Officials say the endowment funds benefit parishes, schools, seminarians, Catholic Charities Maine, and many other ministries across Maine. The Catholic Foundation of Maine was established in 2003 to provide individuals with the opportunity to support and create lasting endowments that will enhance the work of the Catholic Church in Maine.
The St. James School “Carrying on the Legacy of Catholic Education” endowment will be used for the general support of St. James School in Biddeford.
“The new endowments join a large pool of funding that is making a real difference in the lives of students, parishioners, and clergy who are seeing their needs and the needs of our schools and churches met through this generous giving and stewardship,” said Elizabeth Badger, executive director of the foundation. “The foundation’s objective is to encourage and assist people who wish to make legacy and planned gifts. These people are filled with faith and a hope to help ministries that hold a special connection to them. Seeing those hopes become realities through endowments is fulfilling and inspiring.”
Saint James School celebrates its 25th anniversary this fall. The school was founded in 1992 by combining three local Catholic schools into one — Saint Joseph’s, Saint Andre’s and Saint Mary’s. In 2010, Notre Dame de Lourdes School in Saco also joined Saint James to create the only local Catholic preschool and elementary school in the area.
With more than 175 students enrolled, the goal of administrators at St. James School is to provide a quality educational experience that teaches the whole child. It is a parochial school committed to fostering spiritual, intellectual, social, emotional and physical growth in a collaborative environment emphasizing service, academics, faith and excellence while empowering students to be creative, to think critically, to act responsibly and to serve with integrity.
School curriculum integrates faith, service and learning into a value-based education that ensures every child that graduates from Saint James School will have the fundamentals needed to succeed in any path that they choose.
Voted Best Preschool and Best Private School in York County for two years in a row by readers of the Journal Tribune, St. James offers a full-day Kindergarten program, competitive sports teams and after-school clubs, band and guitar lessons during the school day, and students can participate in a First LEGO League Robotics Club. French also is offered from pre-K through eighth grade.
— Executive Editor Ed Pierce can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 326, or by email at [email protected].
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