Building on Tradition

Executive Leadership Committee

Campaign Co-Chairs

Pam & Bill (‘68) Barrett

Caroline (‘77) & Ray (‘76) Brady

Building Leadership Committee Chair

Christine & Frank (‘92) Anderson

Solicitation Leadership Committee Co-Chairs

Libba & Charlie (‘65) Anderson

Therese (‘00) & Brian (‘97) Rhodes

Public Phase Leadership Committee Chair

Alice & Steve (‘82) Hagler

Principal

Maureen Lewis (‘84)

Director of Advancement

Kaci Johnson

a letter from the CAMPAIGN LEADERSHIP

Dear Irish Faithful,

Since 1957 Aquinas High School has cultivated the faith, developed the character, and engaged the minds of thousands of students. We are known for our academic and athletic excellence, family atmosphere, and school spirit.

In April of 2022, 35 families in the Aquinas community participated in a feasibility study that ultimately validated support for building a new athletic facility and growing our current endowment to serve Aquinas for years to come.

In August of 2022, we began the silent phase of our Building on Tradition capital campaign. Due to our unprecedented success thus far, we will break ground in August of 2023 on an 8.6 million dollar building project that will transform our campus and better meet the needs of our current and future students!

Help us build on our traditions as we aim to make our athletic facilities as outstanding as our programs. We envision a campus that not only provides a safe place for our students to grow and learn, but also one that meets the needs of our sports teams, provides a safe viewing experience for fans, and better represents the excellence of Catholic education.

Just as vital to the long-term success and stability of our school is a healthy endowment. These financial resources enable us to better meet the growing need for tuition assistance, allowing even more students to benefit from an Aquinas education.

Join us as we set the course for the next fifty years. Together we can make this vision a reality!

Shamrocks faithful forever,

Maureen Lewis (‘84) Principal Pam & Bill (‘68) Barrett Campaign Co-Chairs

Caroline (‘77) & Ray (‘76) Brady Campaign Co-Chairs

the

Future

The first priority of the campaign is to best utilize our athletic field area by rotating the football/soccer field ninety degrees and shifting the baseball field towards Highland Avenue. This new layout ensures that baseball and soccer will have their own designated space.

With our new athletic complex, we will be better equipped to welcome all of the Irish Faithful, including those with mobility concerns. The new entrance will be wider and will include a switch-back ramp, allowing easier access to the stadium area for all fans.

Current Current

The thoughtful design of our entrance allows us to preserve the tradition of the Irish Walk with the players touching the same shamrock as they prepare to compete.

Perfectly located at the bottom of the Irish Walk and between the home stands for Football/ Soccer and Baseball is a beautiful building that will contain concessions, bathrooms, a referee room, a training room, and much-needed storage space.

Future Future

Future Current

Our new Dant Clayton, all-aluminum bleachers will offer increased seating capacity, a safer viewing area, and a larger press box. Additionally, the home stands will have a wheelchair ramp and four entrances/exits, allowing our fans to move with greater freedom.

Our baseball complex will have new dugouts with additional storage, a new batting cage, bullpen, and better seating for our fans. For the first time in school history, our players can have a home game that includes the thrill of playing under the lights.

Future

With the addition of lights comes a greater flexibility in scheduling and a safer environment for outdoor gatherings, including our cherished tradition of tailgating prior to home games.

After much consideration, we have chosen a topof-the-line turf field that will provide the maximum in safety and performance for student athletes that money can buy. This new playing surface will increase usability and playability for our athletes regardless of weather conditions.

PRIORITIES

We are proud of our accomplishments, including multiple state and region championships. Now it is time to upgrade our facility with new fields and bleachers, providing a place that better reflects our Irish Pride. In addition, growing our endowment allows us to better serve our families.

FOOTBALL/SOCCER FIELD

• Top-of-the-line turf to allow greater usage of the field and best utilize our limited space

• Separate baseball and soccer fields

BASEBALL FIELD

• New grass field plus bleachers, dugouts, batting cage, bullpen, and lighting

CONCESSION & RESTROOM BUILDING

• ADA accessible restroom areas

• Large space for concessions and spirit wear

• Athletic training room

• Athletic storage space

PRACTICE FIELD

• Large grass practice area for PE, sports, and overflow parking

• Adjacent to the school on Highland Avenue

ENDOWMENT

Investment of $8,600,000

• We believe an Aquinas education should be accessible to each young man and woman regardless of the family’s socioeconomic status. With the growing need for tuition assistance, an investment in our endowment will provide additional resources for financial aid.

Investment of $3,400,000

Total investment of $12,000,000

1957 Heritage Society

The 1957 Heritage Society recognizes our benefactors who make a planned gift or inform us of a planned gift to Aquinas in their estate plans. Planned giving is essential to growing our endowment, which provides an additional revenue stream to offset the ever-increasing cost of educating a student. We invite you to make Aquinas a part of your legacy.

Prayer for Aquinas High School’s Capital Campaign

God our heavenly Father, we give thanks for Your many blessings. May our community of Aquinas High School — Be formed in the image of your Son, Jesus Christ. Strive for excellence in all that we do. Be inspired to Build on the Traditions of the past. And grow each day in the virtues of faith, hope and love. Through the intercession of our patron, St. Thomas Aquinas, may the generous sharing of all that we have and all that we are help our dreams to become realities and bring us ever closer to You. We humbly ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.