My Dear Friends,
It is hard to believe that 30 years have passed since Mother of Divine Grace School was founded. And yet here we are, embarking on yet another school year, working with thousands of families to grow together in faith.
When we first officially started MODG in 1995, we had no idea of the impact and reach the school would have several decades later! In preparing for our 30th Anniversary Gala coming up next month I have been reflecting on the journey that has brought us here, one that I know has impacted many of you, as well. To my mind, it’s an amazing story.
In the years leading up to our founding, I had thought homeschooling would be too hard, so my husband Mark and I started a small school with seven other families, somehow believing this would be easier than homeschooling. But my mother, Donna Steichen, kept suggesting to us that we homeschool the children, and eventually that is what we did. I am forever grateful to my mother for guiding us in that direction - she really knew what would be best for our family and our six children.
We brought our first three students home to homeschool, and it worked out very well for us. This was in the infancy of the homeschooling movement, so much so that we didn’t let our children go outside during the day. I didn’t want to advertise that we were homeschooling.
After ten years of experimenting on my little guinea pigs, I was asked to present at some conferences about our experience and what we were doing with our students. The notes for my first talk developed into Designing Your Own Classical Curriculum, and I am very happy whenever I hear from you that my book had an impact in your lives. I know that I have a lot of friends among you.
DYOCC led us to establish MODG with the help of Laurel Springs School. As we were preparing for this endeavor, we knew we had to name the school after Our Lady. My husband Mark and I went through the Litany of the Blessed Mother and determined that the title should be Mother of Divine Grace. Not only did we recognize that it would require tremendous grace to lead and form the school, but we also wanted our students and families to be reminded where to turn in times of difficulty and distress. As the Child Jesus was raised under the mantle of Our Lady, so do we pray that our families will turn to the Blessed Mother for her guidance.
We had just 22 families that first year. Four years later, that number stood at 256. Eventually we added teachers, classes, tutoring, and our Special Services program to help our students receive whatever support they needed.
We now have over 2,400 families enrolled in our school. Again and again, God has provided abundantly for our needs. Our consultants, mentors, and administrative staff are an incredible support system for our families, helping to nurture students in the good, the true, and the beautiful.
Our prayer for you, our families, is that Our Blessed Mother and Saint Joseph, who raised and instructed the Child Jesus, will be a constant guide for you as you raise and instruct your own children. Our goal as a school is to help you in that work, in any way that we can.
It is wonderful to be celebrating what God has wrought in Mother of Divine Grace School over the last 30 years. One thing I am clear about is that this is God’s work, because it is beyond anything any of us could have done on our own. In their own way, the 30 years of MODG and the 10,200 families we have served in that time give glory to God, because they manifest in a particular way Who He is, how much He loves us and how He works in our lives.
Thank you for giving glory to God through your families.
Thank you for manifesting His incredibly generous goodness through your homeschooling and your support of our mission. We owe Him and you a great debt of gratitude.
30 years is a long time, but we look forward to another 30 years, and we know that’s only possible with your help. The culture of death around us doesn’t want us to succeed. Strong families and strong, homeschooled graduates stand apart from the crowd and prevent the work of the enemy.
We need your help to continue to form students who can take a principled stand for what is good and right. If you are able, please give a donation to help us further our mission.
Even more importantly, please keep us in your prayers as we set forth on another school year. As we have done for the last decade, we will once again have 400 seniors graduating and entering the world to give glory to God. It is through them that the work of Our Lord will be done.
God bless you all,
Laura Berquist
Founder and CEO