CHARLOTTE — Students in 12 Catholic schools across the diocese will receive financial aid from the “C. Philip Johnston-Aline W. Kaneer Scholarship Fund,” paying all of their tuition for the 2020-’21 academic year.
The fund was created by C. Philip Johnston with $4 million from his estate before his death in 2017.
Johnston, a Catholic convert, was born in Charlotte but lived all over the country before retiring in the Southeast. He attended Mount St. Mary’s University in Emmitsburg, Md., and earned a master’s degree from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 1958. He worked in the entertainment industry, but when acting work became scarce, he took a “temporary job” working for
Conrad Hilton in a new credit card venture called Carte Blanche. He rose to success in the emerging credit card industry and, after reaching the position of senior vice president at a large regional bank in St. Louis, he left the credit card industry to lead a non-profit organization specializing in consumer credit counseling.
Students from all 19 Catholic schools in the diocese are eligible for scholarship awards from the fund, expected to total $110,000 this year.
Students receiving awards for this fall come from Bishop McGuinness High School in Kernersville; Charlotte Catholic High, Holy Trinity Middle and St. Patrick schools in Charlotte; St. Mark and
Christ the King High schools in Huntersville; Immaculate Heart of Mary School in High Point; Our Lady of Grace School in Greensboro; St. Leo and Our Lady of Mercy schools in Winston-Salem; Sacred Heart School in Salisbury; and St. Michael School in Gastonia.
The scholarship awarded to each student ranges from $3,000 to $14,000 depending on the tuition cost and the need. Each student can continue receiving assistance through the scholarship fund every year for the length of their academic career as long as they remain eligible.
“I first met with Mr. Johnston back in 1989. He made his decision to put this (scholarship) gift in his estate back then,” said Jim Kelley, diocesan director of development. “He never wavered from that commitment, even though he moved away from the diocese in his later years.”
Kelley noted he is finding that “more and more people across the diocese like Philip Johnston are remembering different ministries of the Church – such as Catholic schools and parishes, seminarian education, and Catholic Charities – and making plans in their wills and estates.”
To date, the diocese has received 27 gifts of $1 million or more from individuals. Two of those gifts, Johnston’s included, are of $4 million or more.
Learn more
Interested in establishing an endowment to benefit the Church in western North Carolina? Set up an endowment in the Diocese of Charlotte Foundation by leaving a bequest in a will, a beneficiary designation from a retirement plan, a gift of real estate or life insurance, cash or securities sufficient to set up an endowment, or a life income arrangement such as a trust or annuity. For details, contact Gina Rhodes at 704-370-3364 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
— SueAnn Howell, Senior reporter
HENDERSONVILLE — Immaculata School got creative in helping students stay connected as a school community during the COVID-19 pandemic.
After diocesan schools shifted to online learning in mid-March, the school launched a virtual Morning Assembly, where staff led students in prayer each morning via video conferencing software. It really helped smooth what was a sudden transition, said the school’s principal, Margaret Beale.
“Our school, what makes it so special, is the community,” Beale said. “We were worried about going to distance learning, and how we were going to keep that sense of community for our students.
It’s really been a team effort to come up with ideas.”
One of those ideas was a virtual Spirit Week, she said, and it “was a lot of fun.”
The first day was superhero day, when students dressed up as their favorite superhero or sent a picture of someone who is a superhero in their life. The second day, students dressed up in sports or princess costumes. Day three was “wacky Wednesday.” Day four was professional day, when students dressed up in an outfit representing what they want to do when they grow up.
Each day, they had a drawing for prizes among those who participated, and nearly everyone at the school got involved, Beale said.
Virtual Spirit Week wrapped up with a school spirit drive-through parade in the school’s parking lot. It was good for students, teachers and parents to see each other again, Beale said.
“It was so enjoyable. Lots of smiles, and there were a lot of tears, too,” she said. Many of the students willingly wore their school uniforms for the occasion, she noted.
“I heard from parents that it helped students to feel connected to each other, to see their friends dressed liked them,” she said. “On sports and princess day, two students who were on the same soccer team each took a picture of them in their jerseys and a parent spliced the picture together to make it look like they were high-fiving each other. It was a good way for them to express themselves.”
Prior to the virtual Spirit Week, Beale said, they asked parents to submit pictures of students holding messages for their teachers. Those images were then combined into a teacher appreciation video.
“That’s a positive that came out of all of this,” she said. “There was so much love shown for our teachers. We never would have thought to do a video for Teacher Appreciation Week – that’s something the teachers can have forever.”
— Kimberly Bender, online reporter