St. Mary’s Catholic Center in Northgate is $2 million closer to building a new church.
Frank Shannon, Executive Director of Development, said Joe and Shelley Tortorice recently increased their New Church Campaign pledge from $1 million to $3 million, making it the largest gift St. Mary’s has received.
“The two million dollar increase that they made in their pledge got us from $11.5 million to $13.5 million so it is a game changer for us, it gets us that much closer to the goal,” said Shannon.
Joe Tortorice, class of 1970, is the founder and President of Jason’s Deli Corp.
“The way he lives and works as an Aggie, as an owner of a successful business, as a committed Catholic Christian man, and Shelley too, these are just great people,” said Shannon.
Click here to find out more about St. Mary’s New Church Campaign.
Click below to hear Frank Shannon visiting with WTAW’s Chelsea Reber.
News release from St. Mary’s Catholic Center:
College Station, Texas— April 30, 2018: – Texas A&M alumnus, Joe V. Tortorice, Jr. ’70, founder and President of Jason’s Deli Corp., and his wife, Shelley, recently committed $3 million to the New Church Campaign at St. Mary’s Catholic Center. This gift represents the largest ever to St. Mary’s, which is in the midst of a $20 million capital campaign.
“Joe and Shelley Tortorice have been long and strong supporters of St. Mary’s. Their recent commitment to the New Church Campaign has put us well beyond the halfway mark and has given us renewed energy to complete this historic mission to serve Aggie Catholic students and community parishioners. They are wonderful role models for our students and other philanthropists.” said Eddie Joe and JoAnn Davis, Co-Chairs of the campaign.
The current church capacity is 800; services are routinely standing-room only, and frequently must add extra Masses in the adjacent Activity Center to accommodate the 1,500 congregants who do not fit into the church. The new church will seat approximately 1,500 people.
“The new church at St. Mary’s is pivotal in our mission to prepare apostles for the Church and the world.” said Father Brian McMaster, Pastor of St. Mary’s Catholic Center. “This gift and the devotion with which it was given move us forward with trust in God and reliance through prayer in His goodness.”
“Between Shelly and me, we‘ve been attending St. Mary’s since I was a fish in the Corp in 1966. Our kids went there and in recent years we’ve been attending whenever we’re in town for campus activities,” said Mr. Tortorice. “We love to watch the students, who are incredibly spiritual and devoted to their faith. In this day and age, our kids are bombarded with the wrong kinds of messages. We cannot lose them. We wanted to make this gift to help and to encourage others to give. It’s up to us to provide a facility that will inspire them and nurture their growth.”
Founded in 1958, St. Mary’s Catholic Center is one of the largest Catholic college campus ministries in the country.