Author: SFA Editor

We understand that with the advent of the global pandemic our parents and parishioners are focused on supporting their children with online learning and their own financial, family and social situations at home. As a community we will continue to pray for the health and safety of our families and parishioners.

However, we know that eventually we will all return to a new normal; therefore, our school community will continue with its commitment to the rebuilding of our 70 + year-old school as it nears the end of its operational life with a new school and gymnasium to secure our legacy of Catholic education in the Commercial Drive area for the coming generations.

Therefore, we are continuing to act on the recommendations of the Fundraising Feasibility report that we undertook last fall.

The Building and Development consultants will be working for the next three months to create a new building plan that we will look forward to sharing with our community this fall.

With Blessings to you and your family,

Father Eugenio Aloisio
Pastor

Mrs. Anne Yam
Principal

If anyone has any questions, please contact Barbara Broughton directly or via buildsfa@sfaschool.ca

We wanted to share with you the findings of the Compton Fundraising Campaign Report which we received at the end of December. The findings are significant and will change the way we approach the next few months of the project. They should not result in a significant delay and will allow us to develop a solid business platform to proceed.

Before we look at our next steps, we thought it would be worthwhile to provide a quick summary of the history of our school’s new building project.

The renewed call to build a new St. Francis of Assisi Elementary school started in 2013 when a seismic and structural review of our school was undertaken by the Archdiocese. It was determined then by architects and building development experts that it would be more cost-efficient to build a new school than to undertake the required retrofits. A building committee of volunteer parents was formed in 2014 to start to engage architects and building planners while another group of committed parents held the first SFA school Gala in 2014.

Since that time the school has consistently raised over $100,000 per year through school fundraising events and through Building Fund donations at the parish. To date, we have raised $ 690,000 towards our new school and have almost $400,000 remaining in our reserves. Our fundraising includes revenues from the Gala, Carnival, Walkathon, Wine & Cheese/Family Dance, direct donations and other contributions. The table below shows a break-down of the expenditures that we have incurred through the various building consultants, surveyors and architect fees that the City of Vancouver requires to undertake such a large-scale building project.

We had gone as far as having an accurate architectural drawing and cost analysis and had gained the necessary permissions from the Archdiocese for a loan and to sell parish land to help fund the project. The project team submitted an Approval in Principle document to the Archdiocese in January 2018 and this was granted which traditionally means the project is approved to proceed. We will likely now need to update and re-submit this given that the build costs have escalated and that we are now looking to develop some of the Parish garden in conjunction with the Knights of Columbus.

The sale of the convent adjacent to the parish was delayed when the City of Vancouver changed its position on re-zoning which dropped the potential sale price of the land by almost $2M. The property will likely go back on the market this year.

Findings of the Compton Fundraising Report

We have a wonderful community-oriented school that supports the need for a new school and gymnasium, BUT while the need for a new school is accepted, the confidence and support to launch a Capital Campaign was not present before we address some key areas:

• Ensure direct support from the Archdiocese – financial and senior strategic staffing
• Build a solid and transparent governance structure of individuals qualified in finance or building development, not just parent volunteers
• Re-create the momentum that has been lost by moving forward with the sale of the Convent property
• Implement a timely and regular communications plan.

OUR RECOMMENDED NEXT STEPS

1. Meet with the Archdiocese to ask for more engagement on their behalf, both financial and staffing commitment
2. Hire a professional development/building consultant to draft a solid project development plan with realistic timelines and costs to augment the current Building Committee
3. Create a more credible and experienced Governance structure
4. Enhance and continue with an open communications plan including financial transparency on moneys raised and spent to date.
5. Suspend contract with Compton Fundraising Consultants until these recommendations have been met.

We are invigorated and keen to press forward. We have been assured by the Archdiocese that they are committed to support our community to see a new school soon and they are looking forward to an ‘innovative and collaborative’ approach to working with us.

It has been a long journey to get to this stage and one in which our community has spent countless volunteer hours through the years to get this far. In naming names we run the risk of forgetting many who also were dedicated to our school, but we wish to publicly acknowledge and thank at this time in particular so many of our ‘legacy’ staff and parents, in particular, Jodie Sussex, Glenna Pollon, Bob Ambardar, Kerri Nardulli, Nicole Tan, Marielle Weisinger, Chris Weisinger, Alda Campos, Michelle Ventresca, Bernice Sabellico, Carol Audia, Michael Cunningham, Michael Gall, Cathy DiNozzi, Sonia Erickson, Laura Seracci and Maria Spitale to name just a few, for their contribution and dedication to get us this far.

We ask you to pray for our continued progress and we will continue to keep you apprised of our progress.

With Blessings to you and your family,

Father Eugenio Aloisio
Pastor

Mrs. Anne Yam
Principal

If you have any questions about this update or the building project, please direct them to buildsfa@sfaschool.ca

We hope that you have all had a prosperous and happy autumn season. It has been busy for both the school and parish and we are thankful for the many blessings that our engaged and thriving community continues to provide to everyone of us.

Our community is very committed to the importance of a new St. Francis of Assisi Elementary school.  Upon recognizing that we needed more support than what our dedicated volunteer parents could provide, we went through a public, competitive hiring process and engaged the services of one of our school parents who has an extensive background in Corporate Communications to serve as the Campaign Director. We also hired Compton Fundraising Consultants to assist us in the next stage of the planning and preparation process.

As the first stage of the planning, the consultant has now met with 22 different people from our parish and school community to seek feedback and guidance on the project. We are very thankful to those who participated and wish to thank them again for both their time and their candor. This information has proved invaluable.

We have just received Compton’s report earlier this week and are currently deliberating on their recommendations. We will get back to you no later than the end of January with a summary of their findings, recommendations and the next steps that St. Francis of Assisi intends to take regarding the building of our new school.

With Blessings to you and your family over the Season of Advent,

Blessing,

Father Gino and Mrs. Yam

Our community desperately needs a new 21^st century school in which to educate the students of St. Francis of Assisi school. Last year we faced an unexpected delay due to changes at the city, however,  we are poised to proceed with the planning of our Capital Campaign to raise the funds required to see our new school become a reality.

As was previously communicated in June, we have hired Compton Fundraising Consultants to help to steer our campaign and have now entered an active planning phase for the months of October and November.  Our first task was to hire a Campaign Director to commence work on October 1^st to work alongside Compton. After a competitive application process, we are pleased to announce that Barbara Broughton, Grade 5 & 1 parent has accepted the role. Barbara has over 20 years of corporate communications, public relations and project management experience in various roles in Canada, the UK and the US. During the last year, she took on an active volunteer role with the school and parish.

During the next two months we will work to develop the overall strategy for the Capital Campaign including timescales and campaign target and determine how this will connect to the sale of the parish properties. As part of developing this strategy, we will be contacting a small group of parents and parishioners to provide their insight and seek their guidance.

Stay tuned. By mid-November we will have a further update for you.

Blessing,

Father Gino and Mrs. Yam

Dear Parents and Parishioners

As we conclude a busy school year at St. Francis of Assisi, our volunteers, PEC and building committee continue to move the new school building project forward.

We have been in active discussions with several City of Vancouver departments including Planning, Urban Design & Sustainability, Development, the Parks Board, Buildings & Licensing as well as direct meetings with some City Councillors. These important steps have resulted in the positive feedback that senior staff at the City of Vancouver support our new school build at the current location and the rezoning of the adjacent convent site. This is a significant achievement given that the City Planning office has been in a state of transition – following the last civic election – with many new staff this year under a new Mayor and many new councillors. We will be meeting with the General Manager of Planning and senior staff again this summer to develop a clear plan of the required next steps. We have also had several meetings with the Archdiocese to keep them up to date regarding our progress and they remain supportive of our project.

Considering these important advancements, we feel the time is right to commence a formal strategic fundraising plan during the 2019/2020 school year. We have hired a local Vancouver Fundraising Consultant effective September 2019 to help us reach our fundraising goals. Sarah Howard is the Managing Partner and President of Compton Fundraising Consultants and worked with both large and small campaigns for over 20 years. She has experience in both the Education and Faith-Based sectors such as Collingwood School, Christ Church Cathedral School, St. Paul’s Foundation and Covenant House Vancouver. This was a competitive bid process that began this spring and has been reviewed and approved by the Archdiocese. Welcome Sarah!

In addition, we will require a full-time commitment from an individual within our school and parish community to work directly with Sarah. The ‘Campaign Director’ role will be a paid position to be recruited this summer so that the successful candidate can begin work in September. If you or someone you know is interested in this position, please see the link to the Job Description here.

We wish you the most joyful and restful summer.

With Blessings,

Jodie Sussex and Father Gino