The Helen Barry Hamlin Library

The Helen Barry Hamlin Library at St. Sebastian Parish School is dedicated to promoting the love of reading in each student, faculty member and parishioner! The library is named after Helen Barry Hamlin, who along with her husband, Earl, was a founding member of our parish. The extended Hamlin family, including her son Richard Hamlin (Class of 1941), have been long-time supporters of the Foundation.

In 1999, Helen’s children and grandchildren established the Helen Barry Hamlin Library Fund in her memory, honoring her ties to our parish and providing lasting support for our students. In 2011, the St. Sebastian Parish Foundation was blessed to be able to use funds from the Helen Barry Hamlin Library Fund to completely renovate our school library.

The Organ Project

The Organ Project began in 2011 when Rev. John A. Valencheck learned that an organ was available from Trinity Lutheran Church in Canton, Ohio. The timing was perfect, since our organ was needing constant repairs after 50 years of daily use. The Organ Fund was established at the Foundation, and thanks to the many generous donations received, we were blessed with the good fortune of being able to acquire the Trinity organ. This allowed us to expand and greatly improve our existing organ. The project was completed and the Blessing Ceremony and Dedication Concert was held on November 19, 2012.

Brick Parking Lot and Sacred Heart of Jesus Shrine

Brick Parking Lot: In 1938 when the rectory was constructed, the brick parking lot and playground were also created. In the 2000s, after decades of use, the brick parking lot was in need of a major upgrade. In 2009, parish leaders decided to undertake the complete replacement of the brick lot. The Foundation established the Brick Lot Fund to support the project and led the campaign for donations. Thanks to contributions from our parishioners to the Foundation as well as the Cleveland Diocese “Rooted in Faith” campaign, the parish completed this major project in 2015.

Sacred Heart of Jesus Shrine: Because of the generosity of a donation to the St. Sebastian Parish Foundation, the Sacred Heart of Jesus Shrine was able to find a permanent home at St. Sebastian Parish. The original owner of the Sacred Heart of Jesus Shrine was St. Procop Parish. We are so blessed to have this shrine on our campus as we remember the people of St. Procop who were inspired by this Sacred Heart of Jesus statue for over 100 years.

Cornerstone of Our Faith

In May of 2017, the St. Sebastian Parish Foundation, at the request of the Rev. John A. Valencheck, launched Cornerstone of Our Faith, a $1 million capital campaign to restore our beloved church to its full beauty and grandeur in time for the celebration of our parish’s 90th Anniversary in 2018. Thanks to the generosity of our parishioners, alumni, families and friends we were able to exceed the goal and accomplish all the projects featured in the pages from the 2018 Annual Report. More information may also be found on the Cornerstone of Our Faith campaign page.

Project Spruce Up

The Project Spruce Up effort exceeded the $100,000 goal, fully-funding a major “spruce up” of the school’s hallways and stairwells, including installation of polymer epoxy coating on all 7,150 square feet of the hallway flooring and repairs and upgrades to the stairwells and hallway walls. Project Spruce Up began in 2019, when the St. Sebastian Parish Foundation began working with a group of alumni from the classes of 1969-1978 on a project to honor the school’s 90th anniversary. Our sincere thanks to everyone who supported Project Spruce Up! Donations collected from 2019-2020 totaled $100,731 from 132 donors. Read more.