Groundbreaking Set for Quake-Hit School
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Groundbreaking will be held Monday at Mary Immaculate Church and School, nearly three years after the community landmark was heavily damaged during the Northridge earthquake.
Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon, a former instructor at the school, will take part in the celebration, which will include a Mass, a concert and the burial of a time capsule.
The Jan. 17, 1994 quake heavily damaged the church and school, forcing 300 kindergarten through eighth-grade students to finish the term at St. Ferdinand’s parish in San Fernando.
The church was restored in 1995, but the school was torn down. Since then, students have been using portable classrooms while church officials worked out details with insurance companies and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.
A Mass and blessing of the construction site will begin Monday at 9 a.m. Groundbreaking ceremonies and the time-capsule burial are scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.
Later, at 7 p.m., Mexican-Cherokee composer and vocalist Donna Pena will perform in a benefit concert to help raise money for the new building.
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