Saint John’s Preparatory School announces the largest gift commitment in its 168-year history, made by alumna Ann Marie Stock ’78 and her husband David Campagna. The couple’s transformative support has helped propel the school’s comprehensive fundraising campaign beyond its $10 million goal. Launched in April 2024, the Prep Forward – Our Time is Now campaign has secured more than $12.5 million to fund three distinct priorities: faculty, facilities, and financial aid. The Stock-Campagna gift will support student scholarships.

“I am a first-generation college student born and raised in St. Joseph who benefitted from scholarships at Prep,” said Ann Marie Stock. “I want to give back, making that possible for other students from Central Minnesota.”

Stock, a member of one of SJP’s first coed classes at Prep, credits the school with shaping her future. “Prep helped me believe that I was ‘college material’,” she said. “Prep positioned me to succeed in college and graduate school, which led to a fulfilling career in higher education. My years at Prep aided in the development of my intellect and my self-confidence.”

Currently a senior academic leader at William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, Stock reflects and speaks often about education’s enduring impact. “A single course or faculty member can shape a student’s life. Education is the best investment we can make.”

The gift is a cornerstone of SJP’s campaign, which is focused on investments in faculty, facilities, and financial aid, ensuring the Prep experience is available to students of all backgrounds for generations to come.

Jon McGee, SJP’s head of school, expressed profound gratitude for the couple’s generosity: “Ann Marie and David’s extraordinary generosity is a powerful statement about the value of education and the mission of Saint John’s Prep,” said McGee. “Their gift will open doors for generations of students, particularly those who may not have thought a place like Prep was within their reach. It will transform lives—and in doing so, it strengthens our entire community.”

The Stock-Campagnas believe deeply in education as a tool for empathy and understanding. Campagna, an international business development leader in the energy sector, said “Prep excels at helping students from around the world make sense of people, ideas, and perspectives different from their own—and that’s more important than ever.”

Stock, a scholar in Hispanic Studies with an international reputation for her unique understanding of Cuba’s culture concluded, “Prep connected me to a place and a community, while helping me see further and beyond.”

The couple’s record-setting gift not only honors the past—it ensures a bold and inclusive future for Saint John’s Prep and the students it serves. “We hope others will join us in supporting this campaign because securing the future of Prep ensures that this remarkable school in Central Minnesota continues to inspire the next generation of thought leaders and engaged citizens of our world,” said McGee.

For more information on the Prep Forward – Our Time is Now campaign, visit sjprep.net/prepforward.

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This semester we opened the Manka Fitness Center! The fitness center is located in the Saint Michael Hall gym. 

The project was made possible by Joram Manka ’97 and Maria Surma Manka, Joram’s sister Kayla Manka, Maria’s parents Jack and Mary Nona Surma, and support from several other Prep alumni.

While Joram and Maria’s financial commitment helped initiate this project, it was Joram’s active leadership in creating a vision that brought the project together, resulting in a remarkable space for our students, faculty, and staff. 

Students have enjoyed using the new weight room during supervised sessions during their lunch hours and after school. During Interim Week one group focused on fitness and used the time to learned how to use the machines and equipment.

The Manka Fitness Center will provide a tremendous opportunity for our entire Prep School community to improve their overall fitness. We are grateful for the Manka family’s leadership and support!

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Mental health and wellness are key to our students’ overall health and wellbeing. Good mental health is as important as good physical health. Diagnoses of neurodiversity, anxiety, and depression together represent the most diagnosed mental health conditions among school-age children nationally. Those diagnoses become even more prevalent during the teen years. We experience all these conditions at Saint John’s Prep. Similar to national findings, both the number and severity of mental health conditions among Prep students has risen in recent years, calling out the need for us to prioritize mental health and wellness awareness and support programs.

The Wenner family is seen above: Joe Wenner ’63, Chris Wenner ’90, Rachel Wenner Ruzanic ’95, Michelle Wenner Chestovich ’92, †Gretchen Wenner Butler ’03, and Mary Legatt Wenner.

The Gretchen Wenner Butler Student Wellness Fund, created by the Joe and Mary Wenner family (Joe ’63, Chris ’90, Michelle ’92, and Rachel ’95) and named in honor of their daughter, 2003 Prep graduate †Gretchen Wenner, will sustain and expand mental health and wellness programs at Saint John’s Prep and support mental health awareness and education. This fund will allow Prep to better support the mental health needs of Prep students and underscores our commitment to providing a holistic and supportive learning experience at Saint John’s Prep.

Student Wellness Fund Objectives

The Student Wellness Endowment Fund will:

Sustain and expand the school’s mental health programs and activities to ensure they remain accessible, comprehensive, and tailored to the diverse needs of our student body.

Support mental health awareness and education by promoting mental health literacy and fostering a culture of open dialogue around mental health.

Support wellness activities, sustaining programming that provides students, faculty, and staff with opportunities to find balance and overall wellness in their lives.

We know that mental health challenges have and continue to deeply impact many in the Prep School community. As we approach the anniversary of Gretchen’s passing (March 5, 2021), we invite you to contribute to the Gretchen Wenner Butler Student Wellness Fund in support of this important work. More than simply honoring Gretchen’s memory, your support will leave a legacy of care and support for students for years and generations to come. Together, we can make an enormous difference in the lives of current and future Prep students. 

If you would like to make a gift today or in the future, please reference the Gretchen Wenner Butler Student Wellness Fund whether you make a gift online,  with a personal check, through a donor advised fund, executing a stock transfer, or requesting a distribution from an IRA. Gifts can be mailed to Saint John’s Prep, Box 4000, 2280 Watertower Rd, Collegeville, MN 56321. 

If you have questions or would like to learn more, please contact a member of our Advancement Department at 320-363-3315.

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Moderation
By Liam Spychala ’25

The following essay was shared during the November 30, 2023 Prayer Service by Liam Spychala ’25.
Saint John’s Prep hosts prayer services three times a month in which students learn about a faith focused topic. Students and faculty are invited to share their perspectives on the topic. The November 30 prayer service focused on Chapter 48 in the Rule of Benedict, focusing on living a life of balance and moderation.

Last week many of us celebrated thanksgiving with our family and friends. A time to be glad for
what we have. And it’s too bad the most thankful and grateful day of year is followed by what I
feel is the most gluttonous day on the calendar, Black Friday. A time where it is easy to get
caught up in all the things. This raises the question:

How can I limit myself from getting too caught up in all of the material goods
and these things in our lives?

Although getting things for ourselves can feel self-centered and uncaring, sometimes it is
necessary and ultimately unavoidable. Realizing where our own priorities lay can be achieved
with a little self reflection. Setting limits and thinking about how much stuff we really need. An
important piece to acknowledging this is comparing ourselves to each other. We do it
constantly, whether we like it or not.
For example, I’m certain my friend Paul has more pairs of jeans than I do. Moderation is all about
restraining ourselves from the unnecessary. Realizing that I don’t need more jeans just because
Paul has more jeans than I do would be an example of this.
By the way, this is not a thought that has actually ever crossed my mind, just a hypothetical. I don’t really think about how many pairs of jeans Paul has.

Examples of excess could be more clothes than you’ll ever actually wear, getting new shoes
just because the off white looks a little “too off white” for your taste, or having a million
products to make you look like you just stepped out of a magazine. And though I doubt you’ll
go home and donate half of your clothes, I hope this spurs you to think about what is important
to you and what is excess.

Gift Giving
I want to shift focus now to gift giving, and getting things for others, since that is what most
people are shopping for on Black Friday, and since we are nearing Christmas, which is
traditionally a time of gift giving.

When a person has many things already, or has everything that is necessary to daily life, we
often scramble to find gifts for them. A story of my grandpa comes to mind: Christmas Eve
day, he goes shopping with my dad looking for a gift for my grandma. Basically anything he
would see on the main aisle was a possibility.
“Here Jay, what do think of the jacket here, ooh Columbia Gear. Or here, what about this
perfume?” It was clear he had no idea what to get for her.

It is times like these where I think no gift at all is better than getting something impersonal and
unimportant. You may say, “Ah, Liam. You’re just cheap.” “Yeah, that’s true,” I would say. But I would also argue that the gifts most needed and least gifted are the ones we cannot see.

In my experience, we benefit most from our peers, our family, and our friends in times of need.
You cannot go to Walmart and buy familial support. You cannot go to Best Buy and get joy or
gratefulness. You cannot go to Costco and buy a pallet of friendship, as convenient as that
would be.
“Hey Jim, back for your friendship package?”
“You know it Dale, things have been a little rough lately, really got to patch it up nice before the holiday season.”

I agree with the sentiment that the occasional, well placed, thoughtful gift really does help lift
spirits and help us to think about others, but knowing when someone else needs important
things like food, shelter, and basic necessities and prioritizing that over dumb gifts for people
who will toss it aside in mid January is something that I think our communities can benefit
from. And there are different ways to do this. Maybe spending time with family and friends
instead of shopping or reaching out to people who you think might need some extra help,
especially as we are approaching finals are just two examples that came to mind.

Moderation is all about knowing when you have enough, but it is also about knowing when
others don’t have enough and using your extra for them rather than yourself. This is something
to think about as we approach this coming holiday season and our thoughts go to those who
are struggling.

Thank you!

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