St. Hubert families to celebrate legacy of endangered Catholic school in Hoffman Estates

Families will gather Friday night to celebrate St. Hubert Catholic School’s 65-year legacy in Hoffman Estates, which is also likely its last.

Meanwhile, they continue to wait for Pope Leo XIV to intervene and keep the school open.

“A Knight to Remember” is the gala a coalition of hopeful parents wants to make clear is not a surrender to the Archdiocese of Chicago’s plan to shut the school down in a few weeks.

“While the closure should be suspended while the Hierarchical Recourse is at the Dicastery (of Culture and Education near the Vatican), families are coming together to make sure that the legacy of St. Hubert Catholic School is recognized and celebrated since no suspension of the closure has been announced,” parent Jillian Bernas Garcia said.

In early March, the parents sought Pope Leo’s help, following a canon law provision after Archdiocese of Chicago Cardinal Blase Cupich opted not to intervene in the finance council and pastor’s decision to close the school.

Their main argument is that a path to financial sustainability exists for the school. They claim to have evidence, despite the Office of Catholic Schools disagreeing.

In January, Superintendent Greg Richmond stated that the decision to close St. Hubert was made alongside closures of Our Lady of Humility in Beach Park and four other schools in Chicago.

“We made these decisions with heavy hearts after months of discussions with each school,” he wrote. “We know the importance of these schools in each community. Unfortunately, the enrollment of each school is too low, and the ongoing deficits are too high.”

This decision followed a year and a half when parents worked on a financial goal without reaching out to other parishioners, Bernas Garcia explained.

While the pope has no deadline to respond, three months is the quickest time frame for most schools, she noted. That won’t happen until early June.

However, they chose to hold a celebration now so families wouldn’t drift apart for the summer, Bernas Garcia said.