Southern Nebraska Register
The Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office (LSO) announced Nov. 1 it had selected Villa Marie School for Exceptional Children in Waverly to benefit from their No Shave November – and December – participation.
No Shave November was officially launched in 2009, to raise awareness for men’s health issues. Organizations across the nation participate in No Shave November events. Each year, the LSO permits deputies and civilian employees to participate in No Shave November – and through the month of December as well – for a donation of $50 per participant. Lancaster County Sheriff’s Chief Deputy Ben Houchin said at a Nov. 1 press conference that male deputies participating would be permitted to grow facial hair, and female deputies would be permitted to wear a non-issued stocking cap or ball cap. Civilian employees can wear “casual Friday” wear every day.
The donations go to a specific beneficiary, and this year Investigator Alex Kelly, who has planned the event for LSO for five years, chose Villa Marie School to receive the 2023 donations.
Villa Marie is a boarding and day school in Waverly, for children ages 6-18 who have special education needs. It was founded in 1964 by the late Msgr. James Dawson. While other diocesan schools are supported by their local parishes, Villa Marie has no assigned parish to tend to the needs of the school.
Jenny Chase, executive director of development & advancement Villa Marie School, was present for the LSEO announcement. She expressed gratitude for their generosity, and explained the mission of the school. Villa Marie serves students with special needs, she explained: students who have unique challenges that make learning difficult.
The Marian Sisters and Villa Marie staff provide 24-hour supervision for children with special needs – the only facility in Nebraska to do so – and all teachers are certified in special education.
The cost for Villa Marie to provide education averages $41,000 per student, and most families cannot afford to pay the total cost. Tuition, therefore, is determined on an individual basis. Scholarship assistance is always necessary, as no qualifying child in need of services is ever turned away. However, the current capacity of the school facility is 24 students.
“Currently, we serve 19 (students),” Chase said, “and there are plans to expand our facility. But we need the funding to do so.”
She said in just the last month, Villa Marie received eight inquiries from families and schools asking to enroll children to attend Villa Marie.
“So the need is there,” she said. “We’d really love to expand and be able to serve these children.”
Chase has worked at Villa Marie for six years and has seen the benefits of the school firsthand.
“I’ve watched children come into Villa Marie who are nonverbal; who cannot read,” she said, “and they read now; they chitchat. It’s amazing, the transformations that happened at Villa Marie.”
The annual Villa Marie Dance, the school’s largest fundraiser, will be held Friday, Feb. 9, 2024, at the Lancaster Event Center.
Learn more at https://villamarieschool.com/.
