SJI’s Inaugural Week of Giving commenced with a challenge from our corresponding member of the board, Dr. Maria Marta Ferreyra, and her husband Mr. Jeffrey Reminga, to match their gift of $10,000. They gave the following message:
“We are so pleased – the school is beautifully crafted. SJI meets students at an age when much of their characters and desires are being defined, and shapes them through a top-notch academic and spiritual formation – nourishing them with truth so that they can know and love the One Who is Truth. By sponsoring this matching challenge we are inviting others to experience SJI and help ensure its continued success.”
SJI’s Giving Week, which began on Padre Pio’s feast day and ended on the feast day of St. Jerome was also when SJI announced the formation of the Society for the Renewal of the Catholic Mind. The society is a forum where members can advance in their own education by considering the fundamental questions that have animated history. The society serves as a bridge between our school and the broader community of families and individuals we serve.
On the morning of St. Jerome’s feast day, our community met Maria and Jeff’s challenge, so an anonymous donor proposed to increase the challenge with another matching gift of $5,000, increasing the total matching funds to $15,000. Not more than 10 hours later, SJI’s supporters exceeded this new challenge as well. Clearly St. Jerome was busy interceding for us!
Our community rallied together to raise $44,013. This amount, combined with our two matching gifts, amounts to $59,013! This extraordinary display of support speaks volumes about our surrounding community of family, friends, and supporters. The campaign exceeded its fundraising goal by 97%, which is astounding given the challenging times facing our world.
On behalf of our faculty, staff, and most of all, our students, thank you to all who took part in SJI’s Inaugural Giving Week. Your generous support has been both overwhelming and humbling! Remembering the words of Padre Pio, the great Italian friar and mystic:
“As gifts increase in you, let your humility grow, for you must consider that everything is given to you on loan.”