Service and social outreach is a way of life at
Pius XI High School. It is one of our hallmarks that helps young people build
identity, prepare for the challenges of the future and live lives as change
agents in their communities. At Pius XI, students willingly help others at school, in the community and around
the world
Each year, Campus Ministry coordinates a Thanksgiving Drive – now a
long-standing tradition which has made Pius’ philanthropic spirit well-known in
the area. The objective of the Thanksgiving Drive is to create true
relationships with local charities in an effort not only to assist them by
collecting donations, but to continue to actively serve them long after the
Drive is complete.
Among the organizations we’ve come to hold dear
are: Transitional Living Services (since ’96), Repairers of the Breach (’01),
DAYSTAR (’05), LaCausa Crisis Nursery and this past year’s benefactors, Fostering
Hope.
We are grateful for the significant impact we’ve
been able to have on these agencies. We have received student-written grants to
build playgrounds, decks, renovate a kitchen, and redo electrical work. We’ve
raised enough money to purchase a 15-passenger van, obtain major appliances,
exercise equipment, books, and toys, and we’ve literally collected truckloads
of supplies, clothing and food.
In addition, through the efforts of Campus
Ministry, Pius XI has hosted a Christmas party for the past 20 years for
150-200 beneficiaries of Transitional Living Services. And this is the seventh year
Pius XI students have supplied more than 300 Christmas presents for the Milwaukee Volunteer Center’s
Annual Giving Tree Program.