Dear Alumni,

I doubt there is anyone on the face of the earth that would call 2009 a good year. A world wide economic crisis, massive unemployment, terrorism, war in Afghanistan & Iraq, Iranian nuclear threat, huge bailouts, monumental national debt, home foreclosures on an unprecedented scale, families forced to live in tents, global warming, collapse of the auto industry, bank closures, prices of basic necessities rising etc. One has to be honest, it was indeed a bad year, and if you were one of those hardest hit, it wasn’t merely bad, it was a disaster of biblical proportions.

Is it any wonder though? Greed and lack of ethics are behind the majority of the problems we face and again, let’s be honest, almost none of us are free of blame. Given the opportunity to make a quick buck, almost all of us did so, or would have done so if we could have.

There is something missing in our lives that has driven us to be what we have become. That missing something is God. We have forced God out of our schools, out of our government, out of our lives and the lives of our children. We made this mess because we turned our backs on God and God, giving us the free will that he does, let us do so.

Why else would a nation that was so blessed suddenly be caught in a crisis that in many ways is worse than the great depression. It may take a decade or more before we see unemployment come back down to normal levels, for the national debt to shrink, for families evicted from their homes to be able to buy another one, and the auto industry will never return to what it once was. You can bet though that this crisis will never abate if we don’t bring God back into our lives.

All the more reason why Christian schools, like The Patterson School, are so important. We need these schools to instill in our children real Christian values. They won’t learn these values in public schools. They won’t learn these values from our government. They won’t learn these values from us, unless we turn back to God ourselves.

This is what makes the crisis the school faces so much harder on those of us who are doing everything we can to save her. We know there is a need for a school like Patterson. We know Patterson can help fill a void in our society. We know Patterson can serve God’s purpose. However, it seems at every turn the last few years, Satan has thrown everything he could at the School in order to stop her from fulfilling her purpose. Patterson isn’t alone either. Many Christian schools face similar crisis’s and some have already shutdown or gone bankrupt.

Satan likes where our society is headed. A godless society is what he craves and by all appearances, that is exactly what he is getting. Can we stop this moral decay of our society? Yes, we can, if we are willing to make the sacrifices needed to do so. That’s a big “if” though. Many people will shake their head in agreement with my words but few, very few, will be willing to make the necessary sacrifices to change things.

There is a singular truth that the school now faces…if we cannot get enough donations NOW, the school’s debtors and mortgage holders could force the school into bankruptcy and then the school’s furnishings, etc. could be sold in order to pay those debts. This is not a voluntary Board option, but a realistic possibility. This may well be the last chance to make a difference and save the school from ceasing to exist.

This is why I am now literally begging you for your help. I have been fighting tooth and nail in any way that I can to help save her. I even approached Rick Warren’s Saddleback Church in CA, seeking some kind of partnership between the Patterson School and the Saddleback Church, but they too are under severe financial constraints.

It truly comes down to each one of you. Was Patterson important enough in shaping your own life to warrant skipping that Starbucks coffee once or twice a week? Could your family eat out once less often each month? Could you put off buying that new HDTV for just a few months?

Have you set aside a little money for a rainy day? Well that rainy day is here now. The big question is, are you going to use it for your own desires or for God’s? Seriously, think about that for a moment. Is it worth letting God’s house cease to be just so you can take that nice cruise, go on that special vacation, buy that new car, or buy that new furniture?

I’m not trying to shame or guilt you with my words. Far from it. I am merely trying to help open your eyes to a much larger picture. We as a nation are in serious trouble and unless we take a hard look in the mirror, it will be even worse for our children. We must stop this decline in our society and you must help do it.

Please give generously, and with much prayer. You may send your donations to:

The Patterson School Foundation
P.O. Box 500
Patterson, NC 28661

I sincerely pray that you, the school, and our nation has a Happy New Year in 2010. God knows, we need it.

May God bless you and keep you,

Edward Kelley
The Webmaster
webmaster@pattersonschool.net