From the Pastor's Desk
Since the arrival of Fr. John Connell in 2023 he has communicated to the parish through a series of Pastoral Desk Issues. If you would like to read and discover his thoughts look below :
2026, current issue
Release Date: Friday, September 11, 2026
St Joseph School Capital Campaign (Part Two)
The last time I updated everyone on our Capital Campaign was mid-March. It was springtime and we were forming our Executive Committee. The article was mainly to let you know that we were moving forward with the project and we needed your prayers and your support in general.
Since that time, we have been in the quiet phase of our campaign. Our executive committee has been hard at work. We will have some news for everyone in the coming weeks, but I want to share 3 thoughts with you in this article on how you can help make this school a reality for our parish.
Parishioners: The building of our new elementary school completes the parish vision of having a new parish hall (center), classrooms, and offices for the parish, a new high school and finally an elementary school. The parish supports St Joseph School because close to 150 years ago, it was decided by parishioners to build a parish school and that would be part of its mission moving forward. That mission continues today. This support is not just aiding the school with money but providing our children with the best education possible. Over the years it means new facilities to provide our students with surroundings that aid in their learning. If you have not already pledged to our campaign, I ask that you consider a gift that you pay down over 3 to 5 years. It does not have to hurt, but if you could perhaps pledge $5,000 to $10,000 in total that would show your support to the future of St Joseph school. If you can give more, we would appreciate it.
School families: With the Learns Act that basically eliminated tuition to attend St Joseph School, most families are saving a lot of money when their children attend our school. If you have a child or children attending our school, I ask you to think about pledging $3000 a year for 5 years or $15,000. That would equal about two years of full tuition for a student before the EFA. If you can pledge more that would be wonderful.
Prayers and support: I ask all of you for prayers as we move forward with this huge building project. There are pledge forms that will be available at the back of the church this weekend. They are self-explanatory. Take a form home, think about it, pray and discuss it as a family, and determine what you can give or pledge. Any amount is a gift that we would be thankful to receive. We will let you know when and where to turn in your pledge cards.
Thank you for having an open heart and mind to making this long overdue elementary school a reality in the next few years. God bless all of you and I thank you in advance for you pledge or donation.
Go Bulldogs!
St Joseph…pray for us
Father John Connell
