Scholarships

In the spirit of St. Francis and St. Clare, we honor and respect everyone in their search for spiritual healing, growth and renewal. We will not turn anyone away because of inability to pay.

Scholarships can be used for programs, retreats, spiritual direction and SDPP tuition, as indicated below. Funds are not available for bedroom or hermitage stays. There are no forms to fill out, and all requests are held in confidence. 

TO REQUEST A SCHOLARSHIP, please contact Laurie Swan, FSC office manager, at 608-791-5279 or by email at lswan@fspa.org.

Mary Kathryn Fogarty, FSPA, Scholarship Fund

Funds can be used for any program or retreat.
This fund was started in 1998 by Sister Mary Kathryn Fogarty, who was director of the FSC at that time. It was initially used to help Spiritual Direction Preparation Program participants who couldn't afford tuition, but its scope has expanded. When Vince Hatt became director in 2000, he renamed the fund and invited donors to contribute to it in her honor. 

Blanche Klein, FSPA, Scholarship Fund

Funds can be used for Spiritual Direction Preparation Program and individual spiritual direction.
This fund was started in 2007 to honor Sister Blanche Klein, who was on staff at the FSC from 1997-2003 as a spiritual director. (She continued to offer spiritual direction in La Crosse until 2016.) A generous donation from Peter and Marla Markham was the seed money for the fund, and then-Director Vince Hatt invited others to donate to it in appreciation of her.

Joan Weisenbeck, FSPA, Scholarship Fund

Funds can be used for Spiritual Direction Preparation Program and individual spiritual direction.
This fund was started in 2021 with a donation from Marlene Weisenbeck, FSPA, and Celesta Day, FSPA, in honor of Sister Joan Weisenbeck's birthday and her service to the FSC (Sister Joan retired from the FSC staff in December 2012).

Norman L. Gillette Sr. Scholarship Fund

Funds can be used for those recovering from addictions (5th step, programs, retreats, spiritual direction).
This fund was started in 1999 with a substantial pledge from the N.L. Gillette Sr. Family Fund, administered by the La Crosse Community Foundation, to assist those in chemical dependency or alcohol recovery programs. Norman L. Gillette Sr. was a prominent La Crosse businessman, Pepsi-Cola bottling executive and major area philanthropist. He died in 1996.

Catherine DeKrey Fund

This fund is specifically for SDPP participants who, due to a health crisis or other major life event, need help completing the program due to unanticipated expenses. This fund was started in 2021 by Gary DeKrey in honor of his wife and to help others like her. Catherine was a 2015 graduate of the FSC's Spiritual Direction Preparation Program; she died in 2018. Those who might need assistance are encouraged to speak to the SDPP director directly.   
 

Donations to all of these funds are still greatly appreciated. Make a secure online donation HERE.