On Friday, June 4, the Calgary Catholic School District (CCSD) hosted a celebration in Fireside, Cochrane to bless the ground for a new Catholic school.
Dignitaries that gathered for this special event were: The Honourable Adriana LaGrange, Minister of Education; The Honourable Prasad Panda, Minister of Infrastructure; Mr. Pete Guthrie, MLA, Airdrie-Cochrane; Myra D'Souza, Trustee, Wards 1, 2 & Cochrane; Mary Martin, Board Chair, Wards 13 & 14; Mayor Jeff Genung, Town of Cochrane; Dr. Bryan Szumlas, Chief Superintendent; Kathleen Kostuik, Area Director, NW Schools and Father Dennis Vavrek of St. Mary's Church. Father Dennis presided over the blessing of the ground which was followed by the ceremonial turning of the sod.
Due to outdoor gathering restrictions, members of the community, media and other stakeholders were not able to be invited. However, a small group of students from Holy Spirit School coordinated some special performances which were recorded earlier in the day and will be shared with the community along with footage of the official event.
The future K-9 school, located at 150 Fireside Parkway, will be the new home for staff and students at Holy Spirit School, as the district's lease on the current school site expires in 2023. The new facility will be able to accommodate up to 815 students and will allow CCSD to continue to provide access to up-to-date technology in modern and faith-filled learning spaces.
Funding for this project was announced in November 2019. The school has been procured as a design build managed by Alberta Infrastructure. We look forward to welcoming the new school community when doors open in fall 2022.
