Customer Feature | St. Robert of Newminster Parish

NEARLY TWO CENTURIES OF HISTORY

St. Robert of Newminster Parish boasts a rich history that dates back to its establishment by Ottawa Native Americans in 1836. Originally starting as a small Catholic chapel in Ada Township, the parish began its journey in Kennedy’s Restaurant with just 80 people in 1952. Today, situated on Ada Drive, the church has evolved significantly since its first building was erected in 1969 by Rev. Henry J. Niedzwiecki, accommodating up to 750 attendees.

“Our Native American history, to be sure, extends back over the centuries, with Native American mounds in our own city that date from near the time of Christ,” said Father John W. McGee (pastor from 1973-1979).

Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the parish saw promising growth, meeting and exceeding a goal of “2000 families by 2000” and over 2,045 families consider it their church home today.

HONORING THE PAST AND PREPARING FOR THE FUTURE

A growing community like St. Robert requires facilities to match! “Grow in size and spirit,” as they say. With the kick off of their Together in Christ campaign, the parish made plans to renovate and expand their physical footprint and add spaces to support parish activities, faith formation classes, the school and plan for future growth.

Due to incredible donations from benevolent lead donors, 80% of the necessary $19.5 million to accomplish their goals was accounted for. The remaining $3.7 million was raised through parish families and independent donors. 

MEET ST. ROBERT’S CATHOLIC SCHOOL

Since the 1970s, the leadership at St. Robert of Newminster Parish had a desire to open a school. The church used to offer bussing services for families that wished to send their kids to nearby Catholic schools. In 2018, the opportunity came to open an independent catholic school, not affiliated with the parish but run by a group of independent investors. The initial student roster included 48 students between Preschool 3’s, 4’s, Young Fives and Kindergarten. St. Robert Catholic School was the first Catholic school to open in the Diocese of Grand Rapids in over 50 years.

Just a few years later, the group of investors gifted a healthy, well-supported school to the parish to create an official parish school in July 2023. The following school year, 134 students from preschool to 5th grade were enrolled.

“When the investors handed over the school, they set the parish up for success by ensuring we had the funds to support the school. Their firm belief in the value and importance of Catholic education will be felt by generations to come.” says Nancy Chandler from St. Robert.

Year after year, the school has grown and plans to continue to add grades as founding families continue their education. The school will add 7th grade in 2025 and 8th grade in 2026. As part of the expansion and renovation project, the Parish is making improvements to support higher enrollment and school growth.

SWIFT PRINTING: ALL THAT THE NAME IMPLIES

The team at Swift prides itself in customer service and we work closely with each customer to ensure we are meeting and exceeding their goals – every time, for small and big projects alike!

For St. Roberts, their project was a main marketing piece to support their $19.5 million expansion and renovation, plus other supporting materials that included their new logo and branding. They specifically requested something sturdy that would stand the test of time, that their families could use and reference to guide them through this transition. 

“I wanted something sturdy that wouldn’t fall apart and would serve as an educational tool for our expansion and renovation. The team at Swift came back [swiftly] with a solution and timeline.” said Nancy Chandler. “They never steered me wrong. I know I can trust the Swift team to meet my expectations every time!” 

Together with Nancy as the designer, we created a 16-page full-color brochure that outlined their entire campaign, the goals and what their families could expect throughout the process. To accompany this master print piece, we also printed matching stationary, letterhead, pledge cards, and a small tri-fold brochure.

Surrounded by Swift Printing boxes in her office, Nancy recalls a last minute $5 million donation (yes, you read that right!) that seriously changed the scope of the project. With this donation, they were able to add another building to their expansion plans: a Parish Activity Center. This new building would contain a full-size gym with a stage and state-of-the-art sound and lighting system, a full-size catering kitchen and an overall capacity of 780 people.

Now picture this – that donation came in after the booklets were printed. Nancy needed to add more pages to encompass this part of the project! So, we got to work. Nancy designed the pages and we swiftly reprinted the booklets to meet their urgent deadline. 

And as for the old booklets? Don’t worry! The team at St. Robert thoughtfully recycled them in their PaperGator, generating funds for the school in the process.

By the way, their new addition just opened early January. Take a look more photos here.

If you’re looking for a Grand Rapids, Michigan based print partner, look no further than Swift Printing. We’re ready to help you with your small and big projects!