Phillip & Loreen Farmer Family Scholarship Fund

Growing up in the mid sixties our parents wanted us kids to have a religious education to keep Christ in our lives. They managed to send all six of us to St. Mary's Catholic School in South Milwaukee, WI.

Back in those days, tuition was giving as much as you could in the Sunday Mass collection. 

Fast forward 50 years and this is no longer the case. 

Mom passed away in 2011 and Dad passed away in 2019. Dad was always involved in the church where he regularly read the Sunday Mass liturgy and the two of them gave time for community based charities.

After they passed away, we collectively thought it would be very nice to set up a Catholic grade school scholarship fund in their honor.  

Having a Catholic education  was the one thread that wove  us together. That's when Shirley, our eldest sister, came up with  the idea to setup a scholarship trust fund in Mom and Dads name to help offset the cost of tuition for a struggling family.  So Shirl went to Divine Mercy School and proposed the idea to them and they were astonished with such a unique and gracious gift.  Together Shirley and Divine Mercy  set up the "Phillip H and Loreen G Farmer Scholarship Trust Fund" for Divine Mercy Elementary School late in 2019 and we are proud to say the fund has already been utilized. 

Back in the day, the baby boom generation was peaking and entering into grade school.  As in many communities there were several Catholic schools in South Milwaukee (a suburb of Milwaukee), St Mary's, St Adalbert's, St John's, and St Sylvester's.  Today those schools and parishes have joined together and became Divine Mercy, which serves not only South Milwaukee but surrounding communities.

Divine Mercy (K4-8th grade) graduates have gone on to become Valedictorian of other High School Graduating Classes. (Cudahy High School 2016, South Milwaukee High School 2011 and 2013, and St. Tomas More 2011 and 2017.)

Our memories of the Old St. Mary's grade school and classmates, whom we grew up with from the 3rd grade to the 8th grade, live on with us to this day, cherishing memories as if we were an extended family.

Our goal is to pass the experience and education we had to future generations. We want to "pay it forward." 

With your gracious gift, know you are passing on a faith based  primary educational gift to a child and family in need.

A special Thank You  from the Farmer Family,
Shirley, Joan, Susan, Bob, John and Phillip.


Divine Mercy Catholic School
% Phillip H and Loreen G. Farmer Family Scholarship Fund
695 College Avenue
South Milwaukee, WI. 53172