In January of 2004 a group of students at St. Bernard's Central Catholic High School attended the Respect Life March in Washington, D.C. As a result of that experience, students decided to raise money to commission the making of a granite memorial dedicated to the unborn to be placed in the school's front lobby entrance.

The beginning of The Third Chair® Campaign came as a result of the school's dedication of that memorial to the unborn on May 5, 2004. The local Knights of Columbus served as honor guard, while the school's Campus Ministry members along with our bishop participated in a ceremony to bless the monument.

While working on the dedication ceremony Campus Ministry club members focused on the statistic of 1 in 3 babies being lost to abortion every day. Every third chair in the auditorium featured a card attached to the back of the chair with the words "I Might Have Been...Your Best Friend, A Devoted Father, A Doctor, etc." Statistically the students discovered that one hundred and seventy-two students could have potentially walked the halls of this academic institution. Shortly after this experience it was decided to place a coverlet with those words on it on a single chair in each classroom to permanently to remind students in the class of the young person who might have occupied that seat.

St. Bernard's Central Catholic High School is a diocesan school in northern Worcester County, Massachusetts, which proudly educates its students in a Christ-Centered, student-focused, college-preparatory environment by providing a save and structured academic climate, St. Bernard's recognizes and promotes each student's unique gifts and talents, in both the curricular and extra-curricular realms. A St. Bernard's eduction builds a bridge to the future, while maintaing ties to the school's rich past. In doing so, St. Bernard's strives to produce community leaders who embrace the school's maxim:“Love One Another.”

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