SAN ANTONIO - Most people will agree that getting a good education can mean all the difference in the world when it comes to succeeding in life. While taxpayer funded public schools are available for all children, some families prefer a private Catholic school education, but can't always afford it. Michael Garofalo takes a look at how one family's life was changed by the generosity of people and one organization helping families send their children to a Catholic high school who otherwise would not be able to.
St Gerard High School is just one of 43 Catholic schools in the Archdiocese of San Antonio. Glenn Jackson and his sister Brittney are two of the school’s 112 students.
“We call look out for each other,” Glenn told News 4 WOAI.
“I feel blessed - and I feel like I am going to be somebody,” said Brittney.
The Jacksons know they are among the lucky ones. Just ask their mom Gloria.
“I just want them to have the best way of life they could, and I know them being here -- I know they will be successful,” Gloria explained.
The organization that helped make Glenn's Saint Gerard High School education affordable - and now his sister's – is ‘Hope for the Future.’
“It is awesome that people still have a heart and they understand to invest back in the student,” said Kenneth Brown, the Academic Dean at St Gerard.
The non-profit helps make a Catholic school education affordable for more than 1600 children with the average aid being about a $1,000 per student. For those who receive financial aid, they can use it to attend any Catholic school in the Archdiocese of San Antonio.
At St Gerard Brittney is a freshmen and Glenn is a junior who plays both varsity football and basketball.
“I don't think I'd be getting the opportunities I am getting at St Gerard,” said Brittney.
“Its not ‘I think I am going to college.’ It's ‘I know I am going to college,’” said Glenn. “At Roosevelt you would just be happy to graduate.”
“Every mother want the best for her child. God is not going to give me two more,” said Gloria.
This weekend "Hope for the Future" is holding its annual Khaki and Plaid Gala to raise money so needy students in the San Antonio area can afford a Catholic school education. It's being held Saturday night at the Henry B Gonzales Convention Center. It starts at 6:30 and tickets are still available.
For information on how to get tuition assistance through "Hope for the Future," go to
hopeforfuture.org...
