A Campaign for Catholic Community Schools

Deeply Rooted, Growing Stronger

Coborn's Million Dollar Challenge - WE MADE IT!

The Coborn’s Million Dollar Challenge has not only been met—it’s been surpassed! The wave of support is nothing short of inspiring.

Thanks to the overwhelming generosity of over 150 donors—and the extraordinary support of the Coborn family, who matched every gift or pledge up to $500,000—we raised over $1 million within a 20-day window and officially crossed the $2 million mark!

A heartfelt thank you to the Coborn family for their vision and generosity, and congratulations to everyone who stepped up to make this success possible.

If you haven’t yet had the chance, you can still help us build on this momentum. Join us as we set our sights on the next milestone: $2.5 million! 

Testimonials

  • "We have been a part of the Catholic Community Schools since 1991 when we enrolled our first of three children into kindergarten at Sacred Heart School. It was one of the best decisions we could have made as parents. The highly qualified, caring teachers and staff within the system provided an education that prepared our children for any decisions or direction that they would choose after high school graduation. We felt confident that they were ready to take on life’s challenges. In addition to the outstanding education for our children, as parents, we have formed life long friendships that we hold deep in our hearts because of our involvement with this special community. We support and believe in the tradition of Catholic Community Schools."

    - Becky & Chris Coborn
    Honorary Chairs

  • "The resources that are now available make the science labs more immersive."

    — Dominick Kremer ‘25

  • "The design of the 3D classroom has allowed for safe and efficient transition among the wide variety of materials we use."

    — Dan Nelson, Art Teacher

We’ve Reached $2 Million—Let’s Keep Climbing!

Help us build on this incredible momentum as we aim for $2.5 million

Campaign Goals

We want to raise $6 million over a three-year pledge period for the following: 

The planning study helped us evaluate our goals and determine our most crucial needs. We have three incredibly worthy goals to make Catholic Community Schools stronger. 

  • North Building Loan

    $4 Million
    The generosity of our community helped finance part of the North Building, but a loan of $7 million was also secured to cover remaining costs. We still owe over $5 million, with monthly payments of $75,000 and interest payments of more than $165,000 per year. This goal will help reduce the $5.5 million balance.

    While the North Building has been a tremendous blessing, the cost of servicing this debt limits our ability to invest fully in our mission and growth.

  • New HVAC System

    $1 Million
    We have an obligation to provide a comfortable and safe environment for our students. The HVAC system in the Cathedral Center Building, which regulates heating and cooling for middle and high school students, has components that are 80 years old and cannot effectively be maintained. Students and staff often find it difficult to focus when the temperature is too hot or too cold.  

  • Elementary School Investment

    $1 Million
    We must invest more in our elementary schools with additional professional development opportunities and expanded program support to provide even greater impact during our students’ formative years.

The success of the Deeply Rooted, Growing Stronger campaign will allow us to:

  • Invest in innovative training for our Preschool through high school teachers to enhance their skills and methods. 

  • Continue to create classroom environments that maximize student engagement.  

  • Supply staff and resources to all of our schools to accommodate varying student learning needs.  

Let’s come together today to ensure that our mission remains strong! 

Achieving these goals will allow us to be a renewed and invigorated school community that is moving forward as one.  

Our successful campaign will:  

  • Significantly reduce the life of the loan and save us more than $900,000 each year in payments. 

  • Create a comfortable and safe learning environment for our middle and high school students, while saving on maintenance for outdated equipment and inefficient heating and cooling systems. 

  • Provide the means to ensure our elementary schools thrive as influential educational leaders in the St. Cloud community. 

Frequently Asked Questions

  • We have a goal of raising $6 million toward three projects which will benefit all seven of our schools: 

    • $4 million to significantly reduce the Cathedral North Building construction loan.  

    • $1 million for installation of a new HVAC system in the Cathedral Center Building. 

      • Estimated cost of this project is $1.5 million 

    • $1 million for program support and professional development for our elementary educators. 

    While there are many potential projects to raise funds for, we chose these three priorities as our top needs for this three-year campaign. While the debt reduction and infrastructure improvement are crucial for our future, we are particularly excited to invest in efforts that ensure our elementary school educators are the best they can be!  

  • It is not uncommon for a project of this scope to obtain outside financing. Because the pandemic negatively affected both construction costs and expected income, the school secured a loan to ensure construction would be completed on time for the opening of the 2020 school year.  

  • In 2019, Cathedral secured a loan of $7 million at an adjustable rate for 13 years (maturing in 2032). In January 2025, the interest rate increased to 5%, making the monthly payments $75,000. Through the generosity of our donors, $1.5 million of our loan has been paid over the past 5 years, leaving a current balance of $5.5 million.  

  • The three goals will provide incredible benefits across all grade levels: 

    1. By significantly paying down the loan over the next three years, Catholic Community Schools could save $900,000 a year on interest payments. CCS will redirect this money to support staffing, maintenance, programs and outreach across all seven schools. 

    2. A new HVAC system will allow for reduced heating and cooling costs in the Center Building. These savings will again directly affect the programming for all students.  

    3. The goal of continually improving our elementary student programming and offering additional faculty development opportunities will be readily attainable with these funds.

  • Donations to the Deeply Rooted, Growing Stronger campaign are restricted funds which can only be used for the three campaign projects. 

  • Every member of our Catholic Community Schools family will be asked to support the campaign. In order to be successful, it is critical that everyone participates. 

If you have questions about the FAQs above or another topic, please email John Haws, Director of Development at Catholic Community Schools, at jhaws@CatholicCommunitySchools.org. 

CAMPAIGN LEADERSHIP

Campaign Chairs
Missy & Josh Longnecker

Honorary Chairs
Chris & Becky Coborn
Bob Karn
Fr. Tom Knoblach
Fr. Scott Pogatchnik

Cabinet
Melissa Bayer
Matt Beirne
Diane Hageman
Joe Maiers
Marit Ortega
Bob Stocker
Kelly Vangsness