Our Newest Catholic School
Our state’s newest Catholic school opened in January in Lodge Grass, Montana. The St. Labre Indian School network opened up a preschool in Lodge Grass, a small town on the Crow Reservation. The school serves 12 preschool students (tuition-free) and is teaching a dual language immersion model (Crow & English languages). Here is a short video of one of the teachers, Alfetta Jefferson, teaching in Crow.
Lodge Grass was once a mixed nationality small town with well-kept houses, restaurants, a hardware store, and other small businesses. For a variety of reasons, Lodge Grass slipped into a majority poverty small town. These reasons include the construction of Interstate 90 outside of town (which made driving to Hardin or Billings much easier for retail and entertainment options) and racial tensions which caused most of the white residents to flee (dropping the value of houses, which then led to further poverty). Lodge Grass is not a very appealing place to live by any measure (aesthetic, socio-economic, etc.).
Into this depressed environment stepped St. Labre. Many of the young people make the 25 mile trip to St. Xavier every day to attend Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy, a K-8 Catholic school run by the St. Labre network. And then many of these same students enroll at St. Labre HS after Pretty Eagle and live in the dorms during the week. St. Labre has decided that early learning is a new frontier. The Lodge Grass preschool was opened in the Our Lady of Loretto parish building which boasts four classrooms, a gym, and a kitchen.
I believe it's appropriate that the Lodge Grass preschool is our newest school. Pope Francis has challenged Catholics to minister on the margins of society. This school fits that category. He has called for a poor church to serve the poor.
The St. Labre Indian School network now operates six Indian Catholic schools in their tuition-free model. St. Labre is able to raise enough money to serve their mission of providing a Catholic education on the Crow and Northern Cheyenne reservations. St. Labre is able to meld Catholic and native traditions, as seen in a video taken by yours truly last week at their All-School Mass.
Dr. Tim Uhl, Superintendent
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St. Charles Mission School Students preparing for All-School Mass | Tipi Tabernacle Sacred art=perfect combination of the local and the supernatural | Board of Sisters In the Billings Catholic Schools office there is a board honoring the Sisters of Charity of Leavenworth who taught in their schools |
St. Charles Mission School
Tipi Tabernacle
Board of Sisters
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St. Labre drum circle The drum circle participated during the Mass and before the basketball game | Tri-cultural One of the St. Labre students signed the "Our Father" during Mass | Best Seats in the House! I was able to attend the St. Labre-Lodge Grass basketball game and was able to help Mr. Troy at the scorer's table. St. Labre won 107-66 |
St. Labre drum circle
Tri-cultural
Best Seats in the House!
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Lodge Grass gym The Lodge Grass preschool at Our Lady of Loretto parish boasts a community gym | Teaching in Two Languages Ms. Alfetta Jackson teaches in two languages | Abandoned House, Lodge Grass Unfortunately, not an unusual sight |
Lodge Grass gym
Teaching in Two Languages
Abandoned House, Lodge Grass
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Mt. Calvary on the Reservation The mural behind the altar in Our Lady of Loretto Church integrates Crow symbolism (tipis, eagle) into the Mt. Calvary scene | Ribbon Cutting Yours truly cutting the ribbon to the new E.L Wiegand Human Performance Center at Great Falls Central Catholic High School | Parish Support Fr. David Reichling, O.F.M. Cap., the pastor of St. Bernard's Parish in Billings, presented a check for $625k from the five Billings parishes to support Billings Catholic Schools |
Mt. Calvary on the Reservation
Ribbon Cutting
Parish Support
Montana Catholic Schools
