A check presentation of $20,000 was granted to Saint Laurentius Catholic School in Fishtown on Wednesday, March 25. The donation by Thriftway followed news that the Archdiocese of Philadelphia plans to move forward with the demolition of Saint Laurentius Roman Catholic Church.

The funds were collected through a state tax credit program, facilitated by BLOCS, one of Pennsylvania’s largest scholarship organizations, raising $10-15 million annually. Originally established in 1980, BLOCS is a longstanding non-profit with a focus on providing tuition assistance to families who desire a Catholic, independent or private school education regardless of race, religion or ability to pay. The state’s tax credit program allows for local businesses to redirect outgoing tax dollars to area K-12 schools

Don Petzak, Port Richmond Thriftway general manager, Elaine McKnight, Saint Laurentius principal, Frank Daly, BLOCS marketing and communication manager, were all on hand for the presentation.

“We’ve been donating money to all the schools around here through employees with children going to the Catholic schools. We’ve had tuition assistance for some period of time,” Petzak said. “The school had previously fought off a closure. All my employees and neighbors that shop in the store, they are all a part of this parish. It’s important for us as a store to give back. We’re independent, not a chain, but we’ve been there for 26 years, and it’s important to keep giving back to the community.”

Saint Laurentius is celebrating its 125th anniversary this year.

“We’ve made a two-year commitment to BLOCS. We’ll look at other schools, but St. Laurentius is right here in our backyard,” Petzak added. “These communities, if we don’t give back and make them stick together and stay a community, they simply won’t.”