to the continued growth in population in the parish.
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Father Arthur O'Neill was appointed pastor on June 9, 1957. The school enrollment had grown to two hundred and twenty-five by the year of 1956-57. Temporary classrooms were erected in the parish hall. Enrollment continues to increase, so four classrooms and a gymnasium were constructed to the north of the church.