I don't think the neighborhood(s) around OLGC in Vienna are necessarily like this, but there are a lot of families on the surrounding streets that go to OLGC as parishioners or send their kids to the school. I live on a cul de sac nearby (we are parshioners) and all of my neighbors that are now empty nesters sent their kids to OLGC (including the folks we bough our house from).

I know what the OP is talking about. I grew up in St. Louis, where this is very common:

We used to live in Chevy Chase DC and go to Blessed Sacrament. It is super tight knit. My friends all send their kids to St. Peters on Capitol Hill and they have a great Catholic community. I have also heard good things about Kensington, MD and Hyattsville, MD.

In VA, St. Mary's and Blessed Sacrament in Alexandria have tight parish schools, but St. Mary's is a large geographic area.

When I was a kid I lived in CCDC walking distance from Blessed Sacrement and a lot of kids on my block went to school there. All those families seemed super tight knit.

...MAINLY by sending your kids ...

You get to be part of the local catholic community msiy by sending your kids to a catholic school snd being involved in that parish.It's not really about the street you live on.

https://www.americamagazine.org/issue/281/article/last-acceptable-prejudice

Anti-catholic sentiments persist today.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Why is everyone attacking op? There are neighborhoods like this in Pittsburgh, St Louis, Boston and it’s comforting if you’re Catholic.

I grew up conservative Catholic. I find it gross and creepy when you think of the origins of these neighborhoods which were born out of WASP hate for Italians, Irish, and Latinos (Puerto Ricans/Mexican Americans). Also Catholics are no longer persecuted while others are--Black churches and synagogues are targets. No one bombs, burns down, or shoots up Catholic churches in the U.S.

They're not covered widely but a really quick Google search tells a very different story.

OP, I haven't found true neighborhoods like that in VA -- there just aren't as many Catholics as in the Northeast and Midwest-- but I'd agree with St. Leo's for a strong community feel.