The Stewardship for Saints and Scholars (S3) Campaign for Catholic Education is officially underway at Queens. For those who could not see or hear the campaign video shown at Mass, here it is again:
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Today, as we fast and pray for peace in the Middle East on this 1st anniversary of the October 7, 2023 terror attacks in Israel, it is also the 25th Anniversary of my ordination to the Diaconate back in 1999 before I became a priest in 2000. This has caused me to look back and take stock of my priesthood. Of the 24 years I have been a priest, during only one of those years did I serve in a parish without a Catholic school on site.
I was not fortunate enough to attend Catholic school. Flint was already struggling when I was born and the school at our parish closed before I could attend it. The parish sadly has since also closed. Flint is featured in the S3 Campaign video, as one of the places that stands to benefit most from a successful effort here.
Queens and Catholic education go hand-in-hand because our parish ancestors believed strongly that the passing on of our Catholic faith and heritage to future generations was of vital importance. There was a school here 9 years before the present church opened. And, since Queens School first opened its doors with 170 students in 8 classrooms on January 27, 1941, well over 10,000 students have sat at our desks and learned how to read, write and love and serve God here.
Imagine that. 1941. The Great Depression. America was about to get sucked into the vortex of World War II, but even with all those challenges, your great grandparents were pinching pennies to donate to endless fundraisers to build a school where nuns taught for peanuts. Why? Because they were ALL believers. Because they were disciples. They followed Jesus with all their heart, and they wanted to lead others to him.
Their sacrifices paid off. Now it is our turn. What will we hand on to future generations? Hopefully a world, a parish and a Catholic school system that is better than when we found them.
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The Queens S3 goal is over $2,600,000! This is 1.25x our annual offertory, and part of a diocesan goal of $70,000,000. Thankfully, $8,000,000 in leadership gifts have already been pledged toward the success of this campaign.
Besides funding teacher pay increases, and a great deal more tuition assistance for families, there is a 20% parish share that remains at Queens. Our Finance Council has agreed to use those funds to sustain the operations of the Jackson Catholic Schools Administration and anything we raise over goal stays completely at the parish.
Why JCS? Our local school system is the first of its kind in the Diocese. Our schools are working together like never before – sharing staff, programs, resources, fundraising, enrollment initiatives and so much more. Thanks to our partnership in JCS, test scores at the grade schools are rising along with our academic standards. The 7th grade at Lumen runs so much more smoothly when the 6th graders feeding into it from the three grade schools all have learned and mastered the same material.
Thanks to JCS leadership, our teachers are now better trained and better paid, making them less likely to leave us for other jobs. All of our schools now use the same tuition billing and collection system (FACTS) thru Lumen Christi, and that has reduced the red tape and allowed for more families to qualify for financial aid and scholarship based on need.
For those reasons and more, Queens is planning to invest our S3 parish share in the administration of Jackson Catholic Schools. That means a great deal of the money we raise will directly benefit the schools, students and teachers right here in our own Jackson Catholic community.
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Above all, your prayers and your participation. Our culture is crumbling and the once solid and strong institutions of marriage and family life are under constant attack. Those who tell us to ‘follow the science’ are confused about when life begins, when and how gender is assigned, as well as how many genders there actually are. The moral compass of America is broken, and our kids will pay a heavy price if we don’t get back on the right track, and soon.
A strong school is but one piece of a larger puzzle, to reclaim and to rebuild our communities and our country by raising up future generations of faith-filled Catholics who will love God and country.
Notice, this campaign is not raising money to keep the lights on in the schools or to patch the parking lots or fix broken toilets. No, S3 is going to allow for more just compensation for the teachers we hire to be ‘on fire’ for Jesus and pass on that flaming torch of faith to your children. S3 is going to help those who can’t afford tuition due to inflation and other factors to put their kids in a learning environment where Christian teaching, Biblical truth and the Natural Law that governs all creation are held sacred in every class and lesson. Catholic schools are an oasis and safe haven from the ideologies creeping into the very fabric of our society.
The last time we did something like this was 2016 with the Witness to Hope Campaign. Then, on a goal of $2,875,000, we eventually raised more than $3,500,000 with gifts from 717 donors representing 46% of our registered households. I would like to increase the participation in S3, because the need is so pressing.
In the packet you receive in the mail later this week, there is a letter from Bishop Boyea with a specific gift request amount. It is aspirational, and it is optional. Your gift will hopefully be a pledge commitment to be paid over time, as most people can afford to give more when they extend the payment period. The amount requested has that taken into account.
Some of you will receive phone calls and contacts from fellow parishioners helping me with the campaign. They are there as a resource to answer your questions, act as goodwill ambassadors for the campaign, and to encourage people to make a gift or pledge commitment. If someone contacts you, be sure of this, they have already made their S3 gift. Please be responsive in their efforts to engage with you about this.
Not everyone can or should give the same amount to this campaign, but everyone can participate at the level you are comfortable with and capable of. That requires discussion, prayer and discernment. I hope there will be a great deal of discussion and discernment of S3 in the coming months at Queens.
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CAMPAIGN PRAYER
Lord, everything we have is a gift from you. You call us to receive your gifts with thanks, to develop these gifts fully, and to share them generously. Through the Stewardship for Saints and Scholars campaign help every young person in the Diocese of Lansing see your truth, beauty, and goodness; help families to raise their children in the Faith; and help parishes make a truly Catholic education available to all. May the work of this campaign bear abundant fruit in the Saints and Scholars you are raising up for the future. We ask these blessings through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us
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Truth, beauty and goodness are found in God, in His mercy, and in the one, holy, Catholic and apostolic Church founded by His son.
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“Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever. Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teaching” (Heb 13:8-9).
Fr. Tim MacDonald
Pastor
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Queen of the Miraculous Medal Catholic Church
606 S. Wisner St. Jackson, Michigan 49203
(517) 783-2748 www.queenschurch.com
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