Paying Your Mortgage While Adding Bathrooms: How Oakhill's Welcome Project & Mighty Oak Fund Work Together

In today’s world, having a mortgage is as common as pumpkin pie in the fall, Kansas City and Chiefs Kingdom or Oakhill and an excellent education especially with interest rates of today (but hey, not as crazy high, right?). Now, you might be thinking, “Why am I reading about mortgages in Oakhill’s Advancement newsletter? How does this connect?” Well, stick with me, because I promise this analogy ties right into our initiatives for fundraising this year.

There’s an old saying: “You still need to pay your mortgage, even when you’re renovating your home like adding a pool or redoing your kitchen.” Well, in our case, it’s not a kitchen renovation—it’s nine plus brand-new bathrooms and a new lobby (okay, you’re probably not adding nine toilets to your home anytime soon, but stay with me). Just like you still have to pay your mortgage while upgrading your house, we rely on the Mighty Oak Fund to cover the day-to-day costs (the gap between tuition and the cost to educate a child), even as we embark on exciting projects like adding much-needed restrooms off the gym and creating a new lobby space.

The Welcome Project has evolved over the past year—from the purchasing and uplifting of the white and yellow houses to an auxiliary gym but the one constant has been the essential need for restrooms. Right now, the single-family restroom near the gym is not even sufficient for your average household, let alone for a school with over 450 students and staff (not to mention the hundreds of people we host for graduation, Panther Party’s, and our many events that call the gym home), it’s... not ideal. We need more bathrooms, and soon! That's why our focus is to secure the donor funds necessary to kick off this project in the near future (and by near future, I mean like 90 days—don’t hold me to it, but wouldn’t that be amazing?).

Of course, as with everything these days, costs have risen compared to a few years ago. Our current mission is to lock in a realistic placeholder for the project’s price tag. But we need your help to raise the funds to keep this ball rolling. Imagine walking into a beautifully upgraded gym with enough restrooms for everyone—it’s a dream within reach!

As you navigate your daily life (and think about your own “mortgage”), remember that the Mighty Oak Fund is our mortgage, ensuring Oakhill continues to thrive. But at the same time, we're building something bigger—and your support can help make it happen. If you can lend a hand, we’d all appreciate it more than you know!

Ready to support the Mighty Oak Fund? Click here

Want to contribute to the Welcome Project? Click here

Taylor Clevenger ‘12
Assistant Head of School for Non-Academic Affairs