The HALO story
How it began
HALO began with one simple observation:
St. Thomas More students were collectors at heart.
The question became: What if students could collect something that made them excited about their faith?
That question grew into a student-created project where research, original artwork, prayer, presentation, and leadership became part of the same journey.
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Home of HALO
St. Thomas More Catholic School
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01
An idea that wouldn't go away
A trading-card collector and campus minister wondered what a Catholic trading card could look like. The idea stayed with him, but without an artist, it could not yet come to life.
02
A student wanted to leave an impact
During an eighth-grade study hall, a student shared that she wanted to leave something meaningful behind before graduation. Suddenly, the card idea had a reason to return.
03
A team formed
Another student who was always drawing joined the conversation. Lunchtime meetings followed, more students became interested, and the team began imagining what a full collection could become.
04
HALO was named
A fourth founder helped shape the project, and the students voted on the name HALO—a symbol of sainthood, Heaven, and the mission that still guides the project: inspire others to desire Heaven.
The original team
Four founders who turned the idea into HALO.
The art took shape
Salma R. helped give HALO its visual identity.
HALO needed more than an idea—it needed a visual language. Salma R., one of the original student founders and the lead student artist, helped shape that identity through original artwork, early card art, and the development of the HALO logo itself.
Her work kept the project visibly student-created even as the drawings were transformed into polished collectibles.
From sketch to logo
From idea to blessed pack
The HALO Process
After meeting with the founders, we invited the entire middle school to help create HALO—and nearly three-fourths of the students wanted in. There was no practical way to supervise that many artists during lunch and recess, so the founders proposed bringing the project into religion class. That decision transformed one small idea into a schoolwide creative mission, giving students the chance to research, create, and shape Series 1 together.
The first school launch
Then the whole school got to experience it.
Students turned their research, original drawings, and finished cards into trifold displays. Students across the school moved through the showcase, learned about the faith, explored the cards, and received the first packs.
600first-run packssold in six days
