Cor Jesu alumnae are leading the way for the school’s future.

Four recent alumnae gifts totaling $6.4 million mark an unprecedented moment of philanthropy at Cor Jesu Academy, including the two largest gifts from alumnae in the school’s history.

At the forefront is Kate Westerheide Eichhorn '94 and her family, whose $3 million outright commitment is the largest gift in Cor Jesu history. Alumna Peggy McGrath Terrio '83 has made a $2.5 million gift, bringing their combined investment in Cor Jesu’s future to $5.5 million.

Their generosity is part of a larger wave of alumnae support. In the past six months, Cor Jesu has also received a $500,000 gift from Chris Kucharski Abell '83 and a $400,000 gift from an anonymous alumnae family to fully endow a scholarship.

Together, these gifts represent something bigger than a historic fundraising milestone. They demonstrate the lasting connection Cor Jesu alumnae have to the school that helped shape them and their commitment to creating opportunities for the young women who will follow.

“At Cor Jesu, we teach our students that what they receive here is meant to be shared with others,” said Sr. Susan Marie Krupp, ASCJ '76, President of Cor Jesu Academy. “To see our alumnae return years later and give so generously to the school that helped shape them is incredible. They are living what they learned at Cor Jesu by using their gifts to create opportunities for the young women who will follow them.”

This historic alumnae support comes as Cor Jesu enters the community phase of its Do It With Heart Campaign, the largest fundraising initiative in the school’s 70-year history.

With a goal of $13.1 million, Do It With Heart is an investment in the future of the Cor Jesu community. The campaign is strengthening the school’s endowment to help keep a Cor Jesu education accessible while transforming campus with new spaces where students can compete, learn, gather and build community.

Thanks in large part to extraordinary alumnae generosity, Cor Jesu has already surpassed its original endowment goal. Now, the community phase is building momentum for the transformation of Cor Jesu’s campus.

Plans include a new eight-lane track and multipurpose turf stadium with lights, a new home for softball, eight new tennis courts and a reimagined turfed front field. The new spaces will bring more practices, home games, classes, traditions and community events to campus, creating a true home-field experience for all Chargers.

For Brittany Peek Seabaugh '04, Director of Institutional Advancement, the significance of this moment extends far beyond the record-setting gifts.

“We have already raised more through Do It With Heart than in any campaign in Cor Jesu’s history, and our alumnae are the ones making that possible,” Seabaugh said. “Kate, Peggy and so many of the alumnae supporting this campaign are giving back to a school that helped shape the women they are today.”

That leadership is creating an opportunity for alumnae across generations to be part of what comes next.

The size of each gift may be different, but every alumna who participates sends the same powerful message: We believe in Cor Jesu. We believe in its girls. And we want the generations who follow us to have an even stronger Cor Jesu to call their own.

As Do It With Heart moves forward, Cor Jesu is inviting its entire alumnae community to join those who have already led the way and help shape what comes next.

Learn more and make your gift to the Do It With Heart Campaign.