2008 Appeal Goal

The Goal of the 2008 Annual Appeal is to completely refinish the Dowd Activity Center floor. The estimated cost of this project is $20,000.

This is a serious need at Scotus. It is recommended that high school gym floors be completely sanded and refinished once every 15-20 years and our floor is now beginning its 28th year of service.

Gym floors are constructed of hard wood, taped markings (that reflect boundary lines for basketball and volleyball, and logos) and the floor finish. The floor finish is comprised of several layers of a particular wax product manufactured for gym floors. And every summer, the Scotus maintenance crew strips off the top layers of the gym floor wax and reapplies a new top coat of wax to protect the floor and provide a surface that is tough and functional for a high use athletic facility.

Unfortunately, not all of the new wax applied to the surface each year can be stripped away the following summer—causing a build-up over time that darkens the entire playing surface.

Referees and visiting coaches have commented that the Scotus floor is getting too dark to see the boundary markings used for athletic competition. Because of a lack of contrast between the wood and the floor markings, referees cannot tell if a player is out of bounds and players cannot see the lines that regulate play in basketball and volleyball.

The only solution is to completely sand the gym floor down to the wood—removing all of the wax as well as the taped markings and logos on the playing surface. New taped floor markings and logos would then be applied and covered with a new floor finish.

Scotus would like to refinish the Dowd Activity Center floor during the summer of 2009 and with your financial support we can achieve this goal. Help us improve the quality of athletic competition for our students by making a donation today!

Each fall Scotus conducts the Annual Appeal to raise funds for special projects needed by the school. Most recent annual appeals have funded the installation of a new computer labs for students to use, new doors at the major entrances of the school, and a high-tech surveillance and entrance lock system to enhance the security of the school. Many of our donors have also applied for matching gifts from their companies—effectively doubling the size of their donation to support Scotus Central Catholic High School.

An Annual Appeal phonathon is conducted by members of the National Honor Society at Scotus and Student Council using cell phones provided by Bolte-Styskal Wireless of Columbus. Since we are unable to reach everyone by phone, all of our alumni and many of our friends receive an appeal envelope in their fall alumni newsletter.

Although cash and security donations are preferred to help Scotus fund special projects, donations of personal property such as jewelry, automobile or other valuable property are often accepted by the school.

If you would like to make a donation today, send your check to: Scotus Central Catholic, Annual Appeal, 1554 18 Ave, Columbus NE 68601 or make a donation on-line through the Scotus web site.