Extreme Makeover - My Hometown comes to Roxbury

WCVB Channel 5 recently chose to partner with the Catholic Schools Foundation to sponsor a project based on the ABC Sunday night hit "Extreme Makeover: Home Edition". This local version, referred to as "Extreme Makeover: My Hometown," tackles renovation projects in the greater Boston community, and St. Patrick’s School in Roxbury marks the eighth project Channel 5 has undertaken.

During the week of August 13-17, the classrooms, gym, and hallways of St. Patrick’s School received a much-needed facelift with fresh paint and new furniture. Thanks to the resources and support of Suffolk Construction and Loomis, Sayles and Company, an abandoned lot across from the school is being transformed into an outdoor basketball court. Many other local businesses also donated materials to the project to help spruce up a school which has become an integral part of the community.

The project couldn’t have come together without the efforts of the numerous volunteers who contributed their time and talents over the course of the week, including some St. Patrick’s alumni from 1957. Barbara Reardon, a Milton native, reminisced with old school friends David and Nancy Moran and Marietta O’Brien while the group painted the gym walls. Barbara was happy to pitch in because as she says, "giving back always makes you feel good."

St. Patrick’s has been a stalwart presence in the community for over 130 years. The school was founded by the Sisters of Charity in order to provide the Irish immigrants who had settled in Roxbury with a Catholic education. Today the school serves 218 students in grades K1-8, half of the whom are non-Catholic. In 2006-07, the average total family income level of students receiving financial aid grants through the Inner-City Scholarship Fund (the signature program of the Catholic Schools Foundation) at St. Patrick’s was $33,000.

St. Patrick’s has been one of the beneficiaries of the Inner-City Scholarship Fund (ICSF) "Adopt-a-School" program. Through this program, ICSF donors provide support to schools in crucial areas that are above and beyond scholarship assistance. These areas include tutoring, continuing education programs for teachers, library and art supplies, and field trips. In addition, donors can provide professional expertise and guidance to schools in areas such as marketing, development, and public relations.

Local investment firm Loomis, Sayles & Company was one of the first companies to participate in the "Adopt-a-School" program. In addition to scholarship support, Loomis employees travel to St. Patrick’s each week to provide tutoring assistance. Last year the company built a playground at the school with the help of Suffolk Construction, and when the school’s computer lab was robbed in August 2006 Loomis stepped in to provide new computers and a new server just in time for the first day of classes.

Other companies lending their support to the Extreme Makeover project include Blue Cross Blue Shield; Loomis, Sayles & Company; Suffolk Construction; Papa Gino’s; Stonehill College; Houghton- Mifflin Company; the Bayside Exposition Center; Catholic Memorial High School; I.B.E.W Local 103; Sullivan & McLaughlin Electrical; Ver-tex Construction Specialties, Inc.; McAdam Painting Contractors; MYCW (Massachusetts Youth Committed to Winning); Strategic Staffing Solutions; Boston College High School; Youth Boston; and the Dudley Street Neighborhood Initiative. If you are interested in finding out more about the Adopt-a-School program, please contact Program Officer, Lynne Sullivan at 617-778-5981.