SigMT

SIGNATURE MONTANA | 63 All the while, the sisters dreamed of building a campus. In 1944, they purchased land south of the city on 20th Street. e acquisition, however, was not without its own problems. Effie May Knight, a local character known as the "goat lady," claimed ownership and refused to move. Knight and her goats were eventually relocated, all expenses paid, but she remained adamant until her death in 1978 that she owned the land. Finally, in 1957, the College of Great Falls announced plans to build a campus. Funding for the three million dollar project was the result of teamwork between both Catholic and civic communities. e plan, a model of simplicity and utility, included eleven modern buildings designed by Great Falls architects Page and Werner. Campus groundbreaking came when Catholic institutions were being reappraised, making the unusual project more remarkable. In January 1959, the Very Reverend Father Jacob Donovan, college president, turned the first shovelful at the formal ceremony. irteen- year-old Fred Zadick, an 8th grader at St. omas School, turned the second shovelful. e youngster had donated his five-dollar prize, won in a music slogan contest, to the building fund. e campus opened in September 1960, scarcely a year later. During these exciting, formative years, many sisters stand out as ambassadors for the College of Great Falls. Sister Rose Irma Lyons, Superior of the Sisters of Providence at the Faculty and graduates of the College of Great Falls pose in 1939. Sister Mary Tinitas Morin created the art in the college chapel including stained class panels entitled Teach All Nations.

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