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Happening ... in the Local Church
 Knights
of Columbus Council 456 is sponsoring the new Dr. James Pickerill
Tuition Assistance Trust. Pictured are the late Dr. James Pickerill and
his son, Dr. Casey Pickerill, in an undated photo. |
 Trust
officers Ron Burns, Terry Bordenet and Jerry Klinker with Father Dan
Gartland and Father Tim Alkire. “Jim was always exceptionally supportive
of Catholic schools,” Father Gartland says. (Photos provided) |
By Caroline B.
Mooney
The Catholic Moment
LAFAYETTE — Incoming freshmen at Central Catholic Junior-Senior High School can benefit from the new Dr. James Pickerill Tuition Assistance Trust sponsored by Knights of Columbus Council 456.
The fund, announced at a dinner held in January, honors Dr. Pickerill, who was a supporter of Central Catholic. He died in 2005.
“My dad was very involved the whole time my two brothers and I were in the Catholic school system in the 1980s,” said his son, Dr. Casey Pickerill. “My dad was president of the athletic boosters for several years, and they had great attendance at meetings. I remember my dad sitting at the kitchen table a week before meetings making reminder phone calls. He really dove in and tried to fix things. He almost single-handedly spearheaded a campaign to put a new roof on the school. He really started a grass-roots campaign and called around asking big-dollar names to contribute.
“I joined his practice in 1997, and had the honor and pleasure of working with him,” Pickerill said. “The trust is really an honor — I hope it leads to someone getting access to Central Catholic who wouldn’t otherwise be able to go. Dad would be honored to have it in his name. For myself and my brothers, it is a high honor to have my dad represented in this way.”
During the 1986-87 school year, Central Catholic had many leaks in the roof, said Father Dan Gartland, pastor of St. Lawrence Church and a former teacher at the school.
“Dr. Pickerill said, ‘We’re not going to patch it — we’re going to re-roof the whole thing!’ And he and a group of businessmen got together and raised $248,000 to put a new roof on,” he said.
“Jim was always exceptionally supportive of Catholic schools,” Father Gartland said. “He was one of those people who used his time, talent and treasury and put his money where his mouth was.”
Dr. Pickerill was very active in the Catholic schools in Lafayette, said Terry Bordenet, trust officer and member of the Knights of Columbus for 46 years.
“He helped raise money to keep Central Catholic open in 1990 and was very active in the Knights of Columbus,” he said. “At one point, he took it upon himself to remodel the Knights of Columbus hall.
“We are giving a $500 scholarship the first year, and hope to give two the second year, and three the third year,” Bordenet said. “The Knights of Columbus will hold a fund raiser each year to maintain the trust. We held a fund raiser in December and in recent weeks people have sent in donations after hearing about the trust. We have $7,000 in the fund at this point.
“We want to let people know that the Knights of Columbus support the Catholic community,” he said, “and we have chosen to focus on education. We are getting a tremendous response for this trust — I have never seen such enthusiasm for anything.”
“Dr. Pickerill was a great man and this trust is a way for his legacy to live on,” said Joe Brett-
nacher, president of the Lafayette Catholic School System. “He served his community in an exemplary fashion. For me, this is extra special, because Dr. Pickerill was my doctor. I remember when he removed my tonsils.
“This trust will benefit our students,” Brettnacher said. “We appreciate anything we can do to enhance any parents’ chance of their sons or daughters receiving a Catholic education. We will choose students according to the criteria set up by the selection committee. By selecting these students, it is really a way for Dr. Pickerill’s legacy to live on.”
Donations can be sent to Knights of Columbus, c/o Terry Bordenet, 218 S. Fourth Street, Lafayette, IN 47904. Checks can be made payable to the James Pickerill Trust Fund.
• • •
Guidelines for the trust are:
* Must be an incoming freshman at Central Catholic Junior-Senior High School;
• Must be a child of a Knights of Columbus Council 456 member (living or deceased).
Tuition assistance is determined based on the following criteria:
• Must maintain a 2.0 grade-point average or higher;
• Must qualify for tuition assistance as determined by the Lafayette Catholic School System’s process.
The president of the LCSS or his designee will select the student based upon the above criteria
Tuition assistance is considered a one-time gift, but last year’s awardee may reapply.
The student must be in good standing with Central Catholic.