On the evening of October 12th, Redeemer hosted An Evening of Cultivating Growth, a banquet aimed at providing the school community with an update on our capital campaign and the opportunity to join in the fundraising effort, if they hadn’t done so already. The event, which was hosted by Frieden Farms, included a cocktail hour, music from The Walking Roots Band, dinner, and a program featuring a video and brief remarks by Head of School, Ron Hoch. Attendees included over 110 members of the Redeemer community.
Below you’ll find a copy of Mr. Hoch’s comments. Whether you were able to make it on Thursday night or not, we hope you'll take the time to read Mr. Hoch's remarks. And then consider one or more of the ways that you might take part in the Cultivating Growth campaign and invest in the future of Redeemer.
REMARKS FROM MR. HOCH
It is difficult for me to put into words how wonderful it is to be with you here tonight. You see, this evening is the culmination of nearly three years worth of hard work by a host of people, and so the fact that we are here now is somewhat surreal to me.
Let me give you a little bit of the background.
The question of whether or not to embark on a capital campaign first arose at a Board meeting in 2019. But it wasn’t until the fall of 2020 that we began a feasibility study — to gauge interest from our school community, and to determine the amount we might be able to raise. In February of 2021, the Board voted unanimously to embark on the Cultivating Growth: Deep Roots, Lasting Impact campaign. At that point Jaye Brumfield started creating what would become our Case for Support, and we hired Ashleigh Funkhouser to serve as our campaign manager. In July of 2021 — more than two years ago — we received our first commitment to the campaign.
We’ve come a long way since that first gift, raising $1.8 million to date.
From the beginning this truly has been a team effort, and so I want to start by expressing gratitude.
Thank you to Funkhouser Real Estate for hosting campaign related meetings, sponsoring lunches early in the campaign, and sponsoring our bar tonight
Thank you to Becky Hummel, Gerry and Carolyn Beam, and Garland and Cindy Beam of Frieden Farms for generously hosting this event tonight
Thank you to The Focus Group, our campaign consulting firm, and especially Tom MacAdam and Askala Harris for walking alongside of us every step of the way
Thank you to our Campaign Steering Committee and Executive Campaign Committee for providing feedback, insight, and wisdom during the campaign
Thank you to Jaye Brumfield for creating beautiful and clear communications both in print and online
Thank you to our dedicated and talented Campaign Manager, Ashleigh Funkhouser, for doing whatever was needed to keep everything moving forward
Thank you to our donors for giving generously to make this campaign a success. It’s not false humility or an understatement to say that we couldn’t have done this without you.
For the rest of this evening, our goal is twofold: to celebrate and to invite. We want to celebrate how far we’ve come. And we want to invite our entire school community to take part in the campaign. We’re so close to the finish line, and we’re hoping to cross it together.
The Cultivating Growth campaign has a goal of $2.2 million. $200,000 in planned and estate giving to provide for Redeemer’s long-term financial sustainability. And $2 million in cash to fund building expansion and improvements, some of which has already been completed: namely the newly renovated bathrooms and foyer, the new car loop, and 51 additional parking spaces (taking us from 17 to 68 spaces on campus). The next building phase includes a breezeway expansion that will add two classrooms, two offices, an elevator, and a new set of bathrooms upstairs AND an addition of four more classrooms off the back of the gym. (Hopefully you saw the plans for these projects on your way in tonight.) These renovations are just one step towards beautifying our campus so that our facilities can aptly reflect the quality of education that students receive within our walls. Moreover, the additions will provide desperately needed space to house our growing student population.
Tonight we celebrate the fact that we’ve raised $1.8M towards our $2M cash goal and $25,000 towards our $200,000 planned and estate giving goal. This is an impressive achievement — one for which we praise the Lord! Redeemer’s first capital campaign was in 2017 and it raised $90,000 to help us purchase our historic Keezletown campus. As of this moment, we’ve raised 20 times that amount to renovate and expand that same campus. This has already been the largest fundraising effort in school history. Many of you in this room tonight have given to this campaign. And some of you have given more than once. THANK YOU for your investment in the future of our school and our students.
Tonight we celebrate the fact that the first phase of construction is essentially complete. Everyone is enjoying the new bathrooms. And the new parking lot and car loop, which we started using this week, has already made drop off and pick up so much better.
We also celebrate the growth of our student body that has necessitated these expansion plans. Over the past 5 years alone, enrollment has increased by 88%. 88%. In addition, we’ve added an entire Rhetoric School, culminating in our first ever graduating class this year. And I’m excited to share that our seniors are already receiving college acceptances.
Indeed, we have much to celebrate and to be thankful for this evening.
And yet there is still much work to be done. There’s construction to be completed and money to be raised. So tonight we invite you, and our entire school community, to consider how you might join us in bringing the Cultivating Growth campaign to a close, and making these full expansion plans a reality.
If you haven’t committed to giving to this campaign yet, I’m asking you to prayerfully consider doing so. If you’re looking for a way to bolster your giving, consider committing to the campaign for 2-3 years. Giving is as easy as writing a check and putting “capital campaign” on the memo line, or visiting the Support Redeemer page on our website.
But at the same time, I want you to know that the amount isn’t what’s important. Rather, our goal is to see 100% participation from our school community. Every one of our families. Every teacher. Every staff member. And even all of our grandparents. All of us chipping in and doing our part, that’s what’s going to help us finish strong.
If you have already committed — again, I thank you for your investment in our school and the lives of our students. We’re here tonight, on the precipice of achieving our campaign goals, because of your generosity and sacrifice.
Whether you’ve committed to this campaign or not, I’d like to encourage you consider three additional ways to support Redeemer:
First, consider a planned and estate gift, if you haven’t done so already. My wife and I have written Redeemer into our will, and it is exciting (and humbling) to know that we will be able to support this beloved school even after we’re gone and help provide for Redeemer’s long-term future.
Second, think about how you might encourage others — your friends, family, neighbors – to join in this effort. By doing so we can widen our network and expand our reach.
Finally, we ask you to pray. Pray for the successful conclusion of this campaign. We’re well aware of our dependence on the Lord in all things, including fundraising. As Psalm 127:1 reminds us, “Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.” We do not want to labor in vain, and so we have been praying earnestly for the Lord’s blessing upon this campaign. And we continue to do so now as we look to wrap it up. We covet your prayers, as well.
So many people have played an integral role in the planning, preparation, and execution of this campaign and the projects that are funded by it. It is amazing to see how far we’ve come, and to stand on the verge of such a significant milestone in the life of our school. Every dollar. Every prayer. And every ounce of effort brings us closer to completing this project.
We’ve gotten to this point together and we’ll finish it out together, of that I am confident.
Let us pray.