School is out for summer, but the Stewardship for Saints and Scholars (S3) campaign is still in session!

Even as families across the Diocese of Lansing embrace the rhythm of summer – vacations, barbecues and days at the lake – the campaign’s executive committee is still hard at work.

Matt Hufnagel, president of the Catholic Foundation; David Kerr, director of communications; George Landolt, diocesan CFO; Father Tim MacDonald, vicar general; Tom Maloney, superintendent of Catholic schools; and the team from the Steier Group pray and connect regularly to advance the campaign’s priorities with diligence and faith.

The Stewardship for Saints and Scholars campaign is working to make Catholic education in the diocese more:

• On Mission: Ensuring that Catholic schools are led by dedicated, faithful teachers and administrators who shape young hearts and minds in Christ.
• Affordable: Expanding tuition assistance so that more families can access the gift of Catholic education without financial burden.
• Accessible: Providing support for students with special needs as well as enhancements at our regional high schools.

A fourth pillar of the campaign – the Local Initiatives – returns a portion of the funds raised and collected to individual parishes to invest in schools, religious education, homeschool programs and other initiatives, ensuring that Catholic formation remains a vibrant cornerstone of faith communities.

These priorities are not seasonal – they are ongoing, rooted in the belief that Catholic education is a mission worth championing every single day.

For Helene McNeilly, principal at St. Mary School in Charlotte, education is not just a profession – it is a vocation, a calling that does not take a summer break.

“I have been here since 2019 after retiring from public education for 35 years,” she said. “I literally just fell in love with my vocation all over again. … There was just this resurgence of joy into teaching and learning.”

Now, as principal and religion teacher for her school’s youngest students, McNeilly sees firsthand how Catholic education can transform lives. Even though more than half of St. Mary’s students come from non-Catholic families, the school offers them something profound: a foundation of faith, moral clarity and a deep sense of belonging.

“In today’s world, parents are searching for something more for their kids,” she said. “Don’t get me wrong – you want public schools to be strong … but you can’t go deeper in a public school. You can’t get to the needs of the whole child, and that is something that we’re so blessed to be able to do in a Catholic school setting.”

The Stewardship for Saints and Scholars campaign is ensuring that Catholic schools can continue to provide this vital formation – not just during the school year, but for years to come.

McNeilly feels so strongly about the goals and aims of the campaign that she joined the St. Mary’s volunteer team, even though she is a parishioner at St. Michael’s in Grand Ledge.

“I think it matters who’s doing the asking,” she explained. “If I want people to help support this little school, then I think I need to be available for the questions and the conversations. Any way that I can help facilitate people learning about what a difference they can make with a gift to this campaign – I want to be a part of that.”

Students will lead the kickoff weekend Masses at St. Mary’s, offering their gratitude and witness to the campaign’s mission. “I already had that Sunday morning on the books as a student-led Mass,” McNeilly said. “We just said ‘OK, let’s add Saturday night and just call it a weekend.’

“It’s the perfect opportunity to kick it off because it’s our kids here saying, ‘Thank you. You make a difference.’”

April Thelen, a first-grade teacher at St. Mary Catholic School in Westphalia, was also inspired to volunteer for the campaign.

“I think this campaign isn’t about fixing a problem,” she said. “It’s about preventing one. That’s one of the main reasons I decided to be part of it. This is a wonderful opportunity to evangelize.

“We say that every person is the child of God. I teach it every day. We’re all children of God. If we are all children of God, then we should be able to accept anyone who wants to come (to Catholic schools) and provide for them everything that they need to be able to attend our schools. This campaign is trying to do that.”

Thelen understands the impact of Catholic education on a deeply personal level. She once sat in the very classroom where she now teaches. Today, her two sons walk those same halls – and one is even in her class. Her daughter will join her brothers next year at St. Mary’s, learning the same lessons of faith and wisdom that shaped their mother.

“I want my kids to know that when they get out in the world, they have allies,” she said. “I want them – wherever they go to school for college, wherever they go to work – I want them to have allies, and that’s why I think that this S3 campaign is important. The more we can grow our Catholic schools, the better off everyone will be.”

At St. Michael’s in Grand Ledge, Father Jim Eisele knows that Catholic education is a year-round mission – but he’s trying to wrap up his parish’s campaign efforts before summer vacation hits.

The parish is operating on an accelerated timeline to give its families and households an opportunity to get involved and give generously before they travel for the summer.

For other parishes and the diocese as a whole, though, the campaign will continue unabated throughout the summer months – because Catholic education is not just about textbooks and tests. It is about faith. It is about formation. And it is about a future that does not take a break – even in the summer sun.