Bishop Kevin J. Farrell tours the Santa Clara Regional Community Center during the grand opening of the center on June 14 at Santa Clara Catholic Church in Dallas. (BEN TORRES/Special Contributor)
By Kelly Ward
Special to The Texas Catholic
A vision from the past is now a reality as Catholic Charities of Dallas on June 14 held a grand opening for the Santa Clara Regional Community Center.
The facility, located adjacent to Santa Clara of Assisi Catholic Academy at 321 Calumet Ave. in Dallas, will provide educational and recreational opportunities for children in West Dallas.
At the June 14 event, Arne Nelson, president and chief executive officer of Catholic Charities of Dallas, welcomed Bishop Kevin J. Farrell, who reminisced about the vision he had for Santa Clara Regional Community Center two years ago.
“I often think of this place as practically closed up and abandoned, and I think of the possibilities that we have present here today to serve the community,” Bishop Farrell said. “We think of the gymnasium, we think of the many classrooms, the summer programs, the pool that will be open to the community and so many new things that will help our children grow up in safe and a healthy environment.”
Bishop Farrell concluded by offering a blessing, followed by a ribbon cutting ceremony where the children of the community ran through a banner with the name Santa Clara Regional Community Center printed it.
The center’s first annual day camp for children began June 16.
Find out more about the Santa Clara Community Center in the July 18 print edition of The Texas Catholic.
