Ave Maria expansion project: Fundraising campaign two-thirds of way toward $1.32 million

• Ave Maria Village

(Chris Olson / The Sun) Donations for the Ave Maria Village chapel expansion project have reached $850,000, which is about two-thirds of $1.32 million set to build a new chapel, family meeting room and transportation center. Guiding the capital campaign committee are honorary chairman Dave Nething (left), Bill Kennedy, Village CEO Tim Burchill and Deacon Tom Geffre, the village chaplain.

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The Ave Maria Village chapel expansion project fundraising campaign is two-thirds of the way toward its goal of $1.32 million.

Ave Maria Village CEO Tim Burchill said Thursday the campaign has brought in $850,000 since it started in June 2012.

“We’re 65 percent of the way there,” he said.

Bids for the new chapel, transportation center and family suite will be open on Jan. 31, Burchill said.

Work on all three areas should start in early April.

Dave Nething, a former North Dakota state senator and honorary chair of the capital campaign committee, said most of the contributions arrived since mid-September.

“There is a psychology to breaking ground. It lets people know we are moving forward and their donations are being put to good use,” Nething said.

Campaign committee member Bill Kennedy said they are planning a telethon for Feb. 17 to continue raising funds for the project.

“We’ll have entertainment, live performances,” he said. More details on the telethon will released when they become available.

Burchill said there will also be more open houses in the coming months to let people know about the facility.

“This project has given us the opportunity to open people’s eyes to what we do here,” he said.

The long-term care center currently has an activity center/chapel where ecumenical services are held and groups meet. Burchill said the room is not big enough to meet the needs of residents and the community.

“This place has been here for 50 years and never had a large enough dedicated chapel,” he said. “It doesn’t have the feel of a spiritual center.”

According to information provided by the fundraising committee, the new expanded chapel will be 2,735 square feet in size and able to seat 150 people. The Rev. N. T. and Lillian McCoy Family Suite will be 440 square feet and offer a private room for families to visit with residents who are in their last days of life. The 1,560-square foot transportation center will provide a covered area for vehicles to provide easy access in and out of the main entrance.

Ave Maria Village is one of five long-term care facilities in eastern North Dakota sponsored by the Sisters of Mary of the Presentation Health System based out of Valley City. Deacon Tom Geffre, the facility’s chaplain, said they have 18 different clergy who perform services at the existing chapel on a rotating basis.

For more information about the fundraising effort or the project, go to http://www.avemariavil lage.org.

Sun reporter Chris Olson can be reached at 701-952-8454 or by email at colson@jamestownsun.com

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