Capital Campaign Update

As we begin the month of June, we are pleased to give an update on the Preserving Our Past, Securing Our Future Capital Campaign for the renovations to the High School Auditorium & Robert Frye Spartan Gymnasium. (Phase III)

As the school’s summer break begins, we are ready to start some of the much-needed work inside the auditorium. The Diocese of Toledo has approved us to spend up to $230,500 in work. As of the end of May, we have $264,730 on hand in the bank. This $230,500 will allow for a considerable amount of work to be completed this summer, but we are still about $108,270 short of our total estimated project price tag of $373,000.

In any case, we are going to continue moving forward with work, as our financial capabilities allow us to do so. Initially, these funds will allow us to complete work on the following projects:

There is also news to report about the design of the seating in the auditorium. We have received an initial quote for replacement seats of just under $140,000. These seats would retain the same metal deco style row ends, and wooden armrests that look similar to our current seat design. The upgrades should hold up to the wear and tear by daily use from students. The new seat upholstery colors would be a dark blue color. Of course, we can’t start the much-needed seating project until we have the $108,270 gap closed.

There are still multiple ways you can make contributions to the Capital Campaign. First, you can elect to set up a new pledge commitment over the next year. Even after this summer, we still have three additional stages of the campaign to complete in the future.

You can contribute to a Memorial Seat in the auditorium, either in whole or part. The amount of $500 will allow you to purchase a seat in memory or honor of a family member, friend, or loved one. Many have asked how they can contribute – even if they do not have a direct connection to the school.

Based on the suggestions of several parishioners, we are creating honor/memorial pools to which you can designate your gift. You can make your gift in memory of any of our current or former priests or sisters of the parish. For example, several $100 contributions could go towards a chair in honor of Sister Bernard Marie Campbell.

As of May 28, there remains $194,633 in outstanding pledges from the fundraising campaign. These potential funds are still critical for us to receive because many donors made their gift designation towards the church restoration. Even though that work has been completed and paid for, it was funded in part by cash gifts from donors who made designated pledges for the auditorium/gym, with the hope that everyone would fulfill their three-year pledge commitments alongside their own.

As in many campaigns related to the school, we always get questions from parishioners who ask why they should support a project for the school when they do not have children in the school system. “If my gift was for the church, and the parish has completed the work in the church, then why should I keep giving?” There are a few reasons we ask you to consider.

First, the auditorium/gym is one of the most public areas of our school campus. The parish uses the auditorium for our Christmas and Easter overflow Masses. Many members of the parish participate in our annual musical. It can also become another venue for our popular Music Series for performances that would not be appropriate for a church performance. When completed, our auditorium could be used for special events in the community that need a presentation space for up to 600 people.

Also, we need the facility to look good to be successful in attracting new families to our school community.

Second, and most importantly for us as a community of faith, Catholic schools are still one of the primary pipelines for vocations. A 2014 study by the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate based at Georgetown University showed the link between Catholic schools and vocations. The report: Catholic Schools in the United States in the 21st Century: Importance in Church Life, Challenges and Opportunities, points out that half or more of new priests and brothers attended Catholic primary schools as did 41 percent of new women religious and 45 percent of young lay ministers.

It is exciting to see that we have a recent alumnus currently discerning his future path for a vocation. There is always an opportunity to grow our Catholic culture in our school, and all it may take is just one priestly vocation to be the spark.

In the 1954 Campaign brochure to raise funds to construct the high school, Monsignor Goebel used the following passage to help build support for the new school building. It still rings true today.

“One person alone could not build a city or a railroad. One person alone would find it difficult to build a house or bridge. That we may have bread, people have sowed and reaped; people have made plows and threshers, people have built mills and mined coal; people have made stoves and kept store. Thus it has ever been; as we learn to work together, the interest and welfare of all are advanced.”

Much has changed since the 1950s, but the idea of teamwork has not. By working together, “shoulder to shoulder,” we owe it to the next generation of students and parishioners to give them a functional space and something of which they can be proud for them to make their own memories.

Thank You for your continued support and sacrificial giving on this project.

Make your gift online to support the campaign. »