Hillsdale Grotto / Facebook
CV NEWS FEED // A successful Catholic center at Hillsdale College in Michigan is launching an expansion plan to accommodate the growing number of students participating in Mass, Adoration, and events at the center.
The Grotto, a house near campus owned by the nearby St. Anthony’s Catholic Church, serves as “a meeting place for students to pray, study, take a break from campus pressures, and find an active and faithful Catholic community,” according to St. Anthony’s parish website. The house includes a chapel where the Holy Eucharist is reposed, and the chapel hosts Mass every Sunday, with Confessions, rosaries, and Adoration throughout the week.
St. Anthony’s purchased the Grotto in 2012 to serve the students of Hillsdale College.
The Grotto’s expansion website reads, “Last school year, we broke numerous attendance records,” with 200 students attending the weekly dinner and lecture nights, and up to 75 attending daily Mass.
“Throughout our five hours of weekly Adoration, students would be lined up waiting for a turn before Our Lord in the chapel—there just wasn’t space for everyone who wanted to adore Him,” the site continued.
The Grotto, which also serves as the school’s campus ministry, has had great spiritual growth, according to the website: “For the last several years, St. Anthony’s has had the great joy of welcoming 15+ college students into full communion with the Catholic Church every Easter Vigil!”
The expansion plans include a larger gathering space, a bigger chapel, and an expanded kitchen. It will also include smaller rooms for private meetings like spiritual direction or confession and a storage area for coats and bags. Students had been leaving their bags and shoes outside so more people could fit inside for lectures.
The fundraising goal is $1 million, which would cover building costs, furniture, and landscaping. A “stretch goal” of $1.2 million would create a maintenance endowment.
Those interested in donating can click here.
