The Wilkes School at Grace and St. Peter's

Alumni and friends: Nona Porter’s birthday is Sunday, September 21. We would like to honor her during and after church that day. Everyone is invited to Mass at 10 a.m. and then to a catered lunch immediately afterwards in the parish hall. If you’d like to come to the lunch, please RSVP to Casey Lynn at [email protected] by September 12. We would like to surprise Nona with your presence, so if you are in touch with her, don’t mention these plans (she is not on social media), but feel free to share this with others who might be interested. Hope to see you September 21!

The Wilkes School family, in honor of the life of Michael Britt, is collecting funds for Save the Music. Michael was the husband of Wilkes music and art teacher George Bareford. Michael, who often volunteered his musical services as accompanist for school musical performances, passed away on September 14, 2022, following a short illness. Please join us in helping students experience the joy of making music.

We have to share the sad news that today school families and faculty were notified that The Wilkes School at Grace & St. Peter’s will be closing as of June 30, 2020.

In a letter to the parents of students, the Board President, Edward Hargadon, and Board Chairman, Reverend Christopher Pyles, explained that while enrollment has been steadily declining for years, the onslaught of COVID-19 has depressed enrollment for next year to the point that continued operation of the school was not possible. On top of that, the school building needs hundreds of thousands of dollars in repairs, which the school simply does not have.

Hargadon and Pyles said that in the past several years, “the School Board, and our Head of School, Ms. Patty Barry, have worked tirelessly to cut costs, increase enrollment, and raise revenue, while maintaining the unique atmosphere and the quality education for which our school has always been known… The regrettable fact is that while our efforts have produced a number of positive results, we have simply run out of time and money to turn around the situation.”

Hargadon and Pyles assured the parents that the school stood ready to help families in transitioning to a new school and expressed gratitude to families and faculty for their efforts.

Special notes for our 5th graders

THANK YOU to all who made donations to the Wilkes School Virtual Food Drive! We raised $1,629! I know there are many families out there who are grateful for the nourishing support we are helping to provide.

Check out the new banner on Park Avenue! Congratulations, 5th grade!

Painting recreation 🖼️

Happy Teacher Appreciation Week! “A teacher takes a hand, opens a mind, and touches a heart.” – Unknown Author