Lourdes Foundation was started in 1974 by parents and friends of Lourdes High School, who recognized that without broad support, the option of Catholic secondary education for the children of Rochester would be lost.

The foundation was created as a separate legal entity, independent from the school. Its mission at inception was to support Lourdes High School of Rochester, Minnesota. Over the last several decades, the mission of the foundation has evolved to include assisting students in financial need by providing and administering scholarships to Lourdes students.

The first 10 tuition assistance scholarships were given out in 1980 under the name of Lourdes Development Fund.   In 1996, the name was changed to the Lourdes Foundation Inc.  By 2004, 50+ scholarships were in place and in 2008, 91 tuition assistance scholarships were given out to Lourdes families to continue the Catholic education tradition totaling $101,000.

As of June 30, 2008, the Lourdes Foundation has disbursed $764,427 in scholarships helping 851 individual students to continue their Lourdes education.

For more information about the Lourdes Foundation, Inc, visit our website at:

www.lourdesfoundation.org