St. Louis U. High Day began in 2018 as part of the bicentennial celebration of the high school, when then-Mayor Lyda Krewsen declared Nov. 16, 2018 "St. Louis U. High Day."
The moniker has lived on as a celebration of SLUH – past, present and future – as the new name for the alumni peer-to-peer outreach to support the Jr. Bill Fund. For decades, SLUH alumni gathered together to staff class phonathons. In recent years, these individual calling nights had been condensed into groups by decade. With the occasion of the bicentennial, coupled with the space of the Si Commons and vanished need for wired land-lines, hosting a single event for outreach became not only possible but a more successful path.
St. Louis U. High Day Highlights
2018 – Inaugural St. Louis U. High Day phonathon hosted in the Commons for approx. 200 alumni and parent volunteers. Imo's Pizza, the traditional sustenance of phonathon nights, arrives at the end of the evening to celebrate a successful new program.
2019 – With members of the Board of Trustees joining them on stage, Beth and Phil Berra and family present a fully-endowed scholarship in memory of their son, Maj. Lee Berra '02. The emotional and uplifting tribute to Lee's life spurs SLUH Day to new success, thanks in large part to an incredible challenge gift from Michele and John Stephens '77, who agreed to donate $1,000 for each gift of $1,000 or more. The result: a $77,000 gift for our young men.
2020 – Facing the financial uncertainty of the global pandemic, St. Louis U. High Day shifts from the Si Commons to homes throughout the country, as alumni make personal appeals on their own time. The result: nearly 800 donors and more than $400,000 thanks to several challenges.
2021 – Alumni from the class of 1970 challenge 800 alumni to join them in supporting SLUH and, if that number is exceeded, agree to contribute $150,000. Being "one of the 800" became a rallying cry with alumni asking "What number are we at?" This challenge, plus another $1,000 challenge from the Stephens (see 2019) resulted in 1,002 donors and more than $575,000 raised for SLUH!
