CHARLOTTE — Our Lady of Consolation Church kicked off work Tuesday with a “groundbreaking” ceremony to preserve and eventually renovate the decades old school building on their campus in north Charlotte.
The historically Black parish recently reached a critical halfway point in a $2 million capital campaign launched in 2021 with the goal of transforming the former Our Lady of Consolation Catholic School into a learning center to serve parishioners as well as the community. As of July 2, $1.06 million in cash and pledges have been raised for the project, with a second fundraising phase planned for fall.
Founded in 1955, the original school was staffed by Oblate Sisters of Providence from Baltimore and offered a Catholic education to elementary school students from the parish as well as the surrounding neighborhoods. The school closed in 1988 because of declining enrollment and the building slowly declined over the years.
“This is an opportunity to reclaim some of our history,” said Keith Anderson, a parishioner and chair of the capital campaign. “By creating a learning center, we can honor the past history of education here and continue that fantastic work of education into the future. We want to connect all the dots and serve our community here on the north end of Charlotte.”
Father Basile Sede, Our Lady of Consolation pastor, along with others from the church, donned a construction hard hat and wielded a ceremonial sledgehammer for photos and exclaimed, “Let’s build!”
The ceremony had special meaning for parishioner Bonita Graham, who was baptized and married in the adjacent church and attended the school along with her siblings. Her grandmother worked in the school’s childcare center, and her mother, the late Thomasina Carr, worked in the cafeteria.
“My mother was the last one to turn the key in the lock of the old school when it closed,” Graham said. “I remember when my siblings and I ran the halls…I have so many memories of the old school, and I’m excited about the new beginning.”
The parish hopes eventually to convert the 12,000-square-foot space into a learning center where both parishioners and community members of all ages can learn new skills. Leaders aspire to offer experiences in science, technology, engineering, the arts and mathematics for youth, as well as workforce education for adults and other programs.
The initial preservation work will focus on repairs to the building’s exterior, including a new roof, windows and doors, a handicapped-accessible entrance, and repairs to the foundation. Swinerton Construction of Charlotte is the contractor and slated to be onsite beginning July 8. The second phase of fundraising will pay to begin renovations of the building’s interior.
Donors have ranged from current and past school families and parishioners, to business leaders and community members, to other parishes from across the diocese in support of the historic and community value, including St. Eugene in Asheville, St. Therese in Mooresville, St. Mark in Huntersville, St. Luke in Mint Hill, and Charlotte parishes of St. Ann, St. Peter, St. Gabriel and St. Matthew.
The ceremony served as a special send-off for Father Sede, who has served as pastor for the past seven years but will soon be returning to the Diocese of Buea in Cameroon.
Willie Thompson, a member of Our Lady of Consolation for 59 years, said the learning center project will help the parish serve the rapidly growing and changing neighborhoods around them.
“I was married in this church, my two daughters and my grandchildren were baptized here,” he said. “I’m so grateful and thankful to see what is happening here, and I know God is working with us.”
— Christina Lee Knauss. Photos by Troy Hull
