The Home Campaign supports:
Parish Priorities 50%
Pope Francis Charitable Trust Fund 10%
Catholic Education Trust Fund 6%
Priests Retirement 8%
Cathedral 18%
The Process
On the 25th anniversary of the Diocese of Knoxville, our Bishop Stika unveiled the Home Campaign to address the mounting capital needs of our rapidly growing local Church, and to provide solutions to the various problems this rapid growth creates at every level of pastoral care. Since the Catholics of East Tennessee still need to build a purpose-designed cathedral for our diocese, our bishop included a portion of this cost in the campaign goals (18% of the total).
The three year goal for each parish is 1.4 times annual offertory giving. Our parish goal is $1,322,933. Each parish determines capital needs for half the funds it raises, while the remaining funds support long-term regional needs of the Catholic Church in East Tennessee.
In early 2015, Father Bede invited key advisory bodies in the parish to recommend capital improvements for inclusion in the Home Capital Campaign.
In the fall of 2015, Father Shelton and the Parish Pastoral Council conducted two “Open Forums” to aid overall pastoral discernment, including discernment of mission-oriented capital improvements.
In November of 2015, the Parish Facilities Committee finalized estimated costs of all the proposed improvements, and submitted these estimates to the Parish Pastoral Council. Afterwards, the Pastoral Council made its prioritized recommendations to Father Shelton. Father Shelton then scheduled a “walk-through” for parishioners in order to explain the proposals, and to listen to comments, complaints, questions and suggestions before making any final decisions.
Our parish begins full participation in the Home Campaign in the spring of 2016.
The Priorities
A. Convert present cafeteria into a multi-purpose “Social Hall”, with: professionally engineered acoustic control; lighting suitable for various gatherings; new seating that is portable, comfortable and easily maintained; sound system suitable for conferences; accessible restrooms on the south-west side (existing restrooms to become closets); and more welcoming, more secure and better lit exterior around west side entrance. $175,000.
B. Create parish greenway (4500’ walking distance), in order to: project to Oak Ridge the vitality of our parish; provide ease of access to existing parish centers of Marian devotion and environmental conservation; provide opportunity for future “Outdoor Stations of the Cross” and similar use of the open grounds; contribute to physical health of our parishioners and neighbors. $15,000.
C. Install card-reader system at primary facility doorways (five doors total), in order to: better coordinate facility scheduling and parishioner/visitor access; eliminate problem of unreturned keys; reduce security threats. $12,000.
D. Build up funds to replace aging HVAC units, most of which are now beyond their projected years of use. $360,000.
E. Refurbish two aging restrooms in school. $35,000.
F. Install security vestibule at main entrance of school. $5000.
G. Reseal bell tower to address chronic leaking and wall deterioration. $5000.
H. Rectory improvements: new oven and dishwasher for kitchen; refurbish guest bathroom. $5000.
I. Build up reserve funds for future facilities needs.
