Parish sells school, former convent

By Tanya Connor | The Catholic Free Press 

WORCESTER – After last week’s sale of the St. Mary’s Schools and Visitation House property, the school building will house a new school and Visitation House will remain in the building it has now purchased.  

A Worcester corporation, CIG The Daniels Building LLC, purchased the parcels on Richland, Dorchester and Endicott streets for $2.45 million on March 31, according to Attorney Richard Kalinowski, a 1975 graduate of St. Mary High School, who represented Our Lady of Czestochowa Parish during the sale. The school, a former convent, a playground and a parking lot were on the parcels, according to Father Richard W. Polek, pastor.  

Then, in rapid succession, the parcels were divided and sold by CIG. 

 On March 31, Visitation House Inc. purchased the house at 119 Endicott St. that it has been using since it was founded in 2003. Visitation House, which houses mothers in need and their babies, bought the 12,600-foot former convent for $750,000, said Christine Farmer, vice president of the board of directors.  

The next day CIG sold the rest of the property - for $4.3 million - to Learning First Charter Public School, which plans to relocate there in the fall of 2022, said Rosie Fayard, the charter school’s vice president of advancement.  

“We’re just really excited that we can own our own home,” Mrs. Farmer said. The former convent belonged to Our Lady of Czestochowa, but “there was an agreement that we could stay there,” she said. It is ideal because it has a chapel, private bedrooms and a large living room, dining room and kitchen, she said, and “it’s ideally situated in the heart of Worcester with access to other agencies for assistance for our women.”  

Now, through a planned capital campaign to help pay for the purchase of the building, Visitation House can reach out to donors to invite them to help support those women, she said. 

“This purchase is an example of the strength and stability of our organization,” says a Visitation House statement. “As a  

GuideStar Gold 501c3 nonprofit, home ownership provides another opportunity to secure our mission to provide a safe haven for homeless mothers facing unplanned pregnancies.” 

Ms. Fayard also spoke of reaching out – to the people of St. Mary’s Schools and its parish as well as the charter school’s students. She said she hopes former St. Mary’s students will enroll in the free kindergarten-grade 8 school; anyone can register, and Worcester residents are given priority. 

St. Mary’s was founded and built by Polish immigrants in 1915 as a parish school for Our Lady of Czestochowa. A high school opened in 1936, said Father Polek. There were only about 15 Polish children among its 200 students when St. Mary’s announced last spring that it was closing for financial and enrollment reasons, he said.  

Many of Learning First’s students live in that Vernon Hill neighborhood, Ms. Fayard said. A press release from the charter school says students are primarily from first-generation immigrant families; 46% of the students are African-American, 45% Hispanic, and there is a waiting list of 250 students. 

The 25-year-old school, which changed its name from Seven Hills Charter Public School last summer, is relocating from its quarters on Gage Street because they are too small for its 670 students and 120 staff members, Ms. Fayard said. 

Despite $14 million earmarked for renovations of the former St. Mary’s, “We’re not making many changes to the building; we’re updating,” she said. “We appreciate the history and are excited to maintain it.” She said St. Mary’s is considered historic. 

 “We’ll certainly extend opportunities” for the parish to use the building again for their own activities and to get involved with the school, she said. “We want to be good neighbors.” 

The school also plans to rent parking spaces in the parish lot, which Father Polek said will generate income for the parish. 

The sale of the property, while sad, also helps the parish financially, he said; with some of the money, the parish will pay past debt it owes the diocese. He said some of the money will be needed for renovations in the halls and classrooms beneath the church, since religious education classes formerly held in the school will now be held there.