The goal was to raise $8.5 million. The purpose was to glorify God. To date, the former has been exceeded with a collection of $8.7 million in pledges. The latter has been achieved through the generosity of so many but is yet to be completely satisfied — as all of us know, the physical upgrades and renovations are just underway, and the true glorification of God happens within the heart of man as he responds to God in love.
The “At the Feet of Peter” capital campaign was a bold initiative put in place by pastor Fr. Eric Clark and the campaign team to make St. Peter Parish a true spiritual home for all of our parishioners and visitors. To achieve this, the money raised by the campaign will be used to address the longstanding maintenance issues, increase security, beautify the church building, and create an endowment for future upkeep and facilities costs.
The swiftness by which the capital campaign was conducted is a testament to your generosity. Before the official campaign kickoff took place last October,
Fr. Clark and the campaign team met with 60 prospective donors in 60 days and collected over $6 million in pledges. Since then the giving continued to increase and culminated in exceeding the initial goal.
“The campaign has been amazing,” Fr. Clark says. “We had nearly 600 pledges and received an overwhelmingly positive response.”
Fr. Clark and the campaign committee members are excited and confident that once all the work is completed, St. Peter’s will be a worthy place of worship and an inspiring spiritual home.
“The parishioners can expect a place of worship that is safe, functional, and beautiful,” Fr. Clark says. “Artistically speaking, it will be the most decorative parish west of the Missouri River with the number of murals and stained glass windows.”
Now that the money has been raised, the capital campaign has accomplished its part of the process and the renovations got underway in June.
“The church nave will be closed starting June 1 and will continue through the spring of 2024,” Fr. Clark says. “The narthex will be closed for three weeks in July, but access to the parish will still be available either through the school or side doors.”
Despite the construction, the parish will do everything it can to continue to conduct itself on a normal basis.
“We will have to be more creative with our meeting space,” Fr. Clark says. “But the parish will function as normal with all its sacraments and programs.”
During this period of construction, many of the regularly scheduled liturgies and sacraments will be held in new locations.
“Mass, confessions, and Baptisms will be held in Bishop Vasa Hall,” Fr. Clark says. “Perpetual Adoration will be in the St. Mary Conference Room.”
Once the work is all said and done, Fr. Clark looks forward to uniting as the Mystical Body of Christ in the celebration of the sacraments.
“I look forward to seeing how our minds and hearts may be united as one in a foretaste of the beauty of heaven,” Fr. Clark says.
Since the beginning of the capital campaign, it was clear to many that St. Peter Parish needed a renewal. Over the past few years, there was a tangible stirring of the Spirit within the parish community. The money raised in the campaign is a witness to this, and the resulting renovations will be a physical reflection of the spiritual renewal of our parish.
