Dickinson Catholic Schools

2010 Dickinson Catholic Schools (DCS) Service Award/Hall of Fame Winners

Bob and Cathy Gruman, Parents-Alumni

It is not hard to find people who are generous within the DCS system because running a Catholic school takes extra commitment to make it work and requires parents to be involved to not only keep expenses low, but to provide a great education. But some stand out; some seem to give that little extra. This story is one of just that. Mr. and Mrs. Robert & Cathy Gruman; “Catholic education is very important to us, and although neither of us are graduates of Trinity High School (Bob did graduate from St. Patrick’s before Trinity was built). We always respected what Trinity had to offer,” Cathy said. “We first got involved by sending our four children through the school. Bob worked on the railroad and that helped us put them through school. It was not always easy, “But we made it a priority,” Bob said. Once the kids started school, Cathy was able to start teaching at Trinity High School. “The kids were very respectful and I loved teaching them,” Cathy reflects. “It made my 27 years teaching very memorable and cherished and now it is great to see those I taught sending their children there.”

As they started getting more involved, they quickly found themselves helping out this Mardi Gras which is now in its 46th year of operation. Bob tells the story of working in the coat checking room. The coat rack was not as sturdy as it needed to be and would fall now and again throwing all the coats into a nice pile. So Bob, being handy, had the idea to build sturdy racks. He first found some metal binding straps at a local lumber yard. With pipes donated by Paul Steffes of Steffes Corporation, labor from a neighbor to paint them, the coat room was transformed. “THS still uses them today. They even retract into the ceiling,” Bob says with a smile, “I saw the need and figured out a way to do it with the help of friends, and almost for free, it cost us 45 cents for some bolts.” As well, Cathy working with her partner Bob, chipped in and helped improve the coat tag system to increase the speed and accuracy in getting coats to their owner. “No one likes going home with the wrong coats,” Cathy says, “and we would have hundreds of coats.” Even today, as they are not physically able to help they are still very supportive. “We now have grandchildren attending and it is great to see them experience what our children experienced.” “They will graduate with good common sense and solid values…They become good citizens,” Bob says. “We will continue to do what we can for them and encourage others to do the same.”

Because of their number of years, their ingenuity, and the variety of ways they have supported the school system, they earned the Service Award for 2009-2010 school year. The new Hall of Fame will expand these service awards into a broader variety of categories and will help us thank many “special” examples of dedication to the Trinity System. What makes the THS system so great is the dedication of so many people and their “action” of putting the values of the school into action.

Many acts of generosity go unrecognized and un-thanked. As a supporter of the school system, please take your next opportunity to “THANK” in some special way, the many past and present board members, committee members, volunteers, teaching staff, administrative staff, parents, parish priests, and youth leaders for their “extra effort” in making the THS system what it is today and what it will continue to be with our team effort!

Story from: Dickinson Catholic Schools