Canton — It takes a pioneering spirit to start a new parish from scratch.

That’s exactly what it took for the founding members of Resurrection Parish in Canton, who took to the task of establishing a parish in the growing suburbs of western Wayne County.

In 1990, Cardinal Adam J. Maida tasked Fr. Dick Perfetto, at the time pastor of Our Lady of Good Counsel Parish in Plymouth, with starting the new parish to serve the growing population in the sprawling development.

“I was talking to (Auxiliary) Bishop Moses Anderson, and we agreed we needed a new parish,” Fr. Perfetto said. “It was really exciting to start a parish from scratch.”

In January 1990, Cardinal Edmund C. Szoka established Resurrection Parish on Warren Road in Canton, in between three existing parishes but far enough away to carve out a geographic area to serve as the parish’s boundaries. The parishioners chose the name after Resurrection Parish on Miller Street in Detroit, which closed in 1989.

“We would have no parish in the archdiocese named after the central focus of the mystery of our Lord,” Fr. Perfetto said. “So we picked the name, and Cardinal Maida agreed to the name.”

The parish’s first five years were nomadic, moving around from Protestant churches and public schools until securing and building its current church in 1995.

The years of setting up chairs and putting them away and preparing for Mass at various locations pulled the young parish family together. Resurrection’s campus now features a parish center and All Saints Catholic School.

“Going from being a vagabond parish at four different places until we had our own building, you really do a lot of setting up and tearing down,” said Ric Craffey, a founding member of the parish and keynote speaker for its 25th anniversary celebration Oct. 4. “You get to know everybody quickly and get people to volunteer because they realize the parish doesn’t have an established order yet, so everyone needs to chip in.”

Once the pioneering parishioners set roots at the Warren Road location, the camaraderie of moving around developed into an open, welcoming environment.

“We’ve been to other parishes, shopping around, but we settled on this one since everybody knows everyone else, and you just feel welcomed,” said Doug Koch, an usher. “When we started, half of our parishioners were under the age of 10. That means people get really involved quickly, and people in their 30s got really involved. There is a real sense of ownership here, and that creates generous pastors.”