The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-02-12
St. Johns R. 6. Church To Erect Parish Building For
 School Purposes
PROPOSITION TO BUY
 GARFIELD SCHOOL BID.
Great Progress Of Church And Parish Under Guidance Of
 Father KOmaTd


 Through the annual report of St.
 Johns Nepomuk R. C.. church, Jane
 and Brooks street, plans of the parish
 for the construction of a fine school
 building, embodying many features
 besides the education of the children
 of the parish, have been brought to
 public notice.
 The church has experienced an un-
 usually successful year. and under the
 skilItuI guidance of Rev. A. B. ko-
 mara. pastor since the middle Of
 March, 1911, the organization of the
 church has been placed upon foot ing more substantial than ever before
 in It's history.
 The cnurcn property is now valued
 at S65 Ot,O and the deDt upon the en- tire property is little more than $o,-
 0OO It IS planned to have the bIg parish building ready for occupancy TOT school and other purposes carry next year Income during the nIae and one-haIf months o1 rather Ao> 1nara's pastorate has aggregated $S'-
 9OO This IS more than 5000 better than during the entire year preceding.
 The showing is the more notable when
 it is taken into consideration that Eather- komara found the church in a
 4isorganized c ,ndition when he was assigned to the pastorate. Father Komara is entlus1astlc over the prOs- pects of the parish for this year.
 Asked as to the construction Of his new parish building Father komara said that plans were now oelns con sfdered for the building. It is to be locate on three vacant lots owned by the parish adjoining the Garfield school property in Berkshire avenue. Father Komara has ministered to the 400 families in his congregation, has heard s.S58 confessions and has ad- Ynintstered communions aggregating more than 1S.O00. since coming here.
 N1a r1 1-9 yfrTzlP VF1-
 @Our great drawback" said he, "is in the instruction of our children. We can't take proper Care or our cniI- dren under present conditions. We give instruction several times week, but we can't build up their characters sthooI. But we expect to do some thing this spring. Repea tedIy I see the sad necessity of giving moral when our school is in working order, we expect to have an institution of the very best We have already. en- Especially prepared for teaching. We will begin with several hundred pu- pills.
 Father Komara said there were near by three blocks. Our people, thank God. know nothing of race suicide ;'' tend the Garfield and the Staples schools
 Father Komara admitted that when 1 ais school is opened there will be a | schools We have in mind offering l to buy one of the public schools said F3ther ,1s ,2o Romar7 I've when gneSti1nea Building that will serve not only for l a school. but also for a clubhouse 1 with fine gym f9r or the he, yoHng otPa men men ish needs. We would be able to get | the sort Of building we want. better, | by building new. but it is possible | that we could purchase one of the ] public schools and by remOdelling and | adding to it, to get a satisfactory | building. zn considering this matter. We know | that when our school is completed | that there will be many vacant rooms | in both the Staples and Garfield school | Our people want their chill | dren to receive a moral educatio4- and | we will secure the attendance of prac- | ideally every child of school age in l our parish. This is going 70 leave a l big gap in the attendance at the two i schools mentioned. The district where l those schools are located are rapidly l becoming populated with our people l and 1t is safe to say that for years | to come the slovak peoples will in> | crease in this particular locality at a | greater ratio than any other.
 we do not want to be accused by 1 and by of having been the cause of the attendance at eith> | er of these schools thereby leaving many of the rooms unoccupied and it Is for this purpose only that we would consider purchasing the present Gar field school which adjoins our parish property.
 Most of our people prefer to build their own school but they have no eb- lection to the opening of negotiations along the line indicated here though they do not want to be put in a posi- Lion of seeking any favors from the school board for the transaction if it is taken up will be strictly one Of 0"SFheSI; @Tbe people of St. JohnNs.,' he con- -inued. are poor people, but as a people. We have large families. We expect however to make the new building serve not only the purpose folks. but of making good citizens of 1ur grown-up congregation. Thus for he money we must expend, we ex> 0ect a double return closing a deal with the board of Ed ( Ication, Father Komara said he had not given the subject much attention. It Is not so much for the interest # the parish" said he, 'as it is for he interest of the Board of Education, hat something of this sort should be ione. I understand that the Board # Education is seeking funds for new school buildings" said he. eff they want to sell the Garfield school, for ! fair price. St. Johns parish win he money in building schools where hey will be needed
 Staples school district is tficIly populated. It won't grow much more. most entirely in pupils who will at. C end St. Johns parochial school. So [ you see when St. Johns school is q he Garfield school. unless conditions a rise which none of us expects |