The Helias Foundation is offering a chance to win a voucher for free tuition* at Helias!  The voucher will be valid for one school year between 2010 and 2018.

Chances are $50.00 each and are available at the Helias Foundation and High School offices.  Chances will also be available at the Kentucky Derby Party on May 1, 2010.

The drawing will be held at the Kentucky Derby Event on May 1, 2010.  You need not be present to win.

In the event that Helias Foundation, Inc. does not reach contributions in the amount of $6,000 on or before May 1, 2010, the Helias
Foundation reserves the right to withdraw the free tuition voucher prize and the net proceeds will be divided as follows:

Helias Foundation......................50%
1st Prize..................................25%
2nd Prize.................................15%
3rd Prize..................................10%

*Voucher is for tuition ONLY ($3,725 for ‘09-’10) Does not include fees.

You are under no obligation to make a contribution. The suggested contribution is a donation only.

Please make checks payable to: Helias Foundation, Inc.

Mike Jeffries has been promoting work, responsibility for 40 years

By Jay Nies (Editor of the Catholic Missourian)

It is said that no one escapes history. Accordingly, no one at Helias Interparish High School escapes Mike Jeffries.

Over the past 40 years, he has been known not only for teaching history in the classroom but also for making history in the fieldhouse and on the field.

"I'm pretty demanding in the classroom," said Mr. Jeffries, a member of St.Peter parish in Jefferson City. "It's a college environment, one in which you benefit from hard work. You're going to get out of it what you put into it."

He teaches two regular sections of American history; Advanced Placement American history, which can be taken for college credit; and two senior honors classes: The American West, and America's 20th Century Wars.

Students - some who are children of former students - have learned to appreciate Mr. Jeffries' no-nonsense approach to teaching and coaching.

Scarcely a month goes by without him hearing from someone whose college load seems lighter because of the learning and note-taking skills he helped them cultivate.

"The kids here don't fight you," he said. "They want to be here. They want an education. They want to set goals. They work hard. You don't have discipline problems."

The late Jim Rackers, who would become Helias' first lay administrator, hired Mr. Jeffries in 1969 to teach six sections of world history and to coach varsity wrestling and the sophomore football team.

"They hired me right out of Southwest (Missouri State University)," he said. "I don't think my transcript got me the job; my enthusiasm for coming here did. Having played here on visiting teams, I was pretty fired up about coming to Helias. And I think they knew that once I came here, I probably wasn't going to leave."

The decades have not dimmed his enthusiasm.

"It's the interaction and making a difference with kids, and the pleasure that I've always obtained through teaching and coaching that has drawn me into that zeal," he said. "I have no regrets about anything, which a lot of people can't say about their careers. I've enjoyed it all."

Mr. Jeffries had coached youth baseball for St. Pius X parish in Moberly and had coached ninth-grade football while attending Moberly Area Community College, but he had never even attended a wrestling match. Helias' wrestling program was only three years old when Mr. Jeffries arrived. He learned the sport by reading everything he could get his hands on about it.

He believes hard work is what turned so many Crusader wrestlers into champions on his watch. "We were booed a lot by the other teams, and we thrived on that," he said. "We earned those boos by outworking everybody. We went to practicing two times a day before anyone else even thought about doing that."

The preparation gave the wrestlers the confidence they needed in order to win. "We had some very good athletes, but we also had a lot of average athletes who stepped up and were successful for their teammates and the program," said Mr. Jeffries.

That's where the Helias tradition and mystique came in, he said. "Who could look at a uniform that we'd been wearing for the past 35 years and not be awed and intimidated by it?" he said. Mr. Rackers didn't think much of the wrestling pinstripes when Mr. Jeffries picked them out. "But after a few years, he thought they were the best-looking uniforms ever," said Mr. Jeffries, who led the team to 12 state championships.

He stepped down in 2003 with a 623-46-6 record - the second-best record in the nation for a high school wrestling coach at one school. He was inducted into the Missouri Wrestling Association's Hall of Fame in 2005 and received the National Wrestling Hall of Fame's Lifetime Service to Wrestling Award in 2006. "I had a lot of kids who wanted to work and who bought into what I was teaching, and I think we just worked harder than the other guys," he said. "And that's the same concept I use in my classes. If you want to achieve, you have to give it your best effort."

Seven years into his tenure at Helias, Mr. Jeffries moved up to the varsity football level as line coach and first assistant to Head Coach Ray Hentges. "I ran the defense, and Ray ran the offense," said Mr. Jeffries. "We worked very well together. He's pretty mild-mannered and I'm not. So we really complemented each other over the years. He gave me a lot of responsibility and a lot of freedom. You couldn't have found two people who worked any better together."

On Mr. Hentges' watch, the Blue and Gold won two state championships and made it to the state finals two other times.

Mr. Jeffries succeeded Mr. Hentges as head football coach from 1999-2006, taking the Crusaders back to state another time. "You learn a lot of lessons out on the field," said Mr. Jeffries. "You're working as a unit. You develop some very close bonds with your teammates. It's a very physical sport. You need kids who are aggressive. And it's absolutely critical that you function as a team."

Mr. Jeffries focuses most of his energy on the classroom now. He continues to indulge his passion for American history and for incorporating new information into his classes. "I don't get bored teaching the same thing every year," he said. "I do an extensive amount of reading. I take notes on what I read. I'm always adding notes from the books I read into my classes. So I have a lot of interesting side notes that keep the kids' interest and also my interest."

Historical memorabilia - including a campaign poster for Franklin D. Roosevelt and a miniature replica of the giant sculpture in the Lincoln Memorial - adorn the walls of Mr. Jeffries' classroom. The back wall is practically wallpapered with historical images such as the Battle of Little Bighorn and Sir Winston Churchill. Another picture on the wall is of his great-grandfather in a group of lead miners in Bonne Terre, Mo. A framed image of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, which has been in Mr. Jeffries' family for over a century and which adorned his grandmother's kitchen and then his mother's, has been hanging near the front of the room since his mother died.

His desk is laden with history books.

Mr. Jeffries' teaching philosophy mirrors his coaching philosophy: Extra effort leads to success. "I do a lot of harping about individual responsibility," he said. "Nobody is going to give you anything. You're going to have to work hard and earn it."

He offers after-school review sessions and plenty of opportunities for extra credit and independent research for class. When a student is on the threshold of getting a higher grade, that extra work is often what makes the difference.

He hopes the students carry lessons like those to all of their life's work. "The skills the kids are learning - like note-taking - they can easily apply to other classes," he said. "I tell them not to throw away their class notes when they leave here; take them to college. And they do."

He knows of about a dozen of his former students who are now history majors in college.

Helias is named after a priest, has a huge crucifix in the lobby and is dedicated to the patronage St. Pius X. But is it a holy place? "Absolutely," said Mr. Jeffries. "There's no doubt that what you're getting here is a Catholic education."

His wife, Patty (Markway) Jeffries, is a Helias graduate, as are their two children. "If there hadn't been a Catholic school here, my wife and I would have driven our kids to wherever there was one," said Mr. Jeffries. "Both of my kids still live in town and are doing very well, so we hope someday to see our grandkids here."

He believes the students aren't the only ones who benefit from the grace of being in a Catholic school environment. "It helps keep us teachers focused, too," he said. "There are certainly a lot of ups and downs during anyone's workweek. So starting with prayer each day, just a little attitude-adjustment time each day for everybody, is a very good thing."

He realized 40 years ago that he wasn't going to get rich teaching at Helias. But he is adamant that it's anything but a thankless job. "You do get thanked a lot, and I think that's part of what keeps you going," he said. "If it were a thankless job, I don't think I could have done it this long."

Mr. Jeffries, who turns 64 on January 29th, has a theory that no one ever really retires from Helias. He hopes to give some credence to that theory. Almost 41 years into his career, he asks for prayers of thanksgiving on his own behalf and on behalf of his students. "I am very grateful for the opportunity to work with the kids of this community," he said.

Click below to link to our Corporate Crusader:
 

2010 St. Louis Mission Trip

From  January 27 through 31, 31 Helias students, teachers Theresa Buhr, Jackie Crider, Sharon Ludwig, and Denise Noonan, administrator Didier Aur, and Fr. Mark Smith, worked in inner-city St. Louis to help those in need. They stayed at St. John the Baptist Elementary School and worked with kids there or at St. Cecilia's, helping tutors teach or teaching themselves.

Student and chaperone participation grew this year, from 24 to 31 students, and 4 to 6 chaperones, respectively. Helias President Didier Aur said, "I think it's neat that student participation rose. And the two new chaperones, Denise Noonan and Sharon Ludwig, did a great job!" (Pictured are Helias missionaries with physically disabled man at WORTH Industries.)

In addition to participation rising, the workload and diversification of jobs increased. Not only did the students work with kids, they also helped adults. Students fed the homeless at St. Vincent DePaul Soup Kitchen and clothed them at the St. Patrick Center.

Besides working with kids and the homeless, Helias students also worked at two sheltered workshops, WORTH Industries and Industrial Aids, assisting mentally and physically disabled adults assemble packing for laundry detergent, medical supplies, and barbeque sauce. Jonathan Aur ‘10, a veteran mission tripper, said, "I enjoyed working with developmentally disabled and physically disabled adults because it gave me a better appreciation of how God blesses everyone."

Evening prayer services, led by students, and two Masses complimented the students' service in St. Louis. On the last day, the missionaries toured the Holocaust Museum and Learning Center and heard a story from Holocaust Survivor Beatrice Goldberg. Didier Aur said, "I always enjoy that on mission trips. We're learning about people in need while helping people in need." (Pictured above are Helias missionaires at Industrial Aids.)

With two mission trips completed for the school year, it leaves only two to go...and lot of service, smiles, and sacrifice to come.

Click below to link to our Corporate Crusader:

Dear Alumni,          

Again this year we are going to have our baseball raffle as an additional fundraiser. This raffle is similar to our NFL raffle which is restricted to the funds going to the athletic department .  The baseball raffle allows the donor to designate where $20 of the $25 donation to go to the area of the donor's choice.***  The raffle card will have a 3 letter/number code that will assign 3 different teams to the donor. Each week the donor will have 3 different teams. If those 3 teams have the highest total of average runs  per game the donor will win $300, 2^nd highest $100, 3^rd highest $75 and 4^th highest $50.  If the 3 teams have the lowest total of average runs per game they will win $100,  2^nd lowest $75, 3^rd lowest  $50.

It's a lot of fun and your donation will certainly help Helias.  Last year this raffle netted $10,500.00.  We hope to surpass this amount in our 2^nd year.  In order to do this we need the help of all Helias supporters.

We hope you will consider sending your donation of $25 for each card you want to purchase. There is no limit to how many you can purchase.  $100 for 4 cards gives you 4 chances each week to maybe win some of the above prizes.  We can mail the cards to you or you can pick them up in the business office.  If you mail your donation and want the cards sent to you, mail your donation  to Ray Hentges  1305 Swifts Hwy.  Jefferson City Mo. 65109.

We will post the winning codes on the Helias High School web site each Monday during the season.  

*** HELIAS FOUNDATION, ATHLETIC DEPARTMENT, A SPECIFIC SPORT, FINANCIAL AID FOR STUDENTS IN NEED OF SOME HELP, BAND, ANY DEPARTMENT, OR ANY NEED THE SCHOOL HAS.

Sincerely,

Ray Hentges