Port parish to bid St. Mary’s School farewell

The congregation at St. John XXIII Parish is saying goodbye to St. Mary’s School with a party from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Sunday, April 28.

“We thought that would be a way of trying to help people through the shock of seeing the school close, Father Pat Wendt said.  “We want to give them a way to work through their emotions.”

The school — one of two campuses used by St. John XXIII School —will close after this year.

The parish has been expanding the St. Peter’s School building to accommodate students from both campuses.

Construction “is going well,” Wendt said. “The shell of the building’s up. It’s looking like a building now.”

The $5.6 million project hit a snag last month when the parish was scammed out of more than $500,000. 

Wendt said no decision has been made yet on how to deal with the shortfall of funds.

“We want to see how the investigation plays out and any recovery of money,” he said.

But the project is moving forward as planned, he said.

Sunday’s event will include a light breakfast, a walk through the classrooms, time for people to share their memories and stories of the school and to sign a guestbook.