Click on "The Story" to see The Story of Notre Dame's Closing.
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A Parish is about People, not Money
Notre Dame Parochial School Can Be Saved
Recently, I have read two articles in relation to the closing of the Saint Matthews portion of Notre Dame in Ridgefield. Notre Dame is a parochial school that is based at Saint Matthews in Ridgefield (Pre-K-1) and Saint Michael’s in Palisade Park (2nd – 8th). The school is “supposedly” supported by three parishes (Saint Matthews, Saint Michaels, and Saint Nicholas). I find it extremely disheartening that the church is trying to close another suburban Catholic school. I also find it extremely insulting that the whole truth is not being told to the parishioners and all of the parents of students that attend and support Notre Dame. Shouldn’t the parishioners be given an opportunity to decide the fate of their parish?
For many, many years, I have been dear friends with a number of teachers at Notre Dame and parishioners in Saint Matthews that work and volunteer at Saint Matthew’s Rectory. I found it amazing how there are really two sides of the story about the closing. Hence, this is why I am writing. Because it bothers me greatly that such deceit is happening.
I also fear for Saint Matthew’s Parish. If Notre Dame School closes, eventually, so will Saint Matthews. A shocking and (some would say “impossible”) thought, but just look at what is happening in the Archdiocese:
● Church Attendance is Down: Roman Catholic Sunday Church attendance is dropping about 1% a year. Currently, only about 30% of Catholics go to church every Sunday. (Source: USA Today) I am always disappointed when I attend mass. The pews are empty. Even worse is that there are very few young people. The families are not coming. Just look around yourself…where is the next generation?
● There is a major shortage of priests: It is well known that there is a shortage of priests. The number of priests in the United States has dropped by over 20% and the priests that remain, more than 50% of them are over the age of 55. As these priests begin to retire, who will take their place? NO ONE! So this will force parishes to merge.
● Archdiocese of Newark WILL be closing parishes: It has been widely reported in both the New York Times and The National Catholic Reporter that the Archdiocese of Newark is under great financial strain. Since 2004, the Archdiocese has been pressuring parishes to “merge”. There are already 50 parishes on the “closing list” (New York Times). One will note that all parishes are currently “finding there mission” (ie: What can you do best? Which programs can survive?) This is in preparation for merging parishes.
Parish closings will happen whether we want it or not. So do not think that Saint Matthews is immune. The parishes that will survive will be parishes that: attract the people, are financially sound (note…I said “sound”…not rich!), and has an active and varied community life (like Knights, Rosary, and a SCHOOL). Parishes that support a Catholic School will be immune from these closings especially since there are so few of these parishes left. (And just because a parish has a positive cash-flow does NOT protect it from closure. What good is money, if no one is left to support a viable parish? The Archdiocese will just close the parish and sell the profit making property for more money!)
Supporting a Catholic school does take a lot of effort, but when school staff, student families, the parish AND the pastor WORK TOGETHER…anything is possible. The parishioners of Saint Michaels, Saint Nicholas and ESPECIALLY Saint Matthews must know that Notre Dame can be saved. The question is whether or not the parishioners WANT to save it? After talking to my friends and colleagues, I have no doubt that Pastor Sheehan WANTS to get rid of Notre Dame. He does NOT want it saved. He is tired and does not want to face a long uphill struggle to save the school. He has chosen the “easy way out”. He wants to eliminate Notre Dame School and the Dominican Sisters who support and run Notre Dame.
WHY, you ask? The simplest of all answers…for MONEY. Money is nice for a parish, but it does not make a parish. People MAKE a parish. A Catholic school is not something you run for profit. It serves a deeper and more meaningful purpose. It is about creating a new generation of students that we will be proud to call, Catholics. It is about ingraining the truth of the bible into our children and bringing God into their lives. It is about teaching our children that charity, chastity, discipline and being a religious person is “ok”…actually…better than ok!
The Issues:
Money:
Yes, money is always an issue when it comes to running any school…just look at our property taxes. Even though we are not happy about the cost of our schools…we work hard, complain a lot, and pay our tax bill because we know it is for the education of our children. It is about their future.
● Expectations: Pastor Sheehan (and the Archdiocese) demands that Notre Dame be self-supporting. How does he expect this to happen? Public schools are supported by property taxes, state taxes (income & lottery), federal grants, private grants, foundations etc. The best of the best of our schools from elementary to Ivy League Colleges CANNOT survive ONLY on tuition…if the best schools in our country can’t survive only on tuition, then how can anyone expect a small Catholic school to do it?
● Parish Support: When Notre Dame was created (by taking 3 parishes and merging their schools into two in the 1990’s.) It was clearly understood that the three parishes would financially support Notre Dame. There was a specific amount of money that was supposed to come from each parish. This did not happen. So for years, Notre Dame survived without this aid. You should give the school and the Dominican Sisters credit for surviving so long on their own. (Yes, some utilities and maintenance costs have been covered but not to the amount agreed to by all the parishes.) Just recently in the bulletin, it was noted that “subsidy from the three host parishes has been determined impossible”…in other words, they won’t pay there share as agreed to. A good contract lawyer would enjoy this case!
● Enrollment: Enrollment has dropped, but it is not the fault of Notre Dame. The pastors share part of the blame.
◊ Usage of the “Bully” Pulpit: When was the last time you heard the parish pastor use his sermon to encourage people to have their children attend Catholic school? When was the last time he handed out information at mass about the parish school? When was the last time that the pastor discussed with new families that were registering about the benefits of a quality Catholic education? Yes, there is always that “announcement” in the bulletin, but I am talking about more than that. I am talking about truly being involved in recruiting new students. This does NOT happen.
◊ Rumors & Misinformation: Pastor Sheehan tried to close Notre Dame last year (2005-2006 school year). He kept his plan quiet for a number of weeks, but eventually it leaked out. When the staff, student families and the Notre Dame Home School Association (and many wonderful parishioners) found out, they raised tens of thousands of dollars in only a few months! Pastor Sheehan kept adamantly arguing for the school’s closure. But how do you go against the wishes of hundreds of families and parishioners? Pastor Sheehan and the general rumor mill that we all participate in, seemed to make sure everyone knew that the school was going to close. Finally, after waiting as long as he could…in June the decision was made to keep the school open. Of course, did Pastor Sheehan “shout from the roof tops to celebrate the survival of his parish school? Heck, no! That was kept “mum”. By the time word got out, many families had already registered their children in other schools for September (2006).
◊ High Tuition: Because the “host” parishes do not provide the support they agreed to and the general increase in costs for any business, the cost for tuition has skyrocketed over the last few years. Tuition is about $4,500 for one child! How is a blue-collar family from our parish going to afford that? And what if the family has two or three children? The high tuition has made a Catholic education unattainable to many. It’s a simple economic theory…higher price means lower sales. But the parish demands that the tuition be raised, so the church has less responsibility.
● There is no money for Notre Dame, but…:
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to repave the parking lot that really didn’t need paving. ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to purchase fancy Belgian blocks to surround the rectory. ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to take down a fence (that was fine) and put up a new one. ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get a part time job for the parish that pays you MORE than a full time Notre Dame teacher! ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get an offer to have part of your college tuition paid for…the person doesn’t even work for the parish yet! Does the parish pay for their own teachers to expand their education? NO! ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but the pastor can ask the Knights for money to repair the basement of the church, but he won’t ask for money to help save Notre Dame School. ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but “Grant and loan money…will be made available through the Archdiocese” to pay for renovations at the Palisade Park building. So grants are available to close a school, but not to help keep it open?
Attitudes:
Now, some might say that it’s not fair to “only” blame Pastor Sheehan. There are three parishes involved. Well, because Saint Matthews is the largest of the three parishes and the school is on his property, Pastor Sheehan is the primary decider. The Newark Archdiocese will follow his recommendations. If he says he wants to close it, they will agree with him. He is the only pastor that has been actively pressing for Notre Dame’s closure…and look what is happening. He is the pastor for the parish, so the Archdiocese assumes he would do what is best for his parish. But Pastor Sheehan has lost sight of his true calling, especially with a “reward” between $150,000 - $350,000 coming to his church because of renting out the school. If you were him what would you want…a flourishing parish school that takes a massive amount of hard work and sweat to take care of or to sit around and collect a check from somebody renting a building? (Of course, the real question is which option will make Saint Matthews parish a real parish…people or money?)
● Confrontation: Notre Dame School has been operated by two highly qualified and caring Dominican Sisters (Sister Pat & Sister Ellen) for at least 20 years, now! The nuns are fairly strict and while some parents may not always agree with their decisions on discipline etc. Everyone can attest to their dedication, kindness, charity and support. Sister Pat & Sister Ellen will fight tooth and nail to help protect the children under their care. They always fight for what is best for the students. The nuns treat the students like they are their very own children. You know your children are in good hands. Since Sister Pat & Sister Ellen will fight for the children and for what’s best for Notre Dame, this puts them at odds with Pastor Sheehan. Pastor Sheehan (and anyone can attest to) is very confrontational with Sister Pat & Sister Ellen. He fights to close Notre Dame and they fight to keep it open. It angers him greatly that Sister Pat & Sister Ellen publicly oppose him. Pastor Sheehan was not pleased last year when the parents and parishioners raised enough money to save Notre Dame. Pastor Sheehan has constantly been threatening to fire the Dominican Sisters (which means they lose their jobs of over 20 years and their only home of over 20 years, since they live in the convent at Saint Matthews.) Pastor Sheehan knew that he was going to close the school back in the early fall of 2006 (because of the new enrollment figures…remember many people left because they thought Notre Dame was closing.) Sister Pat and Sister Ellen were warned that if they told anybody, they would be fired. (Pastor Sheehan did not want the parishioners and families to fight to save the school, again…so he wanted to keep it quiet….which is why he didn’t tell the parishioners until he was forced to because of the newspapers.) Recently, he was extremely displeased with Sister Pat and Sister Ellen because of the local newspaper coverage. It seems that the sisters are not allowed to speak their mind even if their opinions are protected by the Constitution of the United States. It is Pastor Sheehan’s dream to fire Sister Pat and Sister Ellen. They have been a thorn in his side and the only people to directly confront him on his errors in overseeing Notre Dame. You can all expect that he will not stop until this happens. (To make even more money for the parish…the convent could be knocked down, sold, and turned into a condo development…what else would you do with an empty convent?)
● Lack of Support: Pastor Sheehan claims to support the school…does he? ◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan even walked through the school? (NOT including the recent trips with prospective tenants!) ◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan came to the school to read to the students? ◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan talked to the hard working teachers, who get paid ½ of what public school teachers make, to tell them that they are doing a great job? ◊ How many of the Notre Dame Home School Association fundraisers has Pastor Sheehan attended? ◊ How many times has Pastor Sheehan (who was a teacher) come over to Notre Dame and teach a lesson? ◊ How many times has Pastor Sheehan used the pulpit to encourage parishioners to attend a school fundraiser. (I don’t mean a “monotone” announcement, I mean really “talk it up”?) ◊ Over all these years, when was the last time that Pastor Sheehan organized a fundraiser for Notre Dame?
Yes, we are well aware that the pastor has many duties. But school is open 180 days a year and none of the above can happen at all?
The Deceit:
This is what bothers me the most and this is why I wrote this essay. I cannot stand people who lie. People who don’t tell the WHOLE truth are lying! The parishioners are not being told the whole story!
● Keeping Secrets: Notice how Pastor Sheehan kept the closure of the school “quiet”. It is NOT because he didn’t know or a decision hadn’t been made. They knew back in October what their plan was. It was kept quiet to prevent parishioners and student families from fighting to save Notre Dame. Shouldn’t it be the parishioners who decide the fate of Notre Dame rather just one biased person?
● “All” the students will NOT be going to the Palisade Park building: According to my friend at Saint Matthew’s Rectory, the renovation costs could reach as high as $750,000 to renovate the Palisade Park building. (It’s not going to be cheap, if you are planning on knocking down an entire house and expanding a building.) Pastor Sheehan will not pay that price (even though he will be getting rental income from the Ridgefield building). Besides the cost, it will be IMPOSSIBLE to have the Palisade Park building ready by September to accommodate all of the students. With my family in the construction industry, even we know that it would not be possible to be ready by September. ◊ So what are Pastor Sheehan’s options? Do the cheapest thing. Eliminate the Pre-Kindergarten program. By eliminating the Pre-K program, most of the renovations will NOT have to take place. Even though the Pre-K years are some of the most important years for academic development for a child, he will eliminate the program. Another possible hint that the Archdiocese knows what Pastor Sheehan is planning (but did not announce) is that there was a small article in the Bergen News. In the article it separates the K-8 students and the pre-k students. Why would you say that there are 255 students plus an additional 60 pre-K students? Wouldn’t you just say that there are 315 students? Why are the “60 pre-k” students separated? Because Pastor Sheehan wants to get rid of those 60 students, then he wouldn’t have to pay as much for the renovations that are required (like proper bathrooms). Another clue to his plan is that father was speaking to one of the nuns and made it known that “if” they eliminate the pre-k program that only one sister would be needed to run the school….like it was noted earlier…he cannot wait to fire the nuns. (He tells everyone in the bulletin to registrar their child, but then tells others that their won’t be a pre-k program…so which is it?) ◊ With more and more school districts implementing Pre-K and Pre-K being mandated by the state in Abbott districts (and eventually all districts), why would anyone start their child in a public pre-k program and then switch them to Notre Dame? It wouldn’t be logical for a child to go to a public school for one or two years and then switch. ◊ With the end of the Pre-K program, this will cause enrollment at the Palisade Park Notre Dame to drop significantly and in turn it would FORCE THE COMPLETE CLOSURE OF NOTRE DAME. With the complete closure of Notre Dame, Pastor Sheehan would not have to channel ANY of his building rental money to Notre Dame (If the channeling is anything like previous financial support, Notre Dame is in serious trouble!)
● Squish the Rest: To prevent expensive renovations, Pastor Sheehan’s only option will be to allow only one classroom of each grade. So even though most people pay the high tuition to put their child into a caring environment that is not overcrowded and even though it is scientifically proven that students excel academically in small classes (18 students or less), Pastor Sheehan will cram as many students that will fit in a class. If you don’t believe this, take a look at the number of students in each class (not average). To help cut costs this year, several smaller classes were merged. It looks great in the checkbook, but it’s not best for the child. Overcrowding will ruin the great reputation that Notre Dame has and hasten its demise, but it’s cheapest this way and isn’t that what’s important?
● Better Location: Anyone can see that using the Saint Matthews building would be a better option. Even though Palisades Park does have several more classrooms and a gym, there is absolutely NO space for expansion. There is NO parking and NO play ground for the little children. It is also on several extremely crowded streets. Traffic and parking will be a nightmare for parents, staff and locals. Saint Matthews has ample space for expansion, but this is unacceptable because then Saint Matthews won’t get its revenue.
● Fire the Dominican Sisters: This is his plan and it is disgraceful. We are lucky to have such wonderful dedicated people working for us. WHEN Pastor Sheehan fires them, where does he think he is going to get a certified principal? A public school principal makes an average of $125,000…the two Dominican sisters probably don’t even make a third of that…and there are two of them! The idea is to keep costs low, not increase them, plus what about the moral guidance and stability that the Dominican Sisters provide? Do you think some “low paid” stranger is going to perform the same? Keep dreaming!
● Do as I say, not as I do: We all know the high cost of health insurance. The Catholic church is an ardent supporter of mandating companies to pay for health insurance for its employees and for the state to offer and pay for health insurance for people not covered. The Church has lambasted companies, such as Wal-mart, for not letting its employees work full time because then it would have to pay for health benefits. Well, back in early fall, once the pastor knew he was going to close Notre Dame, he and the Archdiocese demanded that the Dominican Sisters give workers (like aides who make just over minimum wage and have families) only part time hours. Even though the aides are desperately needed to work with the 3 and 4 year olds and this left them extremely short handed, he did not care. Pastor Sheehan did not want to pay for the employee’s health benefits!
● 75%/25% will result in failure: Pastor Sheehan noted in the bulletin that 25% of the Ridgefield school rental revenue will be given to Notre Dame and that Saint Matthews will be given 75%. Let’s do a little math: According to the bulletin, Notre Dame was about $117,000 short last year and that there are less students this year. So let’s assume that Notre Dame is about $150,000 short this year. If the pastor rents out the school for $350,000 (which is extremely unlikely since Epiphany School in Cliffside Park was recently rented for $150,000), that means Notre Dame will get about $87,000. Now there will be some minor cost savings (maybe two less employees), but there will be an increase because of the renovation loan (and a new principal!). So if Notre Dame is $150,000 short and gets only $87,000, they will still be short $63,000. Because of this deficit, the school will raise tuition, which in turn will attract fewer students, which will cause an even larger deficit. This revenue sharing scheme will force Notre Dame to close. Why does Saint Matthews need 75% of the income ($263,000)? Doesn’t the pastor want to support a Catholic school or does he just want to shirk all of the responsibility? If Notre Dame completely closes then no sharing will take place and all of the revenue is his. To make sure that Notre Dame survives, Notre Dame should get 75%. This will cover its deficit, allow them to lower tuition (which will attract more students) and provide the school with an opportunity to thrive. Of course, any excess revenue (excluding a small reserve) can be returned to Saint Matthews. THIS would be the way to be sure that Notre Dame survives, but does the pastor want this?
Conclusion:
Notre Dame School can be saved. With proper advertisement (so people know we ARE open), an active Home-School Association, supportive parishioners, creative fundraising and a pastor who will use the bully pulpit to garner support for his school…Notre Dame can be saved. (Just look over at Saint Francis in Ridgefield Park, they raised almost $700,000 to help support their school. They support their Catholic school.) If we let Notre Dame close, WHERE will people send their child to get a Catholic education? There will be no Catholic schools in Ridgefield, Palisade Park, Cliffside Park, one just closed in Fairview. We are getting down to the last of the last. We should not lose this opportunity because of laziness and greed.
If the parish was a private company and Pastor Sheehan was the CEO and you were the stock holders, what would you do? Your product sales are down (parishioners), revenue is down (lower collections) and a whole division of the company is being closed (instead of reinvigorated)…he would be fired. I don’t understand the Archdiocese, since Pastor Sheehan can’t handle a parish with a school, transfer him to a parish without a school (there are plenty to go around.) and give Saint Matthews a pastor who will fight…not for “money”…but for his parish…the entire parish.
PS: I recently was approached about the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal. The money goes to support “parishes and schools”. Well, I think we should all tell the Archbishop that since he won’t support our Notre Dame…we will. The money that I was going to send to the Annual Appeal (“for schools”) I will send it directly to Notre Dame for him!
At first he tried to rent it to ANOTHER Catholic school...figure that out...close his own and get another? If one private school can't make it (according to him) how will the other? Now he is trying Ridgefield Schools, I heard they came for a tour etc.
What father neglects to mention to his parishioners is that ALL school districts know it is cheaper to build a building (over the long term) then to rent one. So if Ridgefield rents Notre Dame...it won't be for long. If you are going to use a building for "50-100 years" (like a typical school) It is waaaay cheaper to build than rent. So as soon as Ridgefield Residents approve a new school (which WILL happen because of the overcrowding)...the Notre Dame building will be empty. So than Saint Matthews will have an empty school, an empty convent and a 1/2 empty church...It's the begining of the end for our parish.
All true. Fr. Sheehen has misled the parishners of St Matts.
"People MAKE a parish"
A perfect example of Father's attitude toward the parish is his actions about the Parish Picnic. The date was bad due to local high school events....and instead of just changing the date-he cancelled it stating in Church that Football was apparently more important than a Church function.
Whole heartedly agree with the following below: "There is no money for Notre Dame, but…:
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get a part time job for the parish that pays you MORE than a full time Notre Dame teacher!
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get an offer to have part of your college tuition paid for…the person doesn’t even work for the parish yet! Does the parish pay for their own teachers to expand their education? NO! ◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but the pastor can ask the Knights for money to repair the basement of the church, but he won’t ask for money to help save Notre Dame School.
In my opinion, it is up to the teachers...if they like and support Sister Pat & Sister Ellen...then I'm in for a fight...but without the teachers support...nothing is going to happen. So how do the teachers feel?
The following letter was read to the parents during the meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 13. Dear Parents, Students, and Friends of Notre Dame: Your outpouring of love, support and encouragement touched all the faculty and staff yesterday. Hearing everyone outside truly bolstered our determination to get some answers. We wish we had some positive information to report, unfortunately, we are still all confused, upset, and angry, as you must all be, over the turn of events. The faculty and staff have not given up our fight to retain Sister Ellen and Sister Patricia. We are planning our next strategy. We only hope that with the Lord's direction and guidance we can reverse this horrific decision together. We want to give special thanks to all our children, for they are the heart and soul of Notre Dame. We will do everything in our power to make sure that Notre Dame continues to be strong. Please keep us abreast of your efforts and we will help out in any way that we can. With much love and appreciation, The Faculty and Staff of Notre Dame
Anyone got the full story on Father Sheehan in Jersey City? A friend of mine told me that he was "unofficially" booted out of Lady of Mercy or St. Pauls?(he couldnt' remember which church) in Jersey City. He said he was very unpopular and angered a number of people down there too! very "political".
Did you see how Pastor Sheehan claims in the bulletin how there has been meetings with the "Board of Pastors" to decide the change in "administration"...when did the meetings take place? One Pastor is in the hospital and the other had NO CLUE that the Sisters were being fired (Bergen News 2/14)...so who was at this pastorial meeting to decide to fire the Sisters?
How many times were the Sisters invited to these "meetings" with the Archdiocese "School Office" and Internal Audit Dept.? ("Office" and Dept. means one business manager and an accountant) How many times did anyone from these "offices" interview parents or teachers...or did they just look at the financial numbers? And HOW many meetings were there? Were there any meetings to identify ways to SAVE the school? I'm sure not!
Notice how AFTER Father gets everything that he wants...NOW..he wants parents and parishoniers input.
Ask Fr. Sheehan why he took $50,000 from the school to fix the parking lot, using the excuse that it needed fixing because it is used so much by the parents. Some gentleman
Hi anonymous! This is Julia Heaney. Just wanted to clear up a few things. First of all, I am currently employed by the church. I sing at four masses every week, weddings and holidays. I help plan the music you hear every week at mass. I also run the children's choir with Dennis (my favorite part of the job!). As someone who works forty hours a week and goes to school full time, I believe compensation for time spent at St. Matt's is not unjustified. Secondly, don't worry, the church contributes no money to my education. It is the Knights of Columbus who are paying for me to get a certification in youth minitry. As someone else noted, it's lamentable that we don't have any programs for the youth of our parish. The Knights of Columbus are endeavoring to change this. However, any youth minister is required to have certification. Hence, the program at St. Elizabeth's. I pay for the degree in History I'm pursuing entirely by myself. I agree with you; Church funding of a degree unrelated to the health of the parish would entirely innapropriate. I went to Notre Dame and treasured my time there. I've attended St. Matt's since my youth and I'm equally passionate about it. For obvious reasons, I'm staying out of the Notre Dame debate, but I just wanted to clear any doubts surrounding my character or intents. If you have any more questions about me, my job, my education, or the burgeoning youth ministry program, feel free to ask away! I'm working for you. And please, if you have children, be sure to get them involved when the youth program begins!
Julia, I do not believe that your character is in question. You seem to be a very pleasant and professional woman. It is wonderful that the Knights have seen the need for youth activities and programs within the Parish. It is unfortunate that our Priest , in the years that he has been here , has not seen the need or made any effort to know the children of our Parish. You should be commended for your efforts along with Mr. DeSantis who seems to be very involved with the Knights as well.
My compliments to you for keeping this blog active and not easing on the fight against this atrocity to these two fine administrators. This situation has deeply shaken my faith to the point that I feel I don't want to be around priests! As long as you're part of their good old boy your okay. I have not heard of one priest, be he local or from the archdiocese come out with some reasonable explanation of why this is happening and what have the nuns done to warrant this kind of unacceptable treatment. It's extremely upsetting and very unfortunate that Sisters Ellen and Pat have not been given a forum to defend themselves. Furthermore I have not heard one nice thing from any priest, (even if they didn't mean it), saying something nice about the service these two women have provided for many years. Unfortunately I believe this is a lost cause because I really don't believe the Church feels any type of strong commitment to Catholic education. Irishman, keep it up!
15 comments:
A Parish is about People, not Money
Notre Dame Parochial School Can Be Saved
Recently, I have read two articles in relation to the closing of the Saint Matthews portion of Notre Dame in Ridgefield. Notre Dame is a parochial school that is based at Saint Matthews in Ridgefield (Pre-K-1) and Saint Michael’s in Palisade Park (2nd – 8th). The school is “supposedly” supported by three parishes (Saint Matthews, Saint Michaels, and Saint Nicholas). I find it extremely disheartening that the church is trying to close another suburban Catholic school. I also find it extremely insulting that the whole truth is not being told to the parishioners and all of the parents of students that attend and support Notre Dame. Shouldn’t the parishioners be given an opportunity to decide the fate of their parish?
For many, many years, I have been dear friends with a number of teachers at Notre Dame and parishioners in Saint Matthews that work and volunteer at Saint Matthew’s Rectory. I found it amazing how there are really two sides of the story about the closing. Hence, this is why I am writing. Because it bothers me greatly that such deceit is happening.
I also fear for Saint Matthew’s Parish. If Notre Dame School closes, eventually, so will Saint Matthews. A shocking and (some would say “impossible”) thought, but just look at what is happening in the Archdiocese:
● Church Attendance is Down: Roman Catholic Sunday Church attendance is dropping about 1% a year. Currently, only about 30% of Catholics go to church every Sunday. (Source: USA Today) I am always disappointed when I attend mass. The pews are empty. Even worse is that there are very few young people. The families are not coming. Just look around yourself…where is the next generation?
● There is a major shortage of priests: It is well known that there is a shortage of priests. The number of priests in the United States has dropped by over 20% and the priests that remain, more than 50% of them are over the age of 55. As these priests begin to retire, who will take their place? NO ONE! So this will force parishes to merge.
● Archdiocese of Newark WILL be closing parishes: It has been widely reported in both the New York Times and The National Catholic Reporter that the Archdiocese of Newark is under great financial strain. Since 2004, the Archdiocese has been pressuring parishes to “merge”. There are already 50 parishes on the “closing list” (New York Times). One will note that all parishes are currently “finding there mission” (ie: What can you do best? Which programs can survive?) This is in preparation for merging parishes.
Parish closings will happen whether we want it or not. So do not think that Saint Matthews is immune. The parishes that will survive will be parishes that: attract the people, are financially sound (note…I said “sound”…not rich!), and has an active and varied community life (like Knights, Rosary, and a SCHOOL). Parishes that support a Catholic School will be immune from these closings especially since there are so few of these parishes left. (And just because a parish has a positive cash-flow does NOT protect it from closure. What good is money, if no one is left to support a viable parish? The Archdiocese will just close the parish and sell the profit making property for more money!)
Supporting a Catholic school does take a lot of effort, but when school staff, student families, the parish AND the pastor WORK TOGETHER…anything is possible. The parishioners of Saint Michaels, Saint Nicholas and ESPECIALLY Saint Matthews must know that Notre Dame can be saved. The question is whether or not the parishioners WANT to save it? After talking to my friends and colleagues, I have no doubt that Pastor Sheehan WANTS to get rid of Notre Dame. He does NOT want it saved. He is tired and does not want to face a long uphill struggle to save the school. He has chosen the “easy way out”. He wants to eliminate Notre Dame School and the Dominican Sisters who support and run Notre Dame.
WHY, you ask? The simplest of all answers…for MONEY. Money is nice for a parish, but it does not make a parish. People MAKE a parish. A Catholic school is not something you run for profit. It serves a deeper and more meaningful purpose. It is about creating a new generation of students that we will be proud to call, Catholics. It is about ingraining the truth of the bible into our children and bringing God into their lives. It is about teaching our children that charity, chastity, discipline and being a religious person is “ok”…actually…better than ok!
The Issues:
Money:
Yes, money is always an issue when it comes to running any school…just look at our property taxes. Even though we are not happy about the cost of our schools…we work hard, complain a lot, and pay our tax bill because we know it is for the education of our children. It is about their future.
● Expectations: Pastor Sheehan (and the Archdiocese) demands that Notre Dame be self-supporting. How does he expect this to happen? Public schools are supported by property taxes, state taxes (income & lottery), federal grants, private grants, foundations etc. The best of the best of our schools from elementary to Ivy League Colleges CANNOT survive ONLY on tuition…if the best schools in our country can’t survive only on tuition, then how can anyone expect a small Catholic school to do it?
● Parish Support: When Notre Dame was created (by taking 3 parishes and merging their schools into two in the 1990’s.) It was clearly understood that the three parishes would financially support Notre Dame. There was a specific amount of money that was supposed to come from each parish. This did not happen. So for years, Notre Dame survived without this aid. You should give the school and the Dominican Sisters credit for surviving so long on their own. (Yes, some utilities and maintenance costs have been covered but not to the amount agreed to by all the parishes.) Just recently in the bulletin, it was noted that “subsidy from the three host parishes has been determined impossible”…in other words, they won’t pay there share as agreed to. A good contract lawyer would enjoy this case!
● Enrollment: Enrollment has dropped, but it is not the fault of Notre Dame. The pastors share part of the blame.
◊ Usage of the “Bully” Pulpit: When was the last time you heard the parish pastor use his sermon to encourage people to have their children attend Catholic school? When was the last time he handed out information at mass about the parish school? When was the last time that the pastor discussed with new families that were registering about the benefits of a quality Catholic education? Yes, there is always that “announcement” in the bulletin, but I am talking about more than that. I am talking about truly being involved in recruiting new students. This does NOT happen.
◊ Rumors & Misinformation: Pastor Sheehan tried to close Notre Dame last year (2005-2006 school year). He kept his plan quiet for a number of weeks, but eventually it leaked out. When the staff, student families and the Notre Dame Home School Association (and many wonderful parishioners) found out, they raised tens of thousands of dollars in only a few months! Pastor Sheehan kept adamantly arguing for the school’s closure. But how do you go against the wishes of hundreds of families and parishioners? Pastor Sheehan and the general rumor mill that we all participate in, seemed to make sure everyone knew that the school was going to close. Finally, after waiting as long as he could…in June the decision was made to keep the school open. Of course, did Pastor Sheehan “shout from the roof tops to celebrate the survival of his parish school? Heck, no! That was kept “mum”. By the time word got out, many families had already registered their children in other schools for September (2006).
◊ High Tuition: Because the “host” parishes do not provide the support they agreed to and the general increase in costs for any business, the cost for tuition has skyrocketed over the last few years. Tuition is about $4,500 for one child! How is a blue-collar family from our parish going to afford that? And what if the family has two or three children? The high tuition has made a Catholic education unattainable to many. It’s a simple economic theory…higher price means lower sales. But the parish demands that the tuition be raised, so the church has less responsibility.
● There is no money for Notre Dame, but…:
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to repave the parking lot that really didn’t need paving.
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to purchase fancy Belgian blocks to surround the rectory.
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but there was money to take down a fence (that was fine) and put up a new one.
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get a part time job for the parish that pays you MORE than a full time Notre Dame teacher!
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get an offer to have part of your college tuition paid for…the person doesn’t even work for the parish yet! Does the parish pay for their own teachers to expand their education? NO!
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but the pastor can ask the Knights for money to repair the basement of the church, but he won’t ask for money to help save Notre Dame School.
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but “Grant and loan money…will be made available through the Archdiocese” to pay for renovations at the Palisade Park building. So grants are available to close a school, but not to help keep it open?
Attitudes:
Now, some might say that it’s not fair to “only” blame Pastor Sheehan. There are three parishes involved. Well, because Saint Matthews is the largest of the three parishes and the school is on his property, Pastor Sheehan is the primary decider. The Newark Archdiocese will follow his recommendations. If he says he wants to close it, they will agree with him. He is the only pastor that has been actively pressing for Notre Dame’s closure…and look what is happening. He is the pastor for the parish, so the Archdiocese assumes he would do what is best for his parish. But Pastor Sheehan has lost sight of his true calling, especially with a “reward” between $150,000 - $350,000 coming to his church because of renting out the school. If you were him what would you want…a flourishing parish school that takes a massive amount of hard work and sweat to take care of or to sit around and collect a check from somebody renting a building? (Of course, the real question is which option will make Saint Matthews parish a real parish…people or money?)
● Confrontation:
Notre Dame School has been operated by two highly qualified and caring Dominican Sisters (Sister Pat & Sister Ellen) for at least 20 years, now! The nuns are fairly strict and while some parents may not always agree with their decisions on discipline etc. Everyone can attest to their dedication, kindness, charity and support. Sister Pat & Sister Ellen will fight tooth and nail to help protect the children under their care. They always fight for what is best for the students. The nuns treat the students like they are their very own children. You know your children are in good hands.
Since Sister Pat & Sister Ellen will fight for the children and for what’s best for Notre Dame, this puts them at odds with Pastor Sheehan. Pastor Sheehan (and anyone can attest to) is very confrontational with Sister Pat & Sister Ellen. He fights to close Notre Dame and they fight to keep it open. It angers him greatly that Sister Pat & Sister Ellen publicly oppose him.
Pastor Sheehan was not pleased last year when the parents and parishioners raised enough money to save Notre Dame. Pastor Sheehan has constantly been threatening to fire the Dominican Sisters (which means they lose their jobs of over 20 years and their only home of over 20 years, since they live in the convent at Saint Matthews.)
Pastor Sheehan knew that he was going to close the school back in the early fall of 2006 (because of the new enrollment figures…remember many people left because they thought Notre Dame was closing.) Sister Pat and Sister Ellen were warned that if they told anybody, they would be fired. (Pastor Sheehan did not want the parishioners and families to fight to save the school, again…so he wanted to keep it quiet….which is why he didn’t tell the parishioners until he was forced to because of the newspapers.) Recently, he was extremely displeased with Sister Pat and Sister Ellen because of the local newspaper coverage. It seems that the sisters are not allowed to speak their mind even if their opinions are protected by the Constitution of the United States.
It is Pastor Sheehan’s dream to fire Sister Pat and Sister Ellen. They have been a thorn in his side and the only people to directly confront him on his errors in overseeing Notre Dame. You can all expect that he will not stop until this happens. (To make even more money for the parish…the convent could be knocked down, sold, and turned into a condo development…what else would you do with an empty convent?)
● Lack of Support:
Pastor Sheehan claims to support the school…does he?
◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan even walked through the school? (NOT including the recent trips with prospective tenants!)
◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan came to the school to read to the students?
◊ When was the last time Pastor Sheehan talked to the hard working teachers, who get paid ½ of what public school teachers make, to tell them that they are doing a great job?
◊ How many of the Notre Dame Home School Association fundraisers has Pastor Sheehan attended?
◊ How many times has Pastor Sheehan (who was a teacher) come over to Notre Dame and teach a lesson?
◊ How many times has Pastor Sheehan used the pulpit to encourage parishioners to attend a school fundraiser. (I don’t mean a “monotone” announcement, I mean really “talk it up”?)
◊ Over all these years, when was the last time that Pastor Sheehan organized a fundraiser for Notre Dame?
Yes, we are well aware that the pastor has many duties. But school is open 180 days a year and none of the above can happen at all?
The Deceit:
This is what bothers me the most and this is why I wrote this essay. I cannot stand people who lie. People who don’t tell the WHOLE truth are lying! The parishioners are not being told the whole story!
● Keeping Secrets: Notice how Pastor Sheehan kept the closure of the school “quiet”. It is NOT because he didn’t know or a decision hadn’t been made. They knew back in October what their plan was. It was kept quiet to prevent parishioners and student families from fighting to save Notre Dame. Shouldn’t it be the parishioners who decide the fate of Notre Dame rather just one biased person?
● “All” the students will NOT be going to the Palisade Park building: According to my friend at Saint Matthew’s Rectory, the renovation costs could reach as high as $750,000 to renovate the Palisade Park building. (It’s not going to be cheap, if you are planning on knocking down an entire house and expanding a building.) Pastor Sheehan will not pay that price (even though he will be getting rental income from the Ridgefield building). Besides the cost, it will be IMPOSSIBLE to have the Palisade Park building ready by September to accommodate all of the students. With my family in the construction industry, even we know that it would not be possible to be ready by September.
◊ So what are Pastor Sheehan’s options? Do the cheapest thing. Eliminate the Pre-Kindergarten program. By eliminating the Pre-K program, most of the renovations will NOT have to take place. Even though the Pre-K years are some of the most important years for academic development for a child, he will eliminate the program. Another possible hint that the Archdiocese knows what Pastor Sheehan is planning (but did not announce) is that there was a small article in the Bergen News. In the article it separates the K-8 students and the pre-k students. Why would you say that there are 255 students plus an additional 60 pre-K students? Wouldn’t you just say that there are 315 students? Why are the “60 pre-k” students separated? Because Pastor Sheehan wants to get rid of those 60 students, then he wouldn’t have to pay as much for the renovations that are required (like proper bathrooms). Another clue to his plan is that father was speaking to one of the nuns and made it known that “if” they eliminate the pre-k program that only one sister would be needed to run the school….like it was noted earlier…he cannot wait to fire the nuns. (He tells everyone in the bulletin to registrar their child, but then tells others that their won’t be a pre-k program…so which is it?)
◊ With more and more school districts implementing Pre-K and Pre-K being mandated by the state in Abbott districts (and eventually all districts), why would anyone start their child in a public pre-k program and then switch them to Notre Dame? It wouldn’t be logical for a child to go to a public school for one or two years and then switch.
◊ With the end of the Pre-K program, this will cause enrollment at the Palisade Park Notre Dame to drop significantly and in turn it would FORCE THE COMPLETE CLOSURE OF NOTRE DAME.
With the complete closure of Notre Dame, Pastor Sheehan would not have to channel ANY of his building rental money to Notre Dame (If the channeling is anything like previous financial support, Notre Dame is in serious trouble!)
● Squish the Rest: To prevent expensive renovations, Pastor Sheehan’s only option will be to allow only one classroom of each grade. So even though most people pay the high tuition to put their child into a caring environment that is not overcrowded and even though it is scientifically proven that students excel academically in small classes (18 students or less), Pastor Sheehan will cram as many students that will fit in a class. If you don’t believe this, take a look at the number of students in each class (not average). To help cut costs this year, several smaller classes were merged. It looks great in the checkbook, but it’s not best for the child. Overcrowding will ruin the great reputation that Notre Dame has and hasten its demise, but it’s cheapest this way and isn’t that what’s important?
● Better Location: Anyone can see that using the Saint Matthews building would be a better option. Even though Palisades Park does have several more classrooms and a gym, there is absolutely NO space for expansion. There is NO parking and NO play ground for the little children. It is also on several extremely crowded streets. Traffic and parking will be a nightmare for parents, staff and locals. Saint Matthews has ample space for expansion, but this is unacceptable because then Saint Matthews won’t get its revenue.
● Fire the Dominican Sisters: This is his plan and it is disgraceful. We are lucky to have such wonderful dedicated people working for us. WHEN Pastor Sheehan fires them, where does he think he is going to get a certified principal? A public school principal makes an average of $125,000…the two Dominican sisters probably don’t even make a third of that…and there are two of them! The idea is to keep costs low, not increase them, plus what about the moral guidance and stability that the Dominican Sisters provide? Do you think some “low paid” stranger is going to perform the same? Keep dreaming!
● Do as I say, not as I do: We all know the high cost of health insurance. The Catholic church is an ardent supporter of mandating companies to pay for health insurance for its employees and for the state to offer and pay for health insurance for people not covered. The Church has lambasted companies, such as Wal-mart, for not letting its employees work full time because then it would have to pay for health benefits. Well, back in early fall, once the pastor knew he was going to close Notre Dame, he and the Archdiocese demanded that the Dominican Sisters give workers (like aides who make just over minimum wage and have families) only part time hours. Even though the aides are desperately needed to work with the 3 and 4 year olds and this left them extremely short handed, he did not care. Pastor Sheehan did not want to pay for the employee’s health benefits!
● 75%/25% will result in failure: Pastor Sheehan noted in the bulletin that 25% of the Ridgefield school rental revenue will be given to Notre Dame and that Saint Matthews will be given 75%. Let’s do a little math: According to the bulletin, Notre Dame was about $117,000 short last year and that there are less students this year. So let’s assume that Notre Dame is about $150,000 short this year. If the pastor rents out the school for $350,000 (which is extremely unlikely since Epiphany School in Cliffside Park was recently rented for $150,000), that means Notre Dame will get about $87,000. Now there will be some minor cost savings (maybe two less employees), but there will be an increase because of the renovation loan (and a new principal!). So if Notre Dame is $150,000 short and gets only $87,000, they will still be short $63,000. Because of this deficit, the school will raise tuition, which in turn will attract fewer students, which will cause an even larger deficit. This revenue sharing scheme will force Notre Dame to close. Why does Saint Matthews need 75% of the income ($263,000)? Doesn’t the pastor want to support a Catholic school or does he just want to shirk all of the responsibility? If Notre Dame completely closes then no sharing will take place and all of the revenue is his. To make sure that Notre Dame survives, Notre Dame should get 75%. This will cover its deficit, allow them to lower tuition (which will attract more students) and provide the school with an opportunity to thrive. Of course, any excess revenue (excluding a small reserve) can be returned to Saint Matthews. THIS would be the way to be sure that Notre Dame survives, but does the pastor want this?
Conclusion:
Notre Dame School can be saved. With proper advertisement (so people know we ARE open), an active Home-School Association, supportive parishioners, creative fundraising and a pastor who will use the bully pulpit to garner support for his school…Notre Dame can be saved. (Just look over at Saint Francis in Ridgefield Park, they raised almost $700,000 to help support their school. They support their Catholic school.) If we let Notre Dame close, WHERE will people send their child to get a Catholic education? There will be no Catholic schools in Ridgefield, Palisade Park, Cliffside Park, one just closed in Fairview. We are getting down to the last of the last. We should not lose this opportunity because of laziness and greed.
If the parish was a private company and Pastor Sheehan was the CEO and you were the stock holders, what would you do? Your product sales are down (parishioners), revenue is down (lower collections) and a whole division of the company is being closed (instead of reinvigorated)…he would be fired. I don’t understand the Archdiocese, since Pastor Sheehan can’t handle a parish with a school, transfer him to a parish without a school (there are plenty to go around.) and give Saint Matthews a pastor who will fight…not for “money”…but for his parish…the entire parish.
PS: I recently was approached about the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal. The money goes to support “parishes and schools”. Well, I think we should all tell the Archbishop that since he won’t support our Notre Dame…we will. The money that I was going to send to the Annual Appeal (“for schools”) I will send it directly to Notre Dame for him!
Who will be renting the space? Will it be the Ridgefield public school system?
At first he tried to rent it to ANOTHER Catholic school...figure that out...close his own and get another? If one private school can't make it (according to him) how will the other?
Now he is trying Ridgefield Schools, I heard they came for a tour etc.
What father neglects to mention to his parishioners is that ALL school districts know it is cheaper to build a building (over the long term) then to rent one. So if Ridgefield rents Notre Dame...it won't be for long. If you are going to use a building for "50-100 years" (like a typical school) It is waaaay cheaper to build than rent. So as soon as Ridgefield Residents approve a new school (which WILL happen because of the overcrowding)...the Notre Dame building will be empty. So than Saint Matthews will have an empty school, an empty convent and a 1/2 empty church...It's the begining of the end for our parish.
Hey Irishman!
You now have the attention of the nuns as well as several parishioners and Notre Dame parents .
What next?
Please email me!
All true. Fr. Sheehen has misled the parishners of St Matts.
"People MAKE a parish"
A perfect example of Father's attitude toward the parish is his actions about the Parish Picnic.
The date was bad due to local high school events....and instead of just changing the date-he cancelled it stating in Church that Football was apparently more important than a Church function.
Youth programs? Non-existant.
Children's Mass?-Nope
Whole heartedly agree with the following below:
"There is no money for Notre Dame, but…:
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get a part time job for the parish that pays you MORE than a full time Notre Dame teacher!
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but if you are a friend of the pastor you can get an offer to have part of your college tuition paid for…the person doesn’t even work for the parish yet! Does the parish pay for their own teachers to expand their education? NO!
◊ There is no money to support Notre Dame, but the pastor can ask the Knights for money to repair the basement of the church, but he won’t ask for money to help save Notre Dame School.
I'm so disgusted.
In my opinion, it is up to the teachers...if they like and support Sister Pat & Sister Ellen...then I'm in for a fight...but without the teachers support...nothing is going to happen. So how do the teachers feel?
The following letter was read to the parents during the meeting on Tuesday, Feb. 13.
Dear Parents, Students, and Friends of Notre Dame:
Your outpouring of love, support and encouragement touched all the faculty and staff yesterday. Hearing everyone outside truly bolstered our determination to get some answers. We wish we had some positive information to report, unfortunately, we are still all confused, upset, and angry, as you must all be, over the turn of events. The faculty and staff have not given up our fight to retain Sister Ellen and Sister Patricia. We are planning our next strategy. We only hope that with the Lord's direction and guidance we can reverse this horrific decision together. We want to give special thanks to all our children, for they are the heart and soul of Notre Dame. We will do everything in our power to make sure that Notre Dame continues to be strong.
Please keep us abreast of your efforts and we will help out in any way that we can.
With much love and appreciation,
The Faculty and Staff of Notre Dame
Anyone got the full story on Father Sheehan in Jersey City? A friend of mine told me that he was "unofficially" booted out of Lady of Mercy or St. Pauls?(he couldnt' remember which church) in Jersey City. He said he was very unpopular and angered a number of people down there too! very "political".
http://www.stopsheehan.com/
THERE'S A NEW ARTICLE POSTED.
So why the change of heart Father?
What a difference 10 years makes.
Did you see how Pastor Sheehan claims in the bulletin how there has been meetings with the "Board of Pastors" to decide the change in "administration"...when did the meetings take place? One Pastor is in the hospital and the other had NO CLUE that the Sisters were being fired (Bergen News 2/14)...so who was at this pastorial meeting to decide to fire the Sisters?
How many times were the Sisters invited to these "meetings" with the Archdiocese "School Office" and Internal Audit Dept.? ("Office" and Dept. means one business manager and an accountant) How many times did anyone from these "offices" interview parents or teachers...or did they just look at the financial numbers? And HOW many meetings were there? Were there any meetings to identify ways to SAVE the school? I'm sure not!
Notice how AFTER Father gets everything that he wants...NOW..he wants parents and parishoniers input.
Ask Fr. Sheehan why he took $50,000 from the school to fix the parking lot, using the excuse that it needed fixing because it is used so much by the parents. Some gentleman
Hi anonymous!
This is Julia Heaney.
Just wanted to clear up a few things. First of all, I am currently employed by the church. I sing at four masses every week, weddings and holidays. I help plan the music you hear every week at mass. I also run the children's choir with Dennis (my favorite part of the job!). As someone who works forty hours a week and goes to school full time, I believe compensation for time spent at St. Matt's is not unjustified.
Secondly, don't worry, the church contributes no money to my education. It is the Knights of Columbus who are paying for me to get a certification in youth minitry. As someone else noted, it's lamentable that we don't have any programs for the youth of our parish. The Knights of Columbus are endeavoring to change this. However, any youth minister is required to have certification. Hence, the program at St. Elizabeth's.
I pay for the degree in History I'm pursuing entirely by myself. I agree with you; Church funding of a degree unrelated to the health of the parish would entirely innapropriate.
I went to Notre Dame and treasured my time there. I've attended St. Matt's since my youth and I'm equally passionate about it. For obvious reasons, I'm staying out of the Notre Dame debate, but I just wanted to clear any doubts surrounding my character or intents.
If you have any more questions about me, my job, my education, or the burgeoning youth ministry program, feel free to ask away! I'm working for you. And please, if you have children, be sure to get them involved when the youth program begins!
Yours,
Julia Heaney
Julia,
I do not believe that your character is in question. You seem to be a very pleasant and professional woman.
It is wonderful that the Knights have seen the need for youth activities and programs within the Parish. It is unfortunate that our Priest , in the years that he has been here , has not seen the need or made any effort to know the children of our Parish.
You should be commended for your efforts along with Mr. DeSantis who seems to be very involved with the Knights as well.
Irishman
My compliments to you for keeping this blog active and not easing on the fight against this atrocity to these two fine administrators. This situation has deeply shaken my faith to the point that I feel I don't want to be around priests! As long as you're part of their good old boy your okay. I have not heard of one priest, be he local or from the archdiocese come out with some reasonable explanation of why this is happening and what have the nuns done to warrant this kind of unacceptable treatment. It's extremely upsetting and very unfortunate that Sisters Ellen and Pat have not been given a forum to defend themselves. Furthermore I have not heard one nice thing from any priest, (even if they didn't mean it), saying something nice about the service these two women have provided for many years. Unfortunately I believe this is a lost cause because I really don't believe the Church feels any type of strong commitment to Catholic education.
Irishman, keep it up!
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