$21 million raised for project; Abbott touts school vouchers, choice at groundbreaking
Gov. Greg Abbott Friday helped turn a shovel of dirt for the St. Peter the Apostle Catholic School of Boerne groundbreaking ceremony, a $24 million PreK to eighth grade school expected to open doors in September 2025.
Hundreds of St. Peter parishioners and community members turned out for the event, where church members told of the fund-raising success toward gathering enough financial backing to get construction under way.
Julie Seguin, church school campaign executive director, said the St. Peter school will be the first new school to be built from the ground up in the Catholic archdiocese in over 30 years.
“We are building a twostory, 44,000-square foot building, a Catholic elementary school from Pre-K to eighth grade, with an attendance of about 600,” Seguin said.
Fund-raising began about seven months ago, she said. “We’re at $21 million right now, but our goal is $28.5 million, so we can open all paid off, debt free.”
In August 2023, the Benedictine Sisters made land available for sale for the St. Peter’s Elementary School. The 8.1-acre property was purchased for $1.6 million by the Clarence Kahlig family, who in turn gifted the church with the land and $5 million in seed money to start the fund-raising process.
“We’re about to finish what we started back in 2023, able to raise pledges in cash of $21 million,” Kahlig said. “We’ve been
Star photo by Jeff B. Flinn blessed, the holy spirit has blessed us, this community, this parish has blessed us.”
The church performed a feasibility study, asking whether the parish and community support a Catholic school.
“The answer was overwhelmingly positive ... because of the faith-filled community that this parish serves,” Kahlig told the group, assembled on the church lawn, about 100 feet from where school construction eventually will begin.
“Our school will be a faith- filled environment,” Kahlig said. “It will provide an education with Jesus Christ in the classroom. We’ll put prayer and Christ back in the classroom, where it belongs.”
Abbott praised the parish’s effort in supporting the school and took time to hammer home his support for school choice and school vouchers.
One of his daily goals, he said, is “to ensure that we are ranked no. 1 in educating our children for the future.”
Abbott cited better curriculum and curriculum reform as a part of the legislative agenda in the coming term.
“When you inject competition into the process, it causes everybody to up their game. That’s why I’ve been working so hard ... to ensure that Texas will be one of a majority of states where we say that school choice exists for Texas parents, also.”
Abbott reminded the crowd of his campaign efforts to ensure the Legislature would have enough state House members to support his efforts to get school vouchers approved.
“We now have enough votes in the Texas House to pass school choice in the state of Texas. When we get done with the next session, parents are going to have the power to choose the school that’s best for their child.”
Bishop Michael Boulette spoke and presented Kahlig and Seguin with a check for $250,000 toward the church school fundraising effort.
Pastor Norm Ermis thanks those gathered at Friday’s ceremony for their continued prayers and support in making the dream of the school become a reality.
Star photo by Jeff B. Flinn
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