WOONSOCKET - The Greater Woonsocket Catholic Regional School System has announced that Our Lady of Victories Primary School has been the focus of nearly $90,000 in safety and other improvements during the last several months.
The parish recently spent almost $20,000 to re-pave the school yard and parking lot to replace a broken and dangerous surface which threatened the safety and well-being of the young students at the school. Very Rev. Robert P. Perron, pastor of All Saints Parish, which owns the building, said that "while our parish certainly doesn't have the money to spend on unnecessary items, the safety and well-being of the students at Our Lady of Victories is of vital importance to the parish and, despite limited resources, the parish felt it necessary to make the necessary repairs and improvements."
In addition, in accordance with the requirement of the new Rhode Island State Fire Code, the parish installed a new, state-of-the-art fire alarm system. The new system provides the latest in fire alarm technology and direct connection to the fire alarm headquarters on Cumberland Hill Road, and can alert fire fighters to the exact location of any dangers or problems in the building directly from a conveniently-located control panel.
Fire prevention and safety improvements involved the replacement of all interior egress doors in the building, as well as replacement of all interior glass surfaces with fire-rated glass; the replacement of heating vents with self-closing fire-retardant devices and the application of a fire-retardant coating on hallway wood surfaces.
Finally, the parish expended more than $6,500 to replace all the outdated hard-wired thermostats in the building with new electronic replacements which permit a more even distribution of heat in the building, room-to-room.
GWCRSS Administrator Paula A. Hurteau expressed appreciation to the parish for all the work undertaken in the building.
Father Perron said that, while a few details are being finalized, the work at the building now brings it in line with the requirements of the State Fire Code. "While Catholic education is a gift of God and the people of the church who support it, the proper safety and health conditions need to be at work," he said. "We believe that this is money well-spent and that people will understand the need to provide these basic elements in our regional educational system."
(This article originally appeared in The Providence Journal)
