Embracing Our Mission - Shaping Our Future Capital Campaign

UPDATE:  Exciting news to share! We have reached our initial $5,000,000 goal for the Embracing Our Mission~Shaping Our Future Campaign. Reaching this goal would not have been possible without the generosity and devotion of the entire St. Mary’s community. We are truly blessed that our parishioners, parents, and friends reflected on the inspirational words of the Redemptorists community and the impassioned appeals from our devoted volunteers.

As we celebrate this accomplishment, we ask for your prayers that our success in reaching our initial goal creates momentum that will allow us to secure the additional support for funding our total need of $8,500,000. If you have not yet given to the campaign, now is the time to join your St. Mary’s family in supporting the bright and promising future of our parish and schools.  

*Review our gift planner & complete your commitment card.

The elements of the Strategic Plan that we hope to focus our attention on are: the replacement of the St. Mary’s Church organ, an early education center and an athletic team house (both to be located at the St. John Neumann Church property), and building our endowment for future generations.

Strategic Plan Element: New Organ for Music Ministry at St. Mary’s

St. Mary’s has a long, rich history of offering reverential music at all sacred liturgies. The organ currently in use at St. Mary’s was installed almost 40 years ago and has passed its life expectancy. With each passing year, it is becoming increasingly inoperable. The church needs a new instrument that will continue to enhance the liturgical experience for all parishioners and visitors.

Strategic Plan Element: Expansion of St. Mary’s Early Education Program

In 2012, St. Mary’s Elementary School will proudly celebrate its 150th Anniversary. Each decade has seen capital improvements which have helped the institution evolve from what was once a small school house on historic Duke of Gloucester Street to a three building campus serving more than 800 students.  A new opportunity is on the horizon for St. Mary’s to provide a high-quality Catholic experience to youngsters entering preschool. As the result of the 2010 Archdiocesan Blue Ribbon Committee Report, which advocates the establishment of preschools throughout the Archdiocese, and the 2010 Long-Range Plan for our schools, St. Mary’s has decided to once again reinvest in our community by establishing a preschool program. The new Early Learning Center would be located at the St. John Neumann Church property. This investment would significantly benefit our community by feeding up to 80 additional students each year into our elementary school. Additionally, we would relocate our existing kindergarten to this facility and expand  grades 6 through 8 by one class each. This building would also create new, potential meeting space for ministries. 

 Strategic Plan Element: St. Mary’s Athletic Team House

St. Mary’s High School has earned a tremendous reputation among the scholastic athletic community for developing fair-minded, balanced, and academically-driven student-athletes.  During the fall of 2007, our St. Mary’s Saints were given a home field named in honor of Robert A. Pascal.  With an increasing number of athletic events held at the turf field each year, an athletic building is needed to accommodate the needs of our athletes, as well as those of our visiting teams.

Strategic Plan Element: St. Mary’s Endowment

Recognizing that the weekly offertory, capital campaigns, and school annual fund support alone are not enough, St. Mary’s leadership and long-range planning committees have placed endowment as a top priority for our parish. Like most parishes, our operating expenses continue to increase. One of the best opportunities to achieve long-term support for St. Mary’s is through our endowment. St. Mary’s Endowment is a fund in which the principal is maintained and a portion of the income is transferred to the operating budget each year.  Endowment funds may be named or unnamed; these funds directly support programs as designated by the donor or the general funding needs of our churches and schools. Endowment funds would provide:

• Parish-wide financial stability in perpetuity
• Stabilization of tuition costs
• Provide new scholarships to enhance school recruitment opportunities to support excellence in academics or diversity

We invite you to join the St. Mary’s community as we embrace our mission and shape our future. Your sacrificial and generous support are needed. Gifts of time, talent, and treasure are all important parts of this campaign.

 For more information about the campaign and for volunteer opportunities, contact the Office of Parish Advancement at 410-268-3467.