Dear Parishioners,

Last week, I announced that Holy Innocents School was closing, and I stayed after every Mass to answer any concerns people might have. I have received a couple good questions. So, as a follow up, I would like to answer some of them in this letter.

Is there anything that can be done to save the school? In the grand scheme of things, anything is possible. However, any attempt to save the school will have to overcome one giant hurtle: we need over a hundred more students. Even if we somehow raised a million dollars, that could only keep the school open for possibly two more years with the current deficit. Though if we had 200 students or more, who paid their tuition, that would solve our financial problems. I doubt whether this is possible since many Catholic elementary schools in the diocese are suffering with enrollment issues.

What does this mean for the future of the parish? There is absolutely no discussion about anything happening to the parish. In fact, without a school, we will be on much surer financial footing and we would have extra funds to improve our campus including fixing the parking lot, lights, heating/AC and roof.

What will happen to the school building? Nothing is going to happen to the school building. It is where our parish offices reside and it is where we teach CCD. So, we still need it. In fact, if we find some group to rent the school during the day, it might be an asset to the parish as well.

What will happen to the students and teachers? The principal and I, with the help of the diocese are all working to make sure that everyone who wants to remain in Catholic Education can continue in another school. We are currently in talks and cannot really get into the details at this time. But, we will update the appropriate people when we do have information. We are also working to find jobs for teachers who wish to continue working in Catholic Education. They are all great teachers who are faithful to the church. So, I’m sure we can find schools that would love to hire them.

Overall, I would like to emphasize that as sad as it is to lose the school, we as a parish can survive this. The Catholic Church has existed for longer than the Catholic Education system and will continue to exist even if there were no Catholic schools. Sometimes we need to make decisions about what the best use of our time and resources are. Even if one way proves too difficult to continue, that does not mean we can’t find another way. Have hope and keep the faith.

God bless,

Father Carter