Page 20 - 20-21 Annual Report

FEATURE

A Gift from Heaven

I like to think about heaven, because it’s
really an escape from stress….

When you have nine children, you become
accustomed to the unexpected. The unexpected
broken arm, unexpected friends over for dinner,
unexpected sibling fights in the backseat of the car.
It becomes part of your daily routine, really. But no
matter how accustomed you are to surprises, no
parent or family can be prepared for everything.
The Furays raised their family in the Webster Groves
area of St. Louis. Alice Furay Visser ‘84, the oldest of the
nine Furay siblings was searching for a Catholic high
school with high academic standards and financial aid
opportunities. She chose to attend Cor Jesu Academy,
setting the path for most of her younger sisters.
“It wasn’t easy to get to Cor Jesu,” Alice said. “I had
to take two buses. But it was something I wanted
to do and it was the place I wanted to be.”

After Alice came Ann Furay Poelzl ‘88, Clare Furay ‘91,
Elizabeth Furay Bundt ‘92 and Suzanne Furay ‘94.
Their younger sister, Julia, also started at CJA and
graduated from Webster Groves High School in 1996.
“Cor Jesu taught me how to plan ahead, be proactive
and how to overall be a good student and worker,”
Suzanne said. “I feel empowered as a female in
the workplace thanks to my roots at CJA.”
“My time at Cor Jesu was a turning point in
my education,” Ann said. “I was successful
in a difficult program in college and it was
because of how Cor Jesu prepared me.”
Heaven would have school, except it
would teach fun subjects…
In addition to the academics, the Furay sisters each
participated in a variety of activities. Most were
involved in the plays, either as actresses or on the
crew; they passed on the role of swim team manager
one to the other, except to Elizabeth, who was a
swimmer; most were in the National Honor Society;
some wrote for the Corette (CJA’s school newspaper).

In heaven, there would be a grab bag of talents…

18 | FY 2020-21 DATES: JULY 1, 2020-JUNE 30, 2021