By CRISTINA JANNEY
Hays Post
Thomas More Prep-Marian celebrated the 100th anniversary of the laying of the cornerstone of its building on Friday.
The event was set to coincide with the fall homecoming on Friday night.
Travis Grizzell, advancement director for Hays Catholic Schools, greeted the group at a ribbon-cutting sponsored by the Chamber in Hays.
Placed shortly after the ending of World War I, the stone is inscribed with the words, "For God, for country" in Latin.
Although the cornerstone of the school was set in 1925, drought and the Great Depression intervened, and the school was not opened to students until 1931.
Grizzell said the cornerstone was one of the hidden secrets on the TMP campus.
Grizzell said that despite the wild Jazz Age of the time, a group of people in western Kansas decided to buckle down to ensure the continuation of Catholic education in this area.
"It's an amazing thing to pull up to this campus and see this building in Hays. Our campus is beautiful. The building is awe-inspiring," Grizzell said. "It's humbling, and you wonder how the group of people back then could have persisted through everything they had against them to create a building like this.
"Nothing is too big a task when you are honoring your Lord, and it is that dear to your heart," he said.
This year is also the 100th anniversary of the Hays Catholic Schools homecoming.
Grizzell echoed a statement from TMP Principal Chad Meitner, who said, "It's your job here at TMP-Marian and Hays Catholic Schools to help our young people get to heaven."
Curtis Hammeke, president of Hays Catholic Schools, also spoke to the group of students, staff, clergy, alumni and community members.
He said the word that came to his mind was gift. He said the school was a great gift to the Hays community.
He apologized for getting emotional.
"It's that important to our kids, our grandkids and our future generations," Hammeke said. "I'm proud of this vast history, and I'm very excited about the future. It is something we have to protect.
"There's nothing more important than staying focused on Christ, and this institution allows us to do that in a daily fashion. I can't think of a better gift we can give to our kids and grandkids."
Hammeke said the school's saying used to be, "Give us four years, and we will give you a lifetime."
He said it is more than that. It's eternity.