Historical Context for Our 3-Year (2024-2026) Capital Campaign
PARISH
Celebrating our 100th anniversary in 2022, the constant and enduring uniqueness of Blessed Sacrament is the fact that it was founded by Dominican Friars. We are the only parish staffed by a religious order in the Diocese of Madison. Nestled in the Regent neighborhood, our parish has enjoyed a symbiotic relationship with our neighbors. All of the current buildings on our campus were constructed in the first 40 years of our 100-year history, with some upgrades in the last 60 years, but no major construction work.
SCHOOL
Blessed Sacrament School was founded in 1924 by the Sinsinawa Dominican Sisters and had an initial enrollment of 138 students. For the school year 2023-2024, the school is seeing a robust enrollment of over 300! The school has set the standard for Catholic grade school education in the Greater Madison area, producing some of the best and brightest alumni! We continue to distinguish ourselves through a tradition of excellence in academics and extracurricular activities, including Montessori and multi-age classrooms, Catechesis of the Good Shepherd faith formation, art/music/band, and sports, as well as service projects, such as Operation Christmas Child, that invests in developing the whole student
Throughout our history, we have celebrated our traditions, continuously focusing on new possibilities. As we look towards our school’s future, we remain committed to producing dynamic growth opportunities for our students and school.
The Process to Get Where We Are Now
In 2022, through an extended campus facility discovery, planning, and parishioner feedback process, it was determined that we needed to address key issues:
Our steam heating system serving all buildings on campus is beyond its useful life.
Our Friars are living in markedly deteriorated living conditions resulting in life safety and accessibility issues.
Our facilities (school, gym, Priory, and parts of Parish Center) have inadequate ADA accessibility.
Our gym facility is in disrepair and does not meet middle school regulations for court size.
Our school built in 1960 does not meet the evolving realities of teaching students in the current technology age.
Our last capital campaign was more than 23 years ago.
Therefore, in April of 2022, two teams were formed to address these key issues– a Fundraising Team and a Facilities Team. We sent a “Request for Proposals” to solicit the assistance of a capital campaign company, an architectural firm, mechanical engineers, and cost estimators to develop a Campus Master Plan. The results of a feasibility study in October 2022 revealed parishioners were in favor of proceeding with a capital campaign.
INVESTING IN THE FUTURE
To position ourselves to grow in our mission of spreading the good news of Jesus Christ, provide enhanced worship and community spaces, rebuild, restore, and renew our facilities, and continue delivering top-notch education and opportunities for our students and community, Blessed Sacrament is exploring a multi-million dollar fundraising campaign in alignment with our updated Campus Master Plan.
An capital campaign is crucial to addressing the needs of our Campus Master Plan and includes the following enhancements based on the Dominican pillars along with our operational needs.
Prayer
Enhanced worship & parish community spaces
Sanctuary upgrades and beautification
New community chapel in the rectory
Improved gathering spaces for growth of family faith formation & parish ministries
Study
Newly designed school office that is accessible for strollers, wheelchairs, & other ADA needs
Renewed classrooms & tutoring areas
Safe & secure environment for our students
New windows in several facilities
Community
Suitable & comfortable living environment for our priests
New regulation-sized gym to advance student wellness & provide space for the wider community to use
Redesigned kitchen & gathering space (Friary) in the existing gym that can become a beautiful venue for parish events & wedding receptions
A new heating system that serves all campus buildings
Environmentally-conscious improvements, such as solar energy panels on the school roof, geothermal heat pumps, & large-scale rain gardens to capture rainwater
Ministry
Redesigned meeting rooms for the growth of family faith formation and parish ministries
Restoration and beautification of the windows in our existing gym