Judicial Vicar Fr. John LoCoco, Archbishop Jeffrey S. Grob and Vicar for Religious Sr. Diana De Bruin join 2,000 guests at the annual Saint Francis de Sales Seminary Dinner Oct. 3, where the seminary announced that its Zeal capital campaign has raised $75 million. (Photo courtesy of Saint Francis de Sales Seminary)
Just one year after being announced to the public, Saint Francis de Sales Seminary’s inaugural capital campaign, Zeal for the Lord’s House, has raised $75 million to fund its campus renovations.
The news was announced by Saint Francis de Sales Rector Fr. Luke Strand at the 23rd Annual Seminary Dinner earlier this month at the Baird Center in Milwaukee.
“Tonight, I look out at a faithful group of people who have been consumed by zeal for the Lord’s house, who have been consumed by the mission of the seminary,” said Fr. Strand to the 2,000 supporters who had packed the ballroom.
“Before we launched this campaign a year ago, we had 1,400 donors who had given $800 or more (in the course of their) lifetime to the Seminary,” Fr. Strand noted in his speech. “But now, through the sacrifice and generosity of over 4,000 friends, I am proud to announce that the Zeal for the Lord’s House campaign has raised $75 million.”
The announcement was met with a standing ovation.
“This has been a campaign of conversion,” he continued at the Oct. 3 dinner. “We poured ourselves into this campaign because we know generation after generation of men will hear the Lord’s voice saying, ‘Come and follow me.’ Our Lord offered those words in the Sea of Galilee to Peter, Andrew, James and John: ‘Come and follow me.’ And now, here in the See of Milwaukee, he’s offering those same words: ‘Come and follow me.’”
Fr. Strand showed dinner guests photos of the construction that has been underway at the seminary in St. Francis since earlier this year. Scaffolding now encases a large portion of historic Henni Hall, dedicated in 1856, whose iconic dome is being restored thanks to the campaign. Interior demolition is now nearly complete in Henni Hall, where additional seminarian rooms, guest rooms, a music room and computer lab will be added to the second floor. Construction crews are currently digging the basement for the addition to Henni Hall’s north wing, which will have a priest dining room, seminarian commons, expanded dining room and kitchen. Inside Christ King Chapel, restoration work on the 1888 mural of the episcopal ordination of St. Francis de Sales has begun.
Work on Kiley Hall will begin Nov. 1, Fr. Strand noted. Plans for that building include a 250-seat lecture hall, seven classrooms, offices and a reading room.
The seminary dinner was co-chaired by Moira Moede and Fr. Jacob Strand, the younger brother of Fr. Luke Strand. Early in the evening, he regaled the crowd with memories of visiting his older brother at Saint Francis de Sales Seminary 22 years ago, when Fr. Luke Strand was beginning his priestly formation.
“He gave me a tour of the seminary; we walked around Henni Hall. There were 12 seminarians living there. To me, the place seemed to be a ghost town,” recalled Fr. Jacob. “But my brother was brimming with excitement to show me every room.”
The brothers played basketball in the seminary’s Miller Gym, built in 1926. The building had clearly fallen into disrepair. But Fr. Luke’s enthusiasm was undimmed, his brother recalled.
“He didn’t only see what it was then, he saw what it could become,” Fr. Jacob said. “And now we all see what it has become.”
Archbishop Jeffrey S. Grob also offered remarks, noting that — as his residence is located right across from the Seminary — he has “the best view in the entire Archdiocese of Milwaukee.”
“What I see there beyond the bricks and mortar is the same reality that I see here tonight sitting in this room,” he said. “I see the future of priestly service for the Archdiocese of Milwaukee, and for all the dioceses that are served by Saint Francis de Sales Seminary.
“I see not only the present moment of renovation and rejuvenation, but I see the future of the sacramental life of the Church. I see not only the next chapter in an incredible legacy, but I see the living 29th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles.”
Speaking with the Catholic Herald the week following the seminary dinner, Fr. Luke Strand said he was “humbled and amazed by what God has accomplished in the past year.”
“There were many people who thought we were not going to be able to reach the $75 million we need,” he acknowledged. “But we knew this was the approximate cost of the project from the beginning, and we had a lot of confidence that the Lord really initiated this, and it was going to be brought to fulfillment.”
Additional opportunities to give
It’s not too late to support the Zeal for the Lord’s House campaign. The seminary continues to seek funding for several projects within and around Christ King Chapel. These projects include the re-creation of the chapel’s original pews, the restoration of six 1901 stained-glass windows, and the restoration of the St. Francis de Sales statue in front of Henni Hall.
For more information about giving, visit www.sfs.edu/zeal-campaign/.
