Dear Friend of JPII,
As a member of St. John Paul II Catholic Church and School community you are familiar with the following Bible verse. "I know well the plans I have for you" says the Lord, "Plans for your welfare and not your woe...Plans so as to give you a future full of hope." Jeremiah 29:11 Our parish has gone through many changes in the past few years—merging parishes, a new parish name, new school colors and mascot, building a beautiful new worship space, a renovation to add 6 new classrooms, and adding a serene new chapel in the school to name a few. This Bible verse is like a hug from God reminding us that He has amazing plans for us even in the midst of change.
I am writing about a change on the horizon that will affect the JPII School, Preschool/Daycare, and the After Care and Summer Care Programs. An upcoming Highway 31 project has led JPII to have to move the black metal fence and stone columns on the playground into the playground several feet. Unknown to anyone in current leadership at the parish or the school, the fence is over our property line. When the fence is moved back there will no longer be room for the current playground equipment along Highway 31 to remain in that space. We have plans to move that equipment along Scheller Avenue in the Building C parking lot. This project is time sensitive due to the Highway 31 project, and must be completed this summer.
Although we would not have chosen to take on this project at this time, it does give us the opportunity to move the playground equipment to an area away from the highly traveled Highway 31. We would also like to have the opportunity to install turf like the preschool playground which provides a safer surface.
This is not a project that we had anticipated having to complete, so there are not funds budgeted for it. To bring the positive results we are hoping for—a safer location for the playground equipment and a turf surface, we need your help. The total cost of the project is estimated to be just under $250,000. We are asking for donations from all friends of JPII to assure that we can complete this mandatory project in a way that creates positive results for our children.
As noted above, this project must take place this summer, so we hope to start as soon as school is out in order to not interrupt the start of school in August.
If you would like to make a donation, feel free to reach out to me, or send a check to the school noting that the funds are for the playground project.
The donation response card below will be sent home with your child today. Thanks in advance for your generosity as together we care for the St. John Paul II Catholic Parish and School and our future full of hope.
Karen Haas
Principal
