Why I am Passionate about the Campaign: MBS Parishioner Mary Buttke

Video starts at 1:01:16

Transcript

Thank you for the opportunity to share with you why the one by One campaign is important to me. I am passionate about the Lourdes Academy portion of the campaign so that will be my focus today.

I currently serve as the president of the Lourdes Academy Foundation Board and as part of the one by One campaign leadership team. My time on the Foundation Board has allowed me to be part of the development of the vision to bring all 4K thru 12 students onto one campus. I also serve as part of the team that has worked through various versions of the plan over many years to make this happen. We weighed the wants and needs and the pros and cons of different options in order to develop a plan that will meet Lourdes Academy’s needs in a fiscally responsible manner.

Oshkosh has a long history of Catholic schools going back to the first school at St. Peter’s that opened in 1863. These schools have provided the opportunity for students to receive excellent academic training in a faith-filled environment. Lourdes Academy continues that tradition today. The Catholic faith and its values are a fundamental part of every school day. The teachers, students and their families are all a part of this. This environment leads to the Catholic faith becoming an intrinsic part of the students’ lives. It helps prepare them to be our next generation of religious and lay leaders.

Parochial education has always been important to my family. We are a four generation Oshkosh Catholic school family. My father attended school here at St. Peter’s and graduated from St. Peter’s high school in 1929. My mother attended Grace Lutheran grade school. My brother and I attended St. Peter grade school and Lourdes High School. My son attended St. Peter elementary, St. John Neumann middle school and Lourdes High School. My daughter-in-law attended Sacred Heart grade school and Lourdes High School. They both went on to also attend Catholic universities. Currently my five grandchildren are students at Lourdes Academy. All of us have benefitted from our years in Catholic schools in so many ways. We have truly been blessed.

The option to attend Catholic schools was available to my family because of the generosity and foresight of the people that came before us. Now I have the opportunity to do my part to ensure that future generations will have the same opportunities and blessings provided by Catholic education that my family had. I am excited to be able to support the one by One campaign financially, through prayer and volunteering.

In my many years working with the Lourdes Foundation Board I have never before witnessed the cooperation between Lourdes Academy, the Oshkosh parishes and the Green Bay Diocese that exists in the one by One campaign. I know I speak for everyone at Lourdes when I say we are so thankful for the support of Bishop Ricken and our pastors, Fr. Jerry, Fr. Tom and Fr. Louis, as we all work together on this campaign to provide for the future of Catholic education in the Oshkosh area. This spirit of cooperation and the generosity that I have already witnessed during the campaign make me optimistic that we will meet and hopefully even exceed our goal.

In conclusion I ask that you prayerfully consider how you can join me in supporting the one by One campaign. Whether it be a monetary commitment, prayers for our success or volunteering in some way we are truly grateful for your support. Thank you. God Bless you.