Group’s dream becomes reality with Holy Family

Walt Disney once said, “If you can dream it, you can do it.”

So it was with a group of friends sitting around a kitchen table in the early 1990s, talking about and dreaming of starting a Catholic grade school in Coeur d’Alene.

“It started out with some of us reminiscing and recalling our fond memories of attending Catholic school and wishing there still was a parochial school here that our kids could attend,” said Diane Sullivan.

One thing led to another, Sullivan said, and the next thing they were talking about was how they could make that dream become a reality.

After meeting with their pastors, the group formulated its vision of a Catholic school to serve students in the St. Pius X and St. Thomas parishes in Coeur d’Alene and St. George’s in Post Falls.

It was agreed that an unusual funding approach, self-supporting and forward-funded, would be needed to meet the challenges of becoming a diocesan school. Diocesan schools are not supported directly by any one parish but rely on fundraising to support the school.

Another important factor would be parental volunteerism.

Blessing and dedication of the new Holy Family Catholic School took place on Aug. 16, 1996.

Today, records show that parents have volunteered more than 100,000 hours in the school’s history, representing a savings of more than $1.5 million.

According to Cami Carlson, development director at the school, the parental covenant is a cornerstone upon which Holy Family’s philosophy is built.

“The parental covenant is a commitment parents make to be actively involved and engaged in the education and faith formation of their children,” Carlson said. “To commit to the covenant, families volunteer their time, treasure and talent to our school.”

Principal Karen Durgin agrees, saying, “We are so very grateful for the many ways our community comes together in support of our regional Roman Catholic school through time, talent and treasure.”

During this past year, the staff chose “Works of Mercy” for its monthly spiritual theme. Each month, teachers had students focus on a different aspect of community outreach.

Some of the projects included collecting supplies for the homeless, conducting a food drive and visiting the sick, which included making get-well cards for those in the hospital or convalescent homes.

In its first year, Holy Family offered four grades with an enrollment of 58 students. Now, it has 10 grade levels – preschool through eighth grade – with an enrollment of 225 students.

Students participate in a wide range of studies including music, language arts, science and religion. Holy Family is fully accredited and follows Idaho state guidelines.

“It is a huge piece of our academic identity,” Carlson said.

Holy Family students have scored consistently high in standardized academic tests.

Sullivan has seen her dream come true with the success of Holy Family.

Her daughter, Michaela, who was in Holy Family’s first graduating class in 2002, told her mother that she wants her children someday to have a quality Catholic education “Just like I did.”