Fundraising campaign for Utah Catholic Schools to start Columbus Day weekend

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To help provide tuition assistance for Catholic schoolchildren, the Knights of Columbus are sponsoring a six-month campaign. All of the money that is raised will go directly to Bishop Wester with the exception of the funds from the kick-off dinner &nda

SALT LAKE CITY — Catholic schools throughout the United States have closed their doors because they don’t have the enrollment to stay open. In the Utah Catholic school system, that hasn’t been the case – until this year.

“We’ve been going down (in enrollment) every year, but some of the schools were going up, so we stayed even,” said Holy Cross Sister Catherine Kamphaus, director of Catholic Schools. “This year we’re really down, but not as substantially as on the East Coast and the Midwest. We’re not ready to close schools because of it, but it looks fragile.”

The depressed economy has caused many families to be unable to afford Catholic school tuition, Sr. Catherine said. Her office began a Sponsor A Student program last year to gather funds for a tuition assistance program for all the schools, but so far the donations haven’t been enough to distribute, she said.

To help address the problem, the Utah Knights of Columbus have undertaken a Campaign for Catholic Education.

Charles Dover, Jr., Knights of Columbus Utah District Master, is a strong believer in the benefits of the Catholic educational system, which at one time was the gem of the entire nation, he said. Now, though, with Catholic values under attack by a secular society and the economy preventing parents from affording tuition, he sees that system starting to unravel. “If we don’t take an action, will we actually have a school to support?” he asked.

The action the Utah Knights are taking is a six-month campaign to collect donations. The campaign will kick off with a dinner during the Columbus Day weekend and continue with the Knights asking for pledges through March.

“What Knights are going to do throughout the diocese is they’re going to give out pledge cards, they’re going to give out donation cards – insert them in bulletins, hand them out after Mass, whatever it takes in a six-month period – to make sure that we address some of the financial problem that our schools are under,” Dover said.

With the exception of the dinner, where the Knights will collect the money to pay the caterer, all of the money raised will go directly to the Most Rev. John C. Wester, bishop of Salt Lake City, Dover said. “He will actually handle the money. He’s going to immediately have it in his hands to put it where he sees the most needs.”

If Bishop Wester were to hand Sr. Catherine a check, “I would put it in the Sponsor A Student program, and then it’s given to the neediest schools, unless the donor specifies a particular school,” she said. “We encourage not only the Knights but everybody to contribute to the Sponsor A Student program.”

The Campaign for Catholic Education dinner sponsored by the Knights of Columbus will be Saturday, Oct. 9, at Holy Family Hall at Saint Vincent Parish, 1375 E. Spring Lane in Holladay. The social hour with hors d’ oeuvres and a cash bar will start at 6 p.m. The dinner, prepared by Tom Catrow Catering, will be served at 7 p.m. Bishop Wester will be the featured speaker. Cost is $30. Make checks payable to Knights of Columbus and send to Charles Dover, Jr. PSD, 6170 Hathaway St., Taylorsville, UT 84123-5313 or call 801-266-3610. Reservations and payment must be received by Oct. 5.