Another Report from the Meeting

From Bernadette Lynch, who was present at the meeting.

Marty Swenson, John Gantert, Fr. Tim Horan, Linda Pizzo, Terri Meechan, Joanne Knorr, Mary Santos and Bernadette Lynch from St. Margaret Mary School met with Diocesan representatives on Thursday at the school to present our plan -- an affiliated school which would create a partnership among the school, the parish, and the Diocese. Present from the Diocese were Sr. Janice Morgan, interim superintendent of Monroe County Catholic Schools, Fr. Joseph Hart, Vicar General and Moderator, Lisa Passero, Chief Financial Officer, Doug Mandelaro, Director of Stewardship and Communication, and Patricia Jones, Assistant Superintendent of Monroe County Catholic Schools.

Overall the general feeling of the group after the meeting was very positive. All Diocesan representatives listened attentively to our plan. There were few questions at the end; mostly points of clarification. We took this as a positive sign as well.

The Diocesan representatives told us that there were two remaining meetings on Friday (Holy Cross and St. John's in Spencerport). After those meetings, they were going to review all the plans, present the information to the Bishop (he has been kept informed all along) and plan to make a decision early next week. They are hoping to have a final decision on Tuesday as registration begins on Wednesday. Again, this was looked upon in a positive light as we believe the Diocese is seriously considering the plans. Sr. Janice stated that many ideas were presented that had never even been considered before.

Other schools meeting with Diocesan officials were St. John of Rochester (Fairport), Holy Trinity, Good Shepherd, and the city WIN schools (met as a group).

The St. Margaret Mary School representatives appreciated all the support and prayers that occurred during the meeting time. Whatever the Diocesan decision may be, we can all be proud of the extraordinary effort that went into our plan. We, without a doubt, put our best foot forward. Let's keep praying and hoping that we will hear something positive on Tuesday!