Rev. John Belmonte, S.J.

Superintendent of Catholic Education

Diocese of Venice, Florida

Dear Father Belmonte,

We, the parents of children who attend Catholic schools in Lee County, Florida (St. Francis Xavier, St. Andrew and Bishop Verot) respectfully request a town hall meeting with you here in our community.  We have several questions and concerns relating to the Bishop’s recent mask mandate, including but not limited to:

·      The timing of the announcement.

·      The data/science behind the 10% positivity rate threshold.

·      The data/science supporting the efficacy of mask wearing to mitigate the spread of Covid

·      The data/science showing how many children become sick and are hospitalized from Covid infection.

·      The logic of requiring our children to wear masks in classrooms but not at Church.

·      The logic of allowing our children to eat lunch together and play at recess together without masks, while preventing them from seeing their teacher’s lips move during instruction (which is critically important for speech/language development)

·      Why is the Diocese of Venice requiring this mask mandate when the diocese directly north (Diocese of St. Petersburg) is not requiring such a mandate (as of August 9)?

·      What happens if the positivity rate remains above 10% for an indefinite period of time… or forever?

We are looking for civil discourse first and foremost.  We are seeking a dialogue.  Unfortunately, individual parents who have tried to communicate with the diocesan leadership have failed to obtain answers, or even get a response.  I’m sure you can understand that when parents feel as strongly as they do about an issue such as this, and feel they have no one listening to them, things can become highly emotional and counterproductive.  We want to keep things logical, respectful, and highly productive…but it requires communication.

I hope you consider this invitation in the spirit that it’s intended; to promote effective, bi-lateral communication, and to reach an understanding around what is best for the education and well-being of our children.

Thank you for your consideration.