By Tom Dalton
SALEM — A group of St. Joseph School parents is taking its fight to save the city's last Catholic school to parishes across the city.
On Sunday, the start of Catholic Schools Week, the parents will start collecting signatures in a petition drive at the city's five parishes. They also plan to launch a letter-writing campaign and to look for other ways to build community support to block the scheduled June closing of the K-8 school.
"The more public support we have, the better off we are," parent Sean McKeehan said at a meeting last night at the former St. Thomas the Apostle School on the Salem/Peabody line.
In announcing the closing last month, church officials said the enrollment of 165 is too low to make the school viable, and the current and projected debt of more than $450,000 is too large to easily overcome.
The midyear announcement stunned parents, who knew the school was trying to rebound after the closing of St. Joseph Parish in 2004, but also knew that it had increased enrollment at the lower grades and was showing other signs of progress.
A group of about 10 parents has been meeting for several weeks, looking for ways to begin a campaign to save the school. Last night was their first public meeting.
"We just don't want to go away and not give it a try," parent Steve Szpak told a crowd of 50 parents and community members.
At issue, he said, is not just the fate of one school, but the future of Catholic education in Salem.
While they want to retain 116-year-old St. Joseph School, they said they also want to preserve an important educational choice in a city that once had nearly a dozen parochial schools.
"Where is a Catholic education for my child in Salem?" said Erin Grocki, who teaches at a Catholic school in Peabody and has children at St. Joseph. "Salem is not Beverly. ... It is not Beverly Farms. ... I think the bigger fight is for our community."
The group said it has made a few attempts to contact the Archdiocese of Boston, but has decided to launch this campaign first, build support, develop a strategy and then try to request a meeting with church officials.
"Our first real goal is to get our foot in the door," Szpak said.
One woman said she was disappointed that other parishes, all of which have hosted Catholic schools at one time, have not rallied to their cause.
"Where is the support?" asked Claire Cawley. "Where is the uproar?"
"There has to be a way to get out there and say, 'This is the last (Catholic school). Is this truly what you want for your community?'" Grocki said.
A lot of issues were raised at last night's meeting: possible mergers, the likelihood of using other Catholic school buildings in the city and appealing to regional Catholic organizations for funds and help.
At one point, the Rev. Richard Burton, the St. Thomas pastor hosting the meeting, was put on the spot. Someone asked if they could move St. Joseph School to a former school building in his parish.
"That's above my pay grade," the former Navy lieutenant commander said with a smile.
The St. Joseph parents have started a Web site (www.sjs family.org) where they hope to make regular postings about their progress and plans.
