March 1, 2020

Cultivating Our Future Capital Campaign Launched

This weekend Our Lady of Victory launched a capital campaign:  Cultivating Our Future.  This $1.6 million dollar two-year campaign has three goals:

1. Provide for Our Children a physical environment conducive to student learning, with upgrades to the heating and cooling systems at our school.
2. Sustain Our Mission through ongoing facility upgrades to provide more hospitable and efficient spaces for our current parishioners and future families.
3. Build Our Community by expanding and supporting our ministries and missions in the Quad-Cities.

Brochures mailed to each household and available by clicking HERE  and pamphlets in the parish bulletin and sent home in backpack mail provide the details of each area.  The most critical and first area to be addressed is the heating and cooling systems at JFK, and we hope to have a new HVAC system in place for the older parts of the building by fall.

If you have questions about our projects or the campaign after receiving the information, please contact Fr. Jake,  any member of the Finance or Parish Councils, or me.  We will also be hosting a special information session next Sunday, March 9th, in the parish center at 2:00 p.m.

Pledge cards will be mailed later this week, and parish members will be calling over the next few weeks to ask if you have any further questions or concerns.  Fr. Jake’s bulletin article explains that “on the weekend of March 14-15, we will have a special Pledge Sunday where we will take a few moments at each Mass to give thanks to God for the commitments made to this campaign. You can bring your pledge card to any of the Masses that weekend, mail them to the parish office or put them in the offertory.”

Thank you in advance for your financial support and prayers as we move together in Cultivating Our Future.

Plant Sale

JFK is partnering again with Janet’s Jungle to offer a way to beautify your yard all while supporting our JFK school.
We offer a beautiful selection of annuals, perennials, and vegetables, including several baskets and planters, at very reasonable prices! This is perfect timing for buying early for Mother’s Day, Teacher Appreciation Week, and for getting all your flowers and vegetables for your garden, patio, or yard.  The sale runs through April 6th. Pickup will be April 30th and May 1st from 2pm-7pm in the Parish Center. Purchases can be made online by clicking PLANT SALE, using the link/url, or http://www.janetsjungle.com/davenport-jfkcatholicschool.html or via the order form that went home with students.  Extra forms are available in the school office.

COVID-19

With concerns about COVID-19 in the U.S. rising, we are working with the state and county health departments and diocese to review our plans.  Prevention measures for COVID-19 are the same as for other influenza circulating currently:

• Cover your coughs and sneezes with a tissue or your upper arm/elbow.
• Wash hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after going to the bathroom, before eating, and after blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing.
• If soap and water are not readily available, use an appropriate hand sanitizer, preferably one with a 60%-95% alcohol concentration.  (At school, we are working to increase the availability and use of hand sanitizer.)
• Avoid touching your eyes, nose, and mouth.
• Avoid sharing cups, water bottles, and utensils.
• Regularly clean and disinfect frequently touched surfaces and objects.  (At school, we are examining if there are ways to increase our regular cleaning and disinfecting in both common and classroom areas.)
• Stay home when ill.  The following is from our handbook:  “Parents should keep their children at home if they are ill.  Students should be fever free for 24 hours and fully recovered from any illness before returning to school.  A fever is defined as a temperature at 100 degrees or above when not using medication to lower the temperature.  A student will be excluded from school when the student’s condition has been determined to be contagious to others or if the student is too ill to do his/her work.  These conditions would include fever, diarrhea, pink eye, rashes, vomiting, and non-allergy causing runny nose or coughing spasms prohibiting the child from being able to do his/her work, etc.”
• Avoid close contact with people who are sick.

It is important to prepare for the potential of COVID-19 as you would for severe weather or other events that could disrupt your normal routine.  What would you do if:

• you could not go to work due to your illness or if your workplace closed?
• your child is ill or becomes ill during the day?
• your daycare provider is ill or has to close?
• school is closed? Closed for a week or longer?
• you need to get groceries but are ill?

Routine use of prevention measures and preparing for some of the above possibilities will increase our readiness for any disease situation.

Kindergarten Round-up Has Occurred. Tuition Contracts Being Prepared

If you missed kindergarten round-up, please contact the school office, (563) 391-3030.  Tuition contracts for the 2020-21 school year are being prepared for all students.  We hope to mail them next week.

AHS Production of Freaky Friday

Save the Date for the Assumption Knight Players’ production of Freaky Friday, a heartfelt, comedic, and unexpectedly emotional update on an American classic!  When an overworked mother and her teenage daughter magically swap bodies, they come to appreciate one another’s struggles, learn self-acceptance, and realize the immeasurable love and mutual respect that bond a mother and daughter.  Performances are on March 6th and 7th at 7:00 p.m. and March 8th at 2:00 p.m..  Tickets available at http://www.showtix4u.com   or at the door.

Highlighted Upcoming Events

Mar 12:  Home & School Mtg

Mar 13:  Green/White Dress Day

Mar 14/15:  Cultivating Our Future Pledge Weekend

Mar 16-20:  Spring Break.  No Classes.  ECLC Open.

Mar 23:  Classes Resume

OLV parish bulletin:  Click HERE or use the following link/url: https://www.olvjfk.com/olv/wp-content/uploads/sites/2/2020/02/March-1-2020.pdf

Campus Improvements

Cultivating Our Future is the second capital campaign I’ve been through at JFK.  I’ve always been impressed with the way the OLV and JFK community has tackled large scale projects.  In many locations, there’s a lot of worrying and fretting, but nothing gets done because it’s too hard or it will cost too much.  At OLV, people do their research to determine what the wants and needs are.  They then do their due diligence in looking at the options and costs.  Finally, they decide and take action.  In 2008, we launched a $2.4 million dollar campaign and ended up with a $3.4 building project that was dedicated in 2011.  Since 2011, we’ve done well over $500,000 in campus improvements including heating and cooling work in the church, school, and rectory, new roofs on three buildings, safety improvements at the school and church, stained glass window repairs in the church, parish center kitchen renovations, and more.  Now, we are preparing for another $1.6 million in campus improvements and ministry enhancements.  OLV and JFK are, again, leading the way.  Please pray for our continued success.

Chad