Thank You!
A Message to our Supporters
Even as we write this, we can hardly believe it. Once again, your generosity has humbled us and shown us the magnitude of the Lord’s grace.
When we made the difficult but necessary decision to cancel our 16th Annual Cooking for Kids Tribute Dinner-Auction fundraiser, we knew it was the right thing to do for our community and our supporters. But, like you, we were worried about the families and schools that we serve.
Cooking for Kids is our largest and most critical fundraiser. Each year, we rely on it to fulfill our mission to make Lutheran Christian education affordable for every family, regardless of income. We also knew that the financial impact of the pandemic would make that need even more urgent for the families we serve.
So we tried something new. We converted our in-person event to an online auction – new territory for us – and we turned to you, our faithful and generous supporters, for help. And once again, you not only answered that call, you humbled us with your response. Nearly every sponsor, donor and supporter made it clear, beyond any doubt, that they were with us.
Then, when our auction opened April 18 – the same day that we would have gathered to celebrate – we saw that support grow from both new friends and faithful donors. In fact, the gifts are still coming in!
In total, we raised over $263,000, a 25% increase from 2019 and our highest ever!
We shouldn’t have been surprised. For 15 years, you have faithfully supported LESA’s mission to sustain the future of Lutheran education in St. Louis.
This month we began the process of awarding tuition assistance for the 2020/21 school year. Since this pandemic began, we’ve seen a 49 percent increase in qualified scholarship applications from last year. We are still concerned for those families, but we know that the Lord will always provide the guidance and resources needed. And He did, as He worked though your generosity – so, we praise Him and share our heartfelt thanks with you!
“And my God will meet all your needs according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 4:19
On behalf of the 8,300 students, 500 educators and 34 member schools that we serve, thank you for making this possible.
God’s Blessings,
The LESA Team
