Journeys Lutheran raises $100K of $1 million flooding damage bill, school start date delayed

HALES CORNERS, Wis. (CBS 58) -- A Hales Corners school was supposed to open this Monday, but because of flood damage, students won’t be able to return to their classrooms for another week.

Journeys Lutheran is estimating it will cost $1 million to repair damage, and right now, staff say they’ve barely scratched the surface of their fundraising goals.

“Your heart sinks. Because you know that but for the flooding, today, there would be kids in these classrooms,” said Rep. Bryan Steil. “People have been dramatically impacted by those heavy rains.”

On Monday morning, these halls and classrooms should have been filled with students. Instead, they remained empty as the school continued to clean up following flood damage.

“It’s been very hard on staff. Especially our teachers, who, some of them got their classrooms ready and then we tore them apart and took everything out,” said Jenny Stollenwerk, head of School Journeys Lutheran.

The school, which serves 128 students with special needs, now has significant structural damage and asbestos that was disturbed by the floodwaters. Journeys says it’s hoping to open school on Sept. 8, but a start date has not yet been confirmed.

“We know, already, of over $500,000 worth of damage that we have to put in, and there’s still more to come,” said Stollenwerk.

Earlier this week, Gov. Tony Evers requested a presidential disaster declaration seeking FEMA dollars for six counties. Rep. Steil says he supports the governor’s request.

“We stand in strong support of this area being declared a disaster so that it’s eligible for those federal funds,” said Steil.

It’s money that could help the school, which has raised $100,000 so far of its $1 million bill.

“I want to see it come as quickly as possible,” said Steil.

During a visit to La Crosse, Vice President JD Vance was asked when Wisconsinites could expect federal aid to come in.

“I have not talked to the President of the United States and I’m not even sure that he’s aware yet that the governor has issued that disaster declaration. But I will take that back to Washington DC and make sure we respond to it promptly,” said Vance.

It’s aid that Steil says could change the lives of residents in this region.

“This isn’t an issue of Democrats or Republicans, liberals or conservatives. This is an issue of making sure everyone in this region is back and up on their feet,” said Steil.