McKinney, Texas, August 3, 2026
Photo: St. Nicholas Orthodox Church, McKinney TX
St. Nicholas Orthodox Church in McKinney, Texas, has begun a fundraising and land-purchase campaign to build a larger facility, as the parish has outgrown its current building.
Fr. Seraphim Holland, who has served as priest of the parish for nearly 30 years, said the church’s Sunday attendance has grown to roughly 200 to 240 people, though the current church is suitable for only about 150. The parish now offers two Sunday Liturgies to accommodate the crowd but still lacks sufficient space.
Overcrowding also affects the parish’s post-liturgy meals, Sunday School classes, and its Wednesday homeschool co-op program.
The parish holds a minimum of four Divine Liturgies per week. St. Nicholas offers an extensive teaching program that includes four classes for children, an adult class in Russian, and an adult class in English.
The parish’s homeschool co-op has operated for two years, expanding from one day per week to two full days. Fr. Seraphim said there has been discussion of formalizing the co-op into a full school.
Parish leaders describe their growth plan in two phases: first, purchasing land, and second, replenishing the building fund to begin construction. The parish’s stated goal is a facility capable of holding at least 400 people, with expectations that attendance could eventually reach 500.
According to Fr. Seraphim, the parish has also recently started a mission in the Texas Panhandle and hopes that continued growth will allow it to support additional Orthodox missions in the Dallas-Fort Worth area.
The parish has offered a longstanding commitment to donors: in exchange for financial contributions, the church prays for donors’ family members by name during services, a practice it says it has maintained for more than 15 years and intends to continue indefinitely, regardless of clergy changes.
The fundraising campaign is being conducted through GiveSendGo. As of the time of this writing, the campaign has raised $115,354 of the $1 million goal.
Follow OrthoChristian on Facebook, Twitter, Vkontakte, Telegram, WhatsApp, and MeWe!
