Save Blair Road School and Support its Teachers & Students!
Donation protected
The Blair Road School (a non-profit 501c3) has been a cornerstone of Mint Hill, NC for over 40 years. To ensure its survival and continue providing a nurturing environment for our children, I am asking for your support. Your generous contributions will be donated directly to Blair Road School, Inc (NC SOSID: 1753011) to help specifically with paying for legal counsel and other associated costs in its fight to survive. NO MONEY donated is to be given to BRUMC in any form, or to be given as payment to individuals.
**My wife and I will match all donations given to this cause during the first week (until 5P on 4/20/25), up to $750 **
- Update: Full amount donated evening of 4/14!
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I am a dad to an almost 4-year-old completing her third year at The Blair Road Pre-School. Our plans are to send her younger brother and her to summer camps there, and then both my kids will be enrolled starting Fall 2026. We have loved our time there - especially the sense of community and truly knowing everyone involved in teaching, developing, socializing, and caring for our most precious gifts.
Presumably, like many of you, I was stunned by the email sent out by Ms. Katie Heimbach the afternoon of 4/11/25. I didn’t even know that the school and the church were two completely separate non-profit entities. For numerous reasons (outlined below), I am upset with the decisions and actions being made by church leadership potentially affecting teachers, pre-school children, and many local families.
- According to Ms. Heimbach’s letter, just 8 months ago, monthly rent paid from school to church was $500 per month. Then in September 2024, it rose to $1,400. By February 2025, the church was asking for $3,500 a month, which then somehow most recently became a $5,000 per month ask. When the school pushed back, it seems like utilities, cleaning services, and paper products then became the financial responsibility of the school.
- The church is now setting an ultimatum with eviction proceedings potentially starting just 6 weeks from now. Remember this school has been operating for 40+ years in Mint Hill, NC. Again, this is a church threatening to evict its own pre-school.
- An unfortunate reality of our society is teachers are underpaid and already dip into their own pockets for school supplies or classroom materials. On average, Mint Hill pre-school teachers make $17 an hour. The teachers at Blair Road School are not getting rich working with our kids, nor is Ms. Heimbach (who I know works a second job). So, if the operating margins of the school are already thin, how can it possibly be expected to survive a 900% increase in rent!?
- Families have ALREADY enrolled their children for summer camps as well as the 2025-26 school year – months ago. Other pre-schools and childcare options have also already completed the enrollment process. This means if Blair Road School closes, almost 90 families are going to be scrambling to figure out alternative options. Aside from the obvious detrimental effects this will have on our children...think about the downstream economic effects this puts on working parents who rely on consistent childcare to work and provide for their families.
- I researched a bit deeper into Blair Road United Methodist Church (BRUMC) utilizing publicly available information. It seems that church membership numbers from 2017 to 2023 have declined from 729 to 360. During this same period, average church attendance fell from 343 to 187, and Sunday School participation decreased from 234 to 50. Perhaps the most relevant piece of the data to the current issues is that the church had been profitable from 2017-2021. However, over the two-year period of 2022-23, the total expenditures greatly outweighed the total income, putting the church in the hole to a tune of more than $450,000. This is unfortunate, but the fix can't come at the expense of the school and its community and mission.
- BRUMC hired the non-profit: Wesley Community Development (Wesley CDC) to act as its real-estate broker. This firm specializes in the acquisition, disposition, and repositioning of church-owned facilities. One can explore their website to see how they often turn church-owned real estate into rentable office or retail space to provide additional revenue to churches. Wesley CDC was originally created by a grant from The Duke Endowment. This endowment has awarded ~$5 billion dollars in grants across the Carolinas. Somewhat ironically, it focuses on four primary areas: child and family well-being, higher education, rural churches, and healthcare.
DISCLAIMERS: I am not currently, and never was a member of Blair Road United Methodist Church (BRUMC). I have no direct financial ties to the church or the school (aside from paying monthly tuition). Everything I know about this entire matter is from the emailed letter to parents and easily accessible open information on the web. This fundraiser was not discussed or approved by any teacher or employee of The Blair Road School.
Co-organizers (4)
Ace B
Organizer
Charlotte, NC
Blair Road School
Beneficiary
Lauren B
Co-organizer
Meredith Carpenter
Co-organizer