Driscoll could have been saved, bishop

Driscoll Catholic will no longer open its doors, but will live forever in the hearts of all those involved with the exception of the Christian Brothers and Bishop J. Peter Sartain, who look at it as a business only.

After sending a letter to the bishop, I received a response five weeks later. It was condescending in nature, referencing that emotion played a role in the content, that he was amazed at the miscommunications that took place and that people thought there might be an "ulterior motive."

Well, here is my response: Only time will tell if there was truly an underlying plan for Driscoll Catholic, and, trust me, my letter was not written from emotion; it was well thought out.

If there were deficits for so long, it should have been transparent to all involved; it was not.  If the school was in such dire straits, the staff members should have been notified in advance of April so they could begin to plan their future; they were not. In fact, the president called everyone into the auditorium two weeks before announcing the closing to quash all the rumors of closing, and assured everyone it would not close. The decision to close was set before allowing the thousands of volunteers to work their butts off for 20 days. Is that the Christian way? 

This school did not have to close. The $3 million to $4 million was not needed immediately.  The $1 million supporters raised covered all immediate debts, and the plans were solid with conservative enrollment figures.  So, the declining enrollment was not a reason to close this great school.

You people saw what we could do in just 20 days. If we had known the state of the finances for the school at the beginning of the year, this school would not be closing. 

Carl Palash

Carol Stream