A BRIEF HISTORY…

In 1979, when St. Thomas More Parish was first beginning, parishioners formed a vibrant, warm, welcoming faith community.  What has remained constant in our nearly 30-years of ministry is the enthusiasm our parishioners have shown for each other, their faith and their church. This spirit has made St. Thomas More Parish a place where people looking for a spiritual home can experience a genuine sense of community and inspirational liturgy. St. Thomas More Parish has become a magnet where people can let their spirit, faith and community soar.

Our Growth:

Our Challenge:

This unprecedented growth makes it difficult for us to remain a welcoming, enthusiastic faith community since seating is increasingly limited---and this is almost year round. Attempts have been made to accommodate every one by moving offices, the library, meeting rooms, and even expanding the sanctuary itself with the addition of 200 seats.  Keeping pace with our growth, however, remains a challenge.  In addition to our rapid growth, our church facility is aging and is badly in need of refurbishment, especially the electrical and AC systems. Also, our present facility has no hurricane protection whatsoever. A storm like we’ve witnessed in the last few years could severely damage our facility. These and other challenges add to the magnitude of the needs we now face.  To address these facility needs, St. Thomas More leadership has been studying various options available to our parish. Cargill Associates, Inc., a parish-consulting firm, was retained to conduct a feasibility study in the spring of 2007. In the study, they invited registered parishioners to share their thoughts about how we might update aging facilities and expand them at the same time. An overwhelmingly positive response from parishioners has given birth to the Our Spirit Soars capital campaign, the purpose of which is two-fold:

• To renovate and upgrade present church facilities – our sanctuary has had no significant upgrades since its construction, almost 30 years ago. Special attention must be given to electrical and A/C systems, along with obligatory and needed building code updates, expanded lavatory facilities, and hurricane-proofing the building. All of this will be done as a LEED green building project (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design).

• To expand our church – while we are updating and upgrading our sanctuary, it only makes sense that we expand and enlarge the seating capacity of our church. The Cargill feasibility study indicated that our parish would likely raise between $3.5 to $4 million dollars in a three-year capital campaign. Presently, our architect, CARL ABBOTT FAIA ARCHITECT/PLANNER PA has estimated that the entire renovation, upgrade, and expansion of our facility might cost as much as $6.5 million. STM Parish leadership is committed to undertaking only what the parish can afford however. Therefore at the conclusion of the pledge period in the Our Spirit Soars campaign (March 2008), Parish leadership, including our STM building committee, will work with the architect in developing the final plans (scope and magnitude) of the renovation and expansion project. Some options that may be considered include using a combination of pledges, savings and manageable debt (a mortgage) to fund the project. This approach requires our parish to reach as high as possible in financial commitments knowing that lay and parish leaders will proceed with a project that will enable STM to remain financially and spiritually strong. On the strength of our pledges, decisions about the scope of the project will be finalized and initiated.

Scope of the Project: