The Diocese of Crookston is currently in the middle of a Capital Campaign called “The Perfect Fit.” The reason for the campaign is because the Diocese will be moving from their current building located at 1200 Memorial Drive in Crookston, and into the Mount St. Benedict Monastery located at 620 Summit Avenue North.
Chad Ryan is the Financial Officer for the Diocese and explained why they are making the move. “The plan is that we’re going to move into the Mount St. Benedict building. The sisters over at Mount St. Benedict are dwindling in number and getting up in age, so they’re looking for someone to take over the facility,” said Ryan. “So we will purchase Mount St. Benedict, and the plan would be to move all our offices over there. The sisters will also continue to live there and rent space from us, and we will be responsible for handling all the upkeep and maintenance of the building.”
While the fit does make sense for the sisters at Mount St. Benedict, it’s also a good fit for the Diocese, as they’ve been looking to move facilities for a while. “We’ve been looking at getting a new building for a long time,” said Ryan. “The building we’re currently in is 70 years old, and it has a lot of issues. It’s not handicap accessible; it wasn’t built for it to be an office building. My office was initially designed to be a nun’s bedroom. There also isn’t a lot of meeting space, so if we want to do a retreat or get the priests together, we have to go off-site. So, we’ve been talking for a long time about building a new building on our current property. With this opportunity in front of us, it makes more sense for us to go over there and sell this property.”
There are five wings at Mount St. Benedict, and the sisters would remain living in two of them, while the other three would be used for retreats by the Diocese. There are also larger meeting rooms that the Diocese will be able to utilize. With the move, they’ll also be trying to sell their current property.
The Capital Campaign is called “The Perfect Fit” for a reason. The needs of the Diocese will be met, while the needs of the sisters at Mount St. Benedict will also be met. The timeline of when the Diocese will be able to move into Mount St. Benedict will be determined on when the funds can be raised. “The timeline will depend a lot on how the Capital Campaign goes,” said Ryan. “We’re hoping to move over this upcoming summer, and if not this summer, then the summer of 2023.”
Ryan also explained how much money the Diocese hopes to raise. “The goal of the campaign is $15 million,” said Ryan. “$12 million will be used for the purchase of the building, and then $3 million will be used for an endowment that would generate income to help cover the additional cost of the retreat center.”
For those interested in donating to the Capital Campaign, they can contact the Diocese of Crookston at 218-281-4533, or go online at crookston.org/perfectfit.
