Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is the Building Bright Futures Capital Campaign?
A. The parish of St. Gabriel the Archangel is conducting the Building Bright Futures Capital Campaign to fund much needed renovations to Gabriel House (the old convent) and the addition of a Welcome Center connected to the Church.
Q. Why is it important to invest in the renovation of Gabriel House?
A. Because of its convent design, the building has been underutilized in recent years and has fallen into a state of disrepair. With funds raised in a capital campaign, St. Gabriel School will have the opportunity to offer the highest level of educational excellence with new state-of-the-art classrooms and resources – preparing students for the future of tomorrow in a facility unlike any other in the Archdiocese. Further, the parish will benefit from additional meeting spaces created by the renovation.
Q. Why is it important to invest in a Welcome Center for the Church?
A. Currently, parishioners do not have a central location for welcoming, fellowship and community building. A Welcome Center will provide an accessible location directly connected to the narthex of the church to converse after Mass, welcome visitors and new parishioners, share coffee and donuts, gather and pray, prepare for weddings, mourn before funeral services, celebrate after baptisms – and host a wide variety of meetings for parish organizations.
Q. Will the Church building be renovated or remodeled as part of the campaign?
A. No. The body of the church will not be changed. A simple doorway at the old baptistry will connect the narthex of the Church to the new Welcome Center. Regular maintenance of the Church (including plaster and paint repair) is budgeted and will occur – separate from any campaign.
Q. Will the proposed Welcome Center and remodeled Gabriel House be ADA compliant?
A. Yes! The Welcome Center will include direct access from the Church, the hallway between the Church and Rectory, and a ramp from the sidewalk on Nottingham. An elevator will be added to Gabriel House to provide easy access to all three levels, and a ramp will be added to provide direct access to the main floor. Additional ADA compliant modifications, such as larger restroom facilities, will be included throughout both projects.
Q. How did the parish and school determine this campaign was necessary?
A. The parish has been in discussions to renovate Gabriel House and add a Welcome Center for almost eight years. Unfortunately, Covid, and later the All Things New campaign to restructure the Archdiocese suspended our planning. Late in 2023, plans began to again move forward, and in early 2024 the parish and school conducted a feasibility study to determine the level of support for conducting a capital campaign.
Q. What were the results of the feasibility study?
A. With over 325 responses, the results of the study can be summarized as follows:
Significant enthusiasm was expressed for both proposed projects – and for conducting a campaign.
A Gabriel House renovation is necessary, must be flexible to include school use and parish use. The proposed addition made the project too large.
Support for the Welcome Center concept was strong, but many parishioners felt that the current designs were too small. Many felt it should be built as large as possible.
Some respondents were concerned about St. Gabriel’s merging with other parishes or schools. There is no plan for this. Thus, Fr. Molini must continue to make this point clear to parishioners. Specific to St. Gabriel and St. Raphael, they are two independent parishes with two independent parish elementary schools and two separate and strong parish communities. There are no plans for any changes to this configuration.
Parishioners want the Archdiocese to show support for this effort in a tangible manner. Fr. Molini has already broached this subject with those involved and is in the process of taking next steps. The Archdiocese has given us their approval to begin a campaign, and gave us grant for initial startup costs. They will also be very closely involved throughout the construction and contracting process.
The original proposal for a $7.2M capital campaign was viewed as too large. Still, conducting a capital campaign was supported by the vast majority of survey respondents. And we’ve reduced the overall projected cost to $5.5M.
Q. How did the feasibility study results affect the Building Bright Futures Capital Campaign?
A. In light of the study results, the following changes were included:
The Gabriel House renovation was scaled back to remove the proposed addition. New plans also utilize the space to better fit both school and parish needs.
The Welcome Center was redesigned to increase capacity and to feature an aesthetic more complementary to both the church and rectory.
The overall financial goal of the capital campaign was lowered in accordance with the feedback received.
Q. What is the estimated cost of the projects?
A. Using detailed analysis from construction and architectural experts, the entire project is estimated to cost approximately $5.5 million. These costs include items such as asbestos abatement of the current Gabriel House space, general building and labor costs, additional furniture, and funds for additional faculty training on how to best utilize the new space.
Q. What is the status of fundraising for the Building Bright Futures Campaign?
A. In early April 2025 - less than six months after kicking off its fundraising campaign - the parish announced that it had exceeded its goal of raising $5.5 million. With pledges secured and sufficient funds in hand, the parish can move forward into the construction phase of the Campaign.
Q. What will the parish do with any excess funds raised above its $5.5 million goal?
A. The parish will use these funds to help alleviate cost overruns, inflation in the cost of materials, and other unforeseen expenses that will likely occur on a project of this scale. In the event additional funds remain, the parish will use these funds to further improve the parish and its facilities.
Q. How will the Building Bright Futures Capital Campaign affect neighboring parishes and schools?
A. As Catholics, we are called to share our resources for the betterment of our neighborhood, Church, and world. Our only intentions in the state-of-the art renovation of Gabriel House and the addition of a Welcome Center are ensuring continued strong enrollment and education at St. Gabriel School, and further strengthening the welcoming nature of the Parish. Both St. Gabriel and St. Raphael remain strong, independent parishes and schools – as directed at the conclusion of All Things New.
Q. Have building plans been finalized?
A. With the fundraising goal met, the parish has hired an architect to begin finalizing building plans. The campaign committee includes several architects who have volunteered their time to review these plans in conjunction with key parish leadership to ensure that the final plans meet parish needs and accomplish the goals of the Building Bright Futures Capital Campaign.
Q. When would renovations and construction begin?
A. Once the architect has finalized plans and Fr. Molini has approved those plans, a contractor can be hired. In the meantime, the parish has hired an asbestos abatement company to begin work during the Summer of 2025. It is hoped that the formal groundbreaking can begin as early as Fall 2025. We will keep everyone updated on specifics as we move forward.
Q. Can you be more specific as to what will be housed within the newly renovated Gabriel House?
A. Over the last 20 years, Catholic parishes and schools have experienced significant changes, and will likely continue to do so in the future. To accommodate this rapidly evolving landscape, the proposed renovation contains a mix of many state-of-the-art flexible spaces that can grow and develop with our parish and school for years to come. The committee foresees Gabriel House primarily serving as an Innovation and Creativity Hub for our 7th and 8th grade students (though students of all grades will use it) during the day, while providing additional spaces for parish groups to meet in the evening and on weekends.
Q. Wouldn’t it be easier to keep classes in the current school building?
A. We expect homerooms and various classes to continue to be held in the current school building. However, 21st century learning experiences require unique spaces for “Active Learning” in which multi-discipline collaboration and project-based learning can occur. This approach is being used in the finest Catholic and public high schools in the area. Suffice it to say, this approach will prepare our 7th and 8th graders for high school in the most advanced way – and unique in the Archdiocese.
Q. Will the Welcome Center design match the Church? Will it block the windows? Will the old oak tree in front of the rectory be removed?
A. Our architect will match the exterior color and materials as well as window design to be complimentary to the church building. We intend to use the same Indiana Limestone used on the Church exterior. The intent is for the structure to have a minimal impact on the current church building while seamlessly connecting to the narthex of the church. The current church windows will be exposed to the outdoors and receive sunlight through a courtyard between the Welcome Center and the Church, allowing light to enter the church. The new Welcome Center windows will match the current window design. Unfortunately, enlarging the Welcome Center will require the oak tree be removed. However, as part of this project, new trees will be planted adjacent to the new
room – as well as a new garden. It will be beautiful.
Q. How will construction affect the neighborhood, school and parish?
A. Complete details of this are unknown at this time and will depend on many factors after funds are raised and a contractor is the hired. The most notable effect of the construction for neighbors, school families, and parishioners will be the temporary closure of sidewalks around Gabriel House and in front of our Church, and the periodic loss of some street parking to allow space for construction equipment and workers to operate safely, quickly and effectively. The parish and school will be working with the City of St. Louis and the neighborhood to ensure that additional space is available for parking in the school lot, and for the construction of temporary crosswalks. The school band will find a temporary home in the main school building during construction, and some parish meetings and storage facilities will have to be moved, if they have not done so already. Fortunately, Gabriel House is mostly empty and unused, so disruption from its closure will be minimal. A precise plan for this will be released prior to construction.
Q. Wasn’t this entire development opportunity studied some years ago?
A. Yes. A small committee was formed several years ago to begin discussions about how to best renovate Gabriel House and create a Welcome Center. However, Covid slowed the committee’s progress, and the Archdiocese suspended all capital campaigns throughout the All Things New process. With the completion of All Things New, St. Gabriel has been given permission to proceed with this opportunity.
Q. Will the renovation of Gabriel House increase school enrollment, tuition and fees, and/or operational costs?
A. Increasing enrollment beyond existing classroom maximums is not our intention or expectation, and additional faculty or staff should not need to be hired. The objectives of the Gabriel House renovation are truly to provide the necessary space for the type of state-of-the-art experience needed to continue delivering an A+ education and to provide flexible school/parish meeting space. We expect this to continue creating strong demand for the school, drive young families to become parish and school families, and maintain strong property values. Renovation of Gabriel House will include updated systems and a more energy efficient design, both of which will help offset additional operational costs caused by an increase in use. Equipment costs have already been included in the project estimate.
Q. Who will have access to Gabriel House?
A. During the school day, access to and use of Gabriel House will be limited to staff and students and controlled using the same security measures currently in use in the school building. Details of after-hours access are still to be determined, but easy access to the building by parishioners is a top priority.
Q. How will the addition of a Welcome Center impact the parish budget?
A. Although there will be additional utility costs for the Welcome Center, these are expected to be minor and the parish will budget for these costs accordingly. Although no fee will be charged for the use of the Welcome Center by parishioners, it is hoped that the increase in parish vitality created with the addition of the Welcome Center will also increase donations and help offset additional utility costs. Equipment costs have been built into project estimate.
Q. I fully support the renovations; can I still give?
A. Yes! Even though the parish has met its initial fundraising goal, additional funds to help cover potential cost overruns, inflation, and other unforeseen expenses are most welcome. Donations can be made at a single time, spread over months and years, or both. Payments are accepted in the form of cash, check, direct bank withdrawal via our current partner Faith Direct, stock, donor advised funds, or credit card. Please see the “Donate Now” section of this website for more details. If you would like to discuss additional donation opportunities, please contact the capital campaign committee at campaign@stgabrielstl.org.
Q. Campaigns at other institutions have offered the opportunity to name buildings, classrooms, pavers and any other number of memorials with the making of a donation. Is St. Gabriel offering similar opportunities?
A. Yes. A large number of naming and memorializing opportunities are still available. Details can be found on the parish website at stgabrielstl.org/campaign, where you can also select memorial items. All items are subject to pledge card or Faith Direct completion, and to first-come availability. Please contact campaign@stgabrielstl.org for further details.
Q. Who are the committee members?
A. Fr. Thomas Molini, Bill Burnes, Mike Heithaus, Judy Murphy, Patrick McGinnis, Kevin Kozminske, Lee Hahnel, Marcus Adrian, Shawn McLain, James Backes, Erin Backes, Monica Shripka, Eric Shripka, Jean Gruetzemacher, Tonya McEnery, Jenn Schmitt, Matt Sallaberry, Sarah Henderson, Cal Kennedy and Frank Delonjay. We are always seeking additional volunteers to help with the campaign.
Q. How to help?
A. If you are interested in making a significant donation of your time, money or construction materials to the capital campaign, please reach out via email to campaign@stgabrielstl.org. Additionally, and most importantly, please pray for the successful future of St. Gabriel the Archangel Parish and School.
Q. More questions?
A. Please consult the bulletin for additional updates. For questions not answered above, please reach out via email to campaign@stgabrielstl.org or contact Bill Burnes, General Chairperson, Marketing: bburnes78@gmail.com