Charities USA Magazine Fall 2012

Published on February 2017 | Categories: Documents | Downloads: 68 | Comments: 0 | Views: 567
of 48
Download PDF   Embed   Report

Comments

Content

THE MAGAZINE OF CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA



FALL 2012



VOLUME 39



NUMBER 3

The Catholic Charities Network

Building Communities

FAMILY
Annual Gathering

CCUSA’S

Strengthening Initiative

Highlights

Great Ideas in the

GATEWAY

CITY

The University of Notre Dame MNA mission: To develop exemplary leaders serving nonprofit organizations

We Offer $5,000 Fellowships to Employees of CCUSA Member Agencies
KEY BENEFITS FOR PARTICIPANTS:
• Quality graduate education from a school ranked #1 in business ethics • Fellowships • Strong peer and professional network

TAKING THE LEAD.

The gold standard in nonprofit education: Notre Dame’s Master of Nonprofit Administration program
Founded by Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh in 1954, this graduate degree program in business is designed specifically for nonprofit managers. From his vision over 50 years ago to the challenges of the 21st century, the MNA program takes the lead in addressing the new realities of the entire nonprofit sector. The program offers a flexible structure for full-time nonprofit professionals with on-campus summer courses (10 weeks over 2- 4 summers) and online fall and spring e-distance learning. For an application or to learn more: http://mna.nd.edu/npq
Master of Nonprofit Administration 340 Mendoza College of Business Notre Dame, Indiana 46556

Thank You, st. louis!
Catholic Charities USA thanks our sponsors, exhibitors, and more than 500 attendees for taking part in the 2012 Annual Gathering in St. Louis. We especially thank our local hosts—Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis—for their warm welcome and hospitality.

MARK YOUR CALENDARS
now for the next Annual Gathering in San Francisco, Sept. 15-17, 2013.

Join us as we continue “Building Bridges to Opportunity.”

Last Issue: SUMMER 2012

Building Communities
In this year’s issues of Charities USA, we’ve been exploring what and how Catholic Charities contributes to our nation. In our last issue, we focused on how Catholic Charities changes individual lives, which is done both through effective strategies and competent caring people. In this issue, we have focused on how Catholic Charities builds communities, which is done in many ways beyond providing quality services. What does it mean to build communities? We can think of it in two interrelated ways. It means contributing in ways that strengthen resources and assets in order to form a healthy, thriving, and supportive environment for people. It also means contributing in a way that fosters a sense of community and cooperation among people, a sense of pride and personal investment in one’s community. Often in doing one, both are accomplished. Catholic Charities is active in building communities in both these ways and in so many different scenarios. If you tried to list how Catholic Charities agencies build communities, you would have a very long list— with more examples than we could cover here. In this issue, we’ve focused on a few broad areas of community building—collaboration, capacity building, community action, education and advocacy, and mobilizing people—and have provided from our network good examples of each. We’ve also looked deeply into one community building effort—Unity Square in New Brunswick, NJ, undertaken by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Metuchen—that has succeeded in building both a sense of community and a more supportive community for low-income families. Our coverage of this topic is by no means comprehensive; it’s just a taste of what Catholic Charities does in communities. But it’s enough for us to be very proud of the work we do. It’s also enough for us to see the importance of these efforts and their impact in people’s lives, including our own. As Brian Corbin reminds us in this issue with an article on community, we are born into community with others, and when we seek the good of the community, we are seeking the good of all. n

Charities USA (ISSN 0364-0760) is published by Catholic Charities USA. Address all correspondence to the Managing Editor. © 2012 Catholic Charities USA, Alexandria, Virginia. Editorial and Business Office 2050 Ballenger Avenue, Suite 400 Alexandria, VA 22314 tel: 703-549-1390 • fax: 703-549-4183 www.CatholicCharitiesUSA.org [email protected] Publisher Rev. Larry Snyder Executive Editor Roger Conner Managing Editor Ruth Liljenquist Creative Director Sheena Lefaye Crews Contributing Writers Roger Conner Ruth Liljenquist Patricia Pincus Cole Editorial Committee Jean Beil Kristan Schlichte Rachel Lustig Candy Hill Jane Stenson Catholic Charities USA is the National Office for one of the nation’s largest social service networks. Member agencies and institutions nationwide provide vital social services to over 10 million people in need, regardless of their religious, social, or economic backgrounds. Catholic Charities USA supports and enhances the work of its members by providing networking opportunities, national advocacy, program development, training and consulting, and financial benefits. Donate Now: 1-800-919-9338

Ruth Liljenquist, Managing Editor
To comment on this issue, please write to Ruth Liljenquist at [email protected].

On the Cover: Steve Liss, American Poverty.org

6

Contents
Features
6 12 Building Communities The Work of Catholic Charities Unity Square Building Community by Building a Community 17 Community A Reflection of the Trinity: Incarnated, Organized, Celebrated 22 Family Strengthening CCUSA’s Seven-Year Initiative to Elevate Best Practices in Serving Vulnerable Children and Families 26 Can You Survive a Month in Poverty? CCUSA Hosts Poverty Simulation at Second National Poverty Summit 28  Gateway to Justice and Opportunity Catholic Charities USA’s 2012 Annual Gathering 32  Catholic Charities-Archdiocese of St. Louis Great Ideas at Work in the Gateway City 37  A Thank You to Those Who Support Catholic Charities USA Dolores Perruso

11

26

Departments
4 34 36 44 President’s Column Disaster Response CCUSA Update Providing Help. Creating Hope.

38 NewsNotes

44

4

| CHARITIES USA

Photo: Jerry Naunheim

Column
President’s

T

his year’s presidential campaign has left us with a deep sense of the political polarization in American society. It’s both regrettable and deeply concerning because the huge problems and challenges we face as a nation can only be resolved by coming together as a people, not by pulling apart.

I’ve pondered what it will take to bridge this polarization, what will pull us together, and I believe that part of the answer lies in understanding the connections between us, seeing that we have common hopes and dreams, and acknowledging that all of us together form the communities that we are striving to improve. In the early days of Catholic Charities, we reached out in communities, mostly poor immigrant communities, where people clustered together in ethnic and religious enclaves for survival and support. Since then, communities have become broader and more integrated, and there have been many fruits of that integration. And yet, as a society, we still struggle with social insularity—in our churches, our schools, our cities and towns, and our politics—so much so that many of us have become exclusive and fail to see the connections between us all. When we do see the connections, when we see what we have in common, we join together to preserve those things, which

is why I believe that embracing the idea of the common good, a foundational principle of Catholic social teaching, can be a catalyst in overcoming the polarization we face. While we have differing opinions about what the common good looks like, we know that when we work together for the common good, everyone in the community benefits from that cooperation, even if the outcomes are not exactly what the differing parties may have hoped for. Community is not something that just happens because people live in proximity to each other. Community is something we build, something we make and work for. When we stop working for community or we begin to take it for granted, we begin to lose sight of the connections and commonality between us. This issue of Charities USA shows how Catholic Charities agencies are part of building communities. We do it because we understand the relationship between strong families and communities, but we also do it because working for the common good is a part of our work as followers of Christ. It is foundational to who we are, and it is how we show love to God and to our neighbors, who surround us in community.

FALL 2012 | 5

CENTRAL AVENUE g

CENTRAL AVENUE g

BISHOPS BOULEVARD g

NAZARETH STREET g

9TH STREET g

BISHOPS BOULEVARD g

The Catholic Charities Network

Building Communities

Catholic Charities has always worked to provide quality social services in a human and compassionate way that changes people’s lives. In serving, however, we have seen the powerful impact of communities, often for the worse, on people’s opportunities, health, and well-being. That understanding has prompted us to be active in building and strengthening communities so that people can access the resources that will help them truly succeed in overcoming the challenges they face. To be sure, we strengthen communities by providing services that strengthen individuals and families, but we do so much more and in so many ways.

6

| CHARITIES USA

PARK ROAD g

BALLENGER AVENUE g

NAZARETH STREET g

9TH STREET g

Working Together To Rebuild Minot
Building Community through Collaboration
D STREET g

W

hen the Souris River flooded Minot, ND, in June 2011, it left roughly 4,000 homes damaged or destroyed and turned a housing shortage brought on by the booming oil industry into a full-blown housing crisis.

In Fargo, far to the southeast, Larry Bernhardt, executive director of Catholic Charities of North Dakota, pondered his agency’s role in the disaster recovery. They are a small agency, and had only four staff members working in Minot. “The Red Cross and the Salvation Army were well-prepared to respond there, and we didn’t want to get in the way,” said Bernhardt. “We decided to provide support wherever the need arose.” The housing crisis was so severe in Minot that several civic and faithbased organizations came together to form the Souris Valley Long-Term Recovery Committee (LTRC). Larry wanted to support this group and determined that one of the best ways the agency could help was to secure disaster recovery funds. After consulting with CCUSA Disaster Operations, he told the group that his agency might be able to secure a $1 million grant. “They were astonished. It was truly a miracle,” said Larry. “They were out of funds to continue with their recovery work.” With the input of the LTRC, Catholic Charities of North Dakota applied for and received a grant of $1,025,000 from CCUSA in August 2012. Roughly 75 percent was allocated to a building supply warehouse in Minot run by Lutheran Social Services. The warehouse buys building materials in bulk and distributes them to families who would otherwise not be able to repair or rebuild their homes. Another 25 percent was allocated to cover individual family needs that couldn’t be met through the warehouse. Each family’s needs are determined through volunteer case management and needs assessment coordinated by the Methodist and Mennonite groups in Minot. Catholic Charities has been coordinating the distribution of funds to the warehouse, to vendors, and directly to families. It’s all
D STREET g

come together in a way that saves money, minimizes gaps in service, and shows great teamwork with all of the agencies working together. “It works because we’ve gotten to know each other,” said Larry. “And because it’s expected that we do this together, not in silos, not competing, but just working together to meet needs.” n

FALL 2012 | 7

Strengthening Food Distribution in the Albemarle
Building Community through Capacity Building

atholic Charities of the Diocese of Raleigh had a plan in mind for northeastern North Carolina’s rural Albemarle region—strengthen food distribution capabilities while expanding the reach of wrap-around services. “We knew there were food distribution challenges in the rural areas,” said Gary Skinner, associate director of the agency. “Some areas have no food pantries. In other areas, transportation is an issue. But we also knew we could do more than just provide food.” With a grant from the Walmart Foundation and credibility from a partnership with the Food Bank of the Albemarle, Catholic Charities convened the food pantry managers of six northeastern counties to discuss ways to enhance and expand food distribution. “Our key role was to be a convener,” said Linda McAlister, director of the agency’s New Bern Regional Office. “We are not experts in food distribution, so we wanted the experts in the area to tell us how it could work and how we could support them.” At the meetings, representatives from the pantries discussed the needs, challenges, and resources of each pantry, a discussion that led to some real solutions. One pantry needed a freezer, so another pantry with an extra freezer offered it to them. One pantry wanted to buy a truck to deliver food to families, but the food bank, it turned out, had a truck; if the pantry provided the food and volunteers, they could use the truck. Catholic Charities helped each county develop a plan to improve its reach and effectiveness and offered resources to help pantries improve their database systems—small grants to upgrade their computer equipment as well as access to Catholic Charities’ own database system, a valuable tool for food distribution management. With food distribution plans in place, the agency then focused on training pantry volunteers to assess needs, make referrals for needed services, and help families with SNAP enrollment.
NAZARETH STREET g

C

The outcome of this capacity building effort has been amazing. Together, Catholic Charities and its partner organizations have reached 265 additional families with food and 440 families with wrap-around support services. “This is a perfect example of what an agency can do without a lot of money,” said Linda. “We are reaching more families with food and services, and we are now part of a valuable partnership.” n

8

| CHARITIES USA

PARK ROAD g

A New Perspective on Poverty in San Bernardino
D STREET g

Building Community through Education and Advocacy

T

he first step to significant change is awareness,” says Ken F. Sawa, executive director of Catholic Charities of San Bernardino & Riverside Counties (CCSBR) in Southern California. And the change he wants to see is a community more sensitized to the challenges of low-income families. Over the last 18 months, CCSBR has held six poverty simulations to help the community better understand the lives of the bottom 30 percent of American families who struggle everyday to make it. Ken. “It may be an unintentional barrier that’s there because the people who set the policies assume everyone has fairly equal resources.” One teacher realized the challenges low-income parents face in getting their kids ready for the school year and understood why they weren’t showing up for Back to School night on the first day of school. She saw how a later date might get more parents there. A landlord learned how hard it is for a low-income family to scrape together first month’s rent and a deposit to rent an apartment, so he decided to let families pay the deposit over the first several months. A doctor responsible for a health clinic resolved to evaluate their whole way of handling clients so they could reduce barriers. When people participate in the simulation, it begins to break down the divide between those with adequate resources and the bottom 30 percent, fostering greater understanding and better solutions throughout the community. n
CCSBR’s most recent poverty simulation was featured on the public radio show Marketplace. Get the story at www.marketplace.org/topics/wealth-poverty/pretending-bepoor-can-change-your-perspective. See also page 26.

“In a non-threatening, but very experiential way, the simulation brings about a whole new perspective on the bottom 30 percent,” says Ken. “It’s a powerful tool.” In the simulation, participants must maintain housing and provide food for their families for four simulated weeks on a low income and no other financial resources. During the four weeks, they face a number of challenges—reduced hours at work, a sudden illness, a car problem—that may lead to real crisis. “A middle class person might experience getting evicted, which pierces their sense of self-sufficiency. Even with all their resources, education, and planning, they still get evicted,” says Ken. “They begin to see clearly the many barriers low-income families face, and not just the addictions, or broken families, or other problems.” At the end, the participants debrief, and often, the responses are: “How do people live under these circumstances?” or “That’s just wrong. Why is it that way?” CCSBR particularly invites people in the community who because of their relationship with low-income families can do something to remove barriers: health care providers, judges, police, elected officials, teachers, social workers, utility workers, and landlords. “We want people to take the experience back and look at what they are doing and how it might be adding to the problem,” says

D STREET g

FALL 2012 | 9

An Answer to Homelessness in Southwest Kansas
Building Community by Calling the Community to Action

“N

o airport, no interstate, no university.” That’s Diocese of Dodge City Bishop John Brungardt’s assessment of the challenges of Southwest Kansas—a rural and isolated part of the country short on community institutions, transportation, and resources.

It’s not short, however, on people who want to help the area’s homeless population, something Catholic Social Service in Dodge City discovered in July, when it co-hosted the area’s first Summit on Housing and the Prevention of Homelessness, along with the Kansas Statewide Homeless Coalition and the Salvation Army. The objective of the summit was to raise the issue and start discussing what the community could do to end homelessness—especially hidden rural homelessness—in southwest Kansas. “We don’t really think about us having a homeless problem because we don’t have people on the street corners panhandling,” said Debbie Snapp, executive director for Catholic Social Service. Homelessness is often hidden in rural communities, with people living in places others do not see: cars, abandoned farm buildings, or “homes” that are unfit for habitation. Many of the homeless are individuals, but many are families, and with very few resources to fall back on in Southwest Kansas—there are virtually no shelters— they suffer. The shortage of housing resources prompted the staff of Catholic Social Service to act. They applied for and received a HUD grant for a transitional housing program and began building relationships with other service providers, like the Salvation Army, who could help them support program participants. They reached out to the Kansas Statewide Homeless Coalition, which coordinates the state’s homelessness Continuum of Care, to identify more funding sources and make accurate estimates of the homeless population. And they organized the summit, hoping to bring community shareholders together to find out who was concerned about homelessness. The turnout was more than they hoped for.

“We had 60 people there—from the Fire Department, the Housing Authority, the Area Agency on Aging, from school districts,” said Debbie. “We were really surprised.” Since the July summit, a regional committee has been formed that is now meeting monthly to address homeless issues and to identify existing services and resources—a blessing for the region’s homeless and a witness to the powerful good that can come from calling on a community to act. n
Photo: © Steve Liss, AmericanPoverty.org

PARK ROAD g

10

| CHARITIES USA

CENTRAL AVENUE g

Forming Partners in Service in St. Augustine
Building Community by Mobilizing People
9TH STREET g

F

ive years ago, the Diocese of St. Augustine in Florida introduced its parishioners to JustFaith, a parish-based social ministry formation course that takes participants into a deep study of Scripture and Catholic social teaching and prepares them to minister to and advocate for the poor.

“JustFaith is a transformational experience for many people,” said Nancy O’Byrne, volunteer JustFaith coordinator for the diocese. “It forms and inspires them, and they want to get involved. They see that it’s not as hard as they thought, and they feel encouraged to work alongside others in overcoming their challenges.” Several parishes in the diocese sponsored JustFaith, which is endorsed by Catholic Charities USA, but one of the regional Catholic Charities offices in the diocese, the Gainesville office, decided to sponsor its own JustFaith course, gathering participants from three area parishes and providing financial support, a place to gather, and an instructor, who was also the director of the office. This arrangement turned out to be a blessing both for Catholic Charities and for the JustFaith graduates. “In our diocese, many people don’t know what Catholic Charities does,” said Nancy. “This was a great model for integrating JustFaith and Catholic Charities. The participants were more exposed to what Catholic Charities does, and they saw the opportunities to volunteer. It really brought the formation to fruition.” Today, more than 40 graduates from the Gainesville JustFaith program volunteer for Catholic Charities, some supporting refugee families and single expectant mothers, and others helping people find employment. And throughout the diocese, JustFaith graduates have done other amazing things, like starting a free health clinic, an interfaith shelter program for families, and a multi-parish effort preparing nightly meals for the hungry. “JustFaith helps people understand the issues and see their own responsibility as Catholics to serve the poor,” said Laura Hickey, diocesan director of Catholic Charities. “They see that caring for the poor is all our work, and it helps them respond to the call.”

In the Diocese of St. Augustine and across the nation, Catholic Charities and JustFaith have worked together to form committed partners in service—people who understand the mission of Catholic Charities, the mission of the church, and their own individual calling to serve people in need. n

9TH STREET g

FALL 2012 | 11

FAIRFAX DRIVE g

UNITY SQUARE
Building Community by Building a Community
BALLENGER AVENUE g
By Amanda Gallear

ver the last eight years, Unity Square Partnership (USP) in New Brunswick, NJ, has worked to revitalize a divided low-income neighborhood, building community spirit and cohesiveness as well as resources and assets to support and enrich people’s lives. In 2004, we at Catholic Charities-Diocese of Metuchen, along with Sacred Heart Parish and concerned residents of one of the poorest sections of the city, formed a partnership with the goal of reuniting and revitalizing the surrounding neighborhood. Residents named their 37-block community “Unity Square,” symbolizing both the methodology and goals of the partnership. New Brunswick is a city of low-income families, mainly due to the concentration of low wage service-oriented jobs supporting two major hospitals, the state’s medical school, a state university, hotels, and restaurants. Of the 7,000 residents of Unity Square, 25 percent live in poverty, as compared to 18 percent in the rest of New Brunswick and 5 percent in Middlesex County. Over the last few decades, the Unity Square neighborhood has lost much of its cohesive identity, due in large part to a divide between the two

O

main residential groups—older African-American families, likely to be homeowners and long-time residents, and younger Latino families, likely to be recent immigrants—many undocumented and renters. These residents commonly fail to see each other as neighbors and allies. Both groups tend to dwell on what makes them different from one another—race, culture, language, religion, age, and citizenship/immigration status. They do have commonalities, however—concerns about jobs, housing, healthcare, poverty, food security, safety, crime, and other issues. Getting community residents together to focus on these commonalities has been the basis of our community organizing efforts. From the beginning, we wanted to create community cohesiveness, fostering acceptance and cooperation among residents and working with them to achieve the goal of a vibrant, sustainable, low-income neighborhood. Together, residents identified several priorities: economic opportunity; affordable, clean, and safe housing, whether rented or owned; safe parks and streets; good youth programs; and affordable, local, and trustworthy social work and case

12

| CHARITIES USA

DUKE STREET g

management services, especially immigration services for the Latino residents. From these priorities emerged Unity Square’s vision of an economically stable and cohesive community with a revitalized commercial sector; green initiatives for healthy and sustainable diets; healthy residents in mind, body, and spirit; and clean parks and safe streets, all located in a crime-free neighborhood.

is the basis for sustainability because it ensures that projects truly reflect the voice of the community and that community members are fully invested in the success of projects that they planned and initiated.

Bringing the Community Together
Before USP was formed, Catholic Charities-Diocese of Metuchen was already active in the Unity Square neighborhood, providing child care and early education, emergency shelter, immigration services, and health care. To get USP off the ground, a Unity Square Program was created within the agency and was charged with assessing needs, organizing community residents, securing funding, and fostering a collaboration of existing and potential service providers in the neighborhood. Sacred Heart Parish, located in the Unity Square neighborhood, was a natural partner for the project. The parish campus was already the site for some Catholic Charities programs, and its pastor, Msgr. Joseph Kerrigan, had a bold vision of faith-based community development. The parish, accessible to Unity Square’s residents, became the venue for community meetings and events and the USP offices. With community organizing and resident input its driving force, the partnership has prioritized resident participation through door-to-door surveys, large- and small-scale community meetings, action team meetings, and stakeholder interviews. In 2005 and 2006, when USP was just beginning, community meetings were structured to utilize residents’ opinions on the community in order to formulate the structure for USP. Today, a diverse neighborhood Advisory Group works to respond to resident needs. With leadership training from USP staff, these leaders plan and execute projects and initiatives in the community. Developing leaders from the neighborhood With its dedication to listening to the community’s voice as well as the partnership between Sacred Heart Parish and Catholic Charities-Diocese of Metuchen, two well-known and trusted organizations, USP has drawn the support of community entities such as the city of New Brunswick, Rutgers University, Wells Fargo Bank, Sanofi-Adventis, Johnson & Johnson, St. Peter’s University Hospital, and other businesses. USP has also worked with several nonprofits, such as the Intersect Fund, a micro-finance and entrepreneur development organization; New Labor, an immigrant worker advocacy and organizing group; Partners in Community Organizing (PICO-NJ), a faith-based community organizing group with a well-tested model for organizing success; and Elijah’s Promise, a unique organization that runs a soup kitchen, offers culinary arts training programs, and fosters food-related social enterprises. New Jersey’s Neighborhood Revitalization Tax Credit program has been particularly helpful in raising money to fund USP initiatives.

FALL 2012 | 13

Creating Cohesion through Community Programs
Two goals of the partnership have been to create cohesion within the community and to bring opportunities to its residents. With community-driven programming and resident leadership, USP responds with effective programs that often accomplish cohesiveness as well. English as a Second Language is a perfect example. Residents requested ESL courses with a number of goals in mind, from learning basic communication skills to becoming fluent enough to apply for jobs, citizenship, or to GED programs. Learning English also eliminates the language barrier between the older residents and the new­ —facilitating increased communication between these two groups. Unity Square’s three community gardens provide a beautiful and effective site for community building, as neighbors grow fresh vegetables, herbs, and flowers. Together the residents cultivate a sense of community while growing nutritious, affordable, and culturally familiar food for their families. During monthly Neighborhood Crime Watch meetings, residents discuss with police any issues that need to be addressed in the neighborhood. These meetings have increased communication with and trust in the police force and resulted in increased foot patrols, more auxiliary police officers, and the installation of anti-crime cameras. USP also created the Housing Resource Center, which offers assistance to residents who have landlord disputes. Since 2007, USP has helped almost 20 people with disputes, recovering $450 to $15,000 in compensation. The partnership also made it a priority to provide safe, attractive, affordable housing to residents so that they feel a sense of pride in their home and neighborhood. To date, Unity Square Partnership has constructed five affordable housing units and revitalized seven housing units.

Unity Square also organizes a myriad of community cohesion events that bring residents out of their homes for fun and meaningful purposes. In the spring, for Earth Day Clean Up, residents work together to clean the streets of the community. National Night Out is a summer fair to promote increased police/community partnerships, as well as to foster community spirit. At the annual Trunk or Treat, volunteers park their spookily decorated cars in a safe place, and kids go trunk to trunk instead of door to door. This event brings families together for safe, supervised fun.

Looking to the Future
In 2005, USP conducted a survey that helped identify the five main areas of concern: neighborhood cohesiveness, economic strength, good housing, youth programs, and readily available social services. Now, in 2012, we are getting ready to conduct a follow up survey to see how residents’ opinions on their community have changed since 2005 and to see how USP’s presence has impacted the community. We expect pos-

14

| CHARITIES USA

itive results that will reflect how far the community and the Unity Square Partnership have come in the past seven years, creating green initiatives, public safety programs, access to health care, child care, economic development initiatives, housing resources, and youth and immigration services. Creating cohesion in the neighborhood through community-driven programming and resident leadership has always been the top priority of the partnership. We hope that USP’s newly formed Advisory Group, the most diverse advisory group that Unity Square has formulated to date, will further develop community leaders and enhance community input and participation from all sectors of the community: Latino, African American, religious figures, business owners, parents, and youth. USP has secured funding to renovate an old fire house in the neighborhood into a community center, which will provide a new home for the USP offices as well as space for community activities, a computer center for resident use, and a certified incubation kitchen to spark the development of culinary businesses by residents. USP has also secured funding for scholarships for professional culinary training for residents, fork-lift operator training, and other general college-level scholarships. The partnership is looking for more funds to add staff to take on more community organizing, economic development and social enterprise projects, and green initiatives and food security. The partnership also hopes to develop more affordable housing and make street-scape improvements to its commercial area. Unity Square may also see a new model of social service delivery. New Brunswick is undergoing a parish restructure process that will merge eight worship communities into three parishes. Catholic Charities has proposed the creation of a “social justice” parish, to be formed by the merger of Sacred Heart Parish with a few other parishes, that would integrate Catholic social teaching and Catholic Charities services into its worship and spiritual activities. At the parish locations,

Catholic Charities would provide appropriate services that are flexibly structured around liturgies and other spiritual and parish community activities. In turn, the parish clergy and other staff would also function as a pastoral care team to serve Catholic Charities staff and clients. This new model would give a stronger Catholic identity to Catholic Charities services and provide a tool for evangelization within the parish. Clients seeking social services at the parish might also see a vibrant parish community that they wish to join. And those coming to the parish for spiritual needs might in turn be referred to the Catholic Charities staff to meet a material, physical, or behavioral need. The Unity Square neighborhood is more than just a geographical neighborhood; it is a spiritual community of likeminded neighbors who seek to make a difference by finding strength in each other. Most are people of strong faith who strive to put their faith into action in terms of real expressions of solidarity and love of neighbor. With a strong group of diverse leaders guiding Unity Square’s initiatives and partnering with Catholic Charities to affect social justice, whatever projects are developed in the near future will reflect the determination and faith of the community. n Amanda Gallear is the acting program director of the Unity Square Program at Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Metuchen, NJ.

FALL 2012 | 15

16

| CHARITIES USA

Community
A Reflection of the Trinity: Incarnated, Organized, Celebrated
By Brian R. Corbin

T

he early church meditated much upon the nature of our God as revealed to us in Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity. The insight of “perichoresis” (interpenetration), first used by Gregory of Nazianzus (329 to 389 or 390) and explored more fully by John of Damascus (645 or 676 to 749 ) helps us to explain and explore how the individual persons of the Trinity—Father, Son and Spirit— remain distinct persons but are together as one God—a community. That insight into God’s nature reveals a deep truth about our human life: if we believe that we are made in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26-27), and God is Trinity, then from that insight each of us is created by God with great dignity and we are “wired,” as it were, in and for community.

This theological insight is again reiterated in the basic understanding that each of us is not an isolated atom or alienated individual. But rather we are born into an immediate and instant community (our family, male and female) and in the greater community of peoples. This theological insight regarding the communal nature of our Trinitarian God, who made each of us in God’s image, requires that we see community not as some abstraction or made up collection, but rather a reflection of our true selves. We are social beings. We are called to, and flourish in, community. Each one of us, by our nature, is to be in and of community. Community is something real (incarnated), something to be organized, and something to be celebrated. Thus we are to seek what is good for the whole community—the common good.

FALL 2012 | 17

“If you see

Trinity.”

charity, you see the
— St. Augustine

The image of the Holy Trinity (seen above), from the 15th century icon writer Andrei Rublev, witnesses to the power of God’s communitarian and Trinitarian nature. Jesus modeled a loving community. Jesus, the second person of the Trinity, the incarnated word of god, came to bring such good news of abundant love. Jesus modeled for his apostles and us today his real response to persons, families, and communities in need: Jesus healed, fed, comforted, served, and washed others. On one occasion, with multitudes hungry, Jesus told his disciples “to have them sit down in groups on the green grass. . .in rows by hundreds and by fifties,” as He revealed God’s love by transforming five loaves and two fish into an abundant feast (see all four Gospels, but especially Mark 6:34-44). Jesus showed us how love was incarnated, organized, and celebrated by the feeding of the “5,000 men not including women and children” (Matthew 14:21). So too we find a deep concern about community in the New Testament’s proclamation of the early church. We find that the Christian believers focused on building a responsive and faith-filled community:


 

They devoted themselves to the teaching of the apostles and to the communal life, to the breaking of the bread and to the prayers. Awe came upon everyone, and many wonders and signs were done through the apostles. All who believed were together and had all things in common; they would sell their property and possessions and divide them among all according to each one’s need. Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple area and to breaking bread in their homes. They ate their meals with exultation and sincerity of heart, praising God and enjoying favor with all the people. And every day the Lord added to their number those who were being saved. – Acts of the Apostles 2:42-47 In Acts 6:1-6, we are reminded that the church responded to the needs of various and distinct “communities”—the Hellenistic and the Hebrew widows—by organizing their outreach with the creation of deacons to be of service.

18

| CHARITIES USA

As Catholic Charities, we can claim this moment as our own institutional birthdate, as an official ministry of service on behalf of each of our bishops. Catholic Charities continues to respond to the needs, fears, assets, hopes, and joys of various communities, families, and persons—locally and globally. We provide direct aid but also are constantly involved in organizing communities and our own response. Pope Benedict XVI reminds us how love is to be organized as he writes: Love of neighbour, grounded in the love of God, is first and foremost a responsibility for each individual member of the faithful, but it is also a responsibility for the entire ecclesial community at every level; from the local community to the particular Church and to the Church universal in its entirety. As a community, the Church must practise love. Love thus needs to be organized if it is to be an ordered service to the community. The awareness of this responsibility has had a constitutive relevance in the Church from the beginning: ‘All who believed were together and had all things in common; and they sold their possessions and goods and distributed them to all, as any had need’ (Acts 2:44-5). In these words, Saint Luke provides a kind of definition of the Church, whose constitutive elements include fidelity to the ‘teaching of the Apostles’, ‘communion’ (koinonia), ‘the breaking of the bread’ and ‘prayer’ (cf. Acts 2:42). The element of ‘communion’ (koinonia) is not initially defined, but appears concretely in the verses quoted above: it consists in the fact that believers hold all things in common and that among them, there is no longer any distinction between rich and poor (cf. also Acts 4:32-37). As the Church grew, this radical form of material communion could not in fact be preserved. But its essential core remained: within the community of believers there can never be room for a poverty that denies anyone what is needed for a dignified life (Deus Caritas Est, 20). In the Catholic Charities USA Vision 2000 process, we as a movement—a community—affirmed a powerful vision statement that incorporated many of these insights on how we incarnate, organize and celebrate community. Vision 2000 states:

Believing in the presence of God in our midst, we proclaim the sanctity of human life and the dignity of the person by sharing in the mission of Jesus given to the Church. To this end, Catholic Charities works with individuals, families, and communities to help them meet their needs, address their issues, eliminate oppression, and build a just and compassionate society. We in Catholic Charities, though always mindful of the specific and unique persons we are working with, acknowledge the reality of community by our family-based services and our many community-engaged partnerships and collaborations. We live and see that interplay with each and every one of our services and ministries. We strive for the common good in our work to bring about changes in systems that keep people from reaching their full potential as the image and likeness of God. Our Catholic Charities USA Campaign to Reduce Poverty in America provides a framework for our work in building communities, while empowering individuals and strengthening families. We can also be very proud of the work that many of our Catholic Charities’ agencies and partner groups accomplish through the efforts around community organizing and community development. The insights and funding from the USCCB Catholic Campaign for Human Development have empowered many social groups that work with us to organize neighborhoods, cities, counties, and regions to change structures that keep persons and families in poverty. Other efforts around initiating and sustaining worker-owned cooperatives, community development credit unions, revolving loan funds, housing cooperatives and land trusts again remind us that community-owned and organized efforts are real and that they matter for the economic and social well being of families and individuals. This year the universal Church celebrates a Year of Faith acknowledging the 50th anniversary of the convening of the Second Vatican Council (continuing the work of incarnating, organizing and celebrating the community of faith), and the 20th anniversary of the Catechism of the Catholic Church. Catholic Charities USA also celebrates this year the 40th anniversary of the publication of the Cadre Study, which re-

FALL 2012 | 19

flected on how our faith shapes our institutional work with persons, families, and communities. That effort reminded us of our requirement to provide quality services to persons and families. It also called us as a movement—a community— to work to transform and humanize social structures and to convene others of good will to do the same. In our genetic makeup, we as individual persons are intimately connected to community. As a ministry and service of the Church, we know the importance of healthy and safe communities. We can remain proud, though always challenged like the early Church, to recognize the reality of community as something incarnated, organized, and celebrated. n Brian Corbin is executive director of Catholic Charities Services & Health Affairs of the Diocese of Youngstown, OH.

Love of neighbour, grounded in the love of God, is first and foremost a responsibility for each individual member of the faithful, but it is also a responsibility for the entire ecclesial community at every level; from the local community to the particular Church and to the Church universal in its entirety.

Photos: Jerry Naunheim

20

| CHARITIES USA

Leadership Roundtable Honors CCUSA

The National Leadership Roundtable on Church Management presented the 2012 Leadership Roundtable Best Practices Award to Catholic Charities USA and its president, Rev. Larry Snyder, at the 2012 Leadership Roundtable Annual Meeting in Washington, DC. Catholic Charities USA was recognized for its commitment to sound managerial and financial practices that enable it to fulfill its mission of serving and advocating on behalf of the poor more effectively. “Catholic Charities USA is a visionary organization that works with individuals, families, and communities to help alleviate poverty at the individual level and to challenge the structures that can cause so much suffering,” said Kerry Robinson, executive director of the Leadership Roundtable. “We chose to honor Catholic Charities and Fr. Snyder to highlight the important work that they do. It is only through effective management of people and resources that they are able to serve so many so well.” “It is an honor to receive this award from an organization that serves by promoting transparency and best practices,” said Fr. Snyder. “This award validates the work of Catholic Charities as we continue to serve the least among us.” The Leadership Roundtable is an organization of laity, religious, and clergy working together to promote excellence and best practices in the management, finances, and human resource development of the Catholic Church in the United States through the greater incorporation of the expertise of the laity. It brings together leaders from business, finance, academic, philanthropy and non-profit worlds with the Church to create programs and resources to serve Catholic parishes, dioceses, nonprofits, and schools. Each year, the Leadership Roundtable identifies exemplary institutions, organizations, and individuals who are committed to best practices and honors them with the Leadership Roundtable Best Practices Award, holding them up as an example worthy of emulation throughout the church. Past recipients include the Cristo Rey Network, Catholic Relief Services, the Diocese of Gary, Indiana, Catholics Come Home, and the Archdiocese of Boston’s Financial Transparency Project. Robinson and Geoffrey T. Boisi, chair of the Leadership Roundtable, presented the award at Georgetown University, at a two-day summit exploring collaboration in the Catholic sector. Women & Spirit: Catholic Sisters in America, a revolving exhibit highlighting the contributions of women religious to American life, was also honored for its commitment to best practices in Catholic communications. n Visit www.TheLeadershipRoundtable.org for more information.

FALL 2012 | 21

CCUSA’s Seven-Year Initiative To Elevate Best Practices In Serving Vulnerable Children And Families

By Jane Stenson

E

ight years ago, Catholic Charities USA began a partnership with the Annie E. Casey Foundation to promote what was then a new approach to serving vulnerable families and children. This approach, “Family Strengthening,” is based on the premise that “children do well when cared for by supportive families, which, in turn, do better when they live in vital and supportive communities.”

nizations would help to change practice from a child-centric approach to one that supported the larger extended family within their local communities. The Casey Foundation’s initial national partners included Volunteers of America, Goodwill Industries International, Boys and Girls Clubs, and YMCA. Catholic Charities USA was later invited to become a partner after the Foundation discovered the excellent Fatima Family Center run by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Cleveland, which exemplified the family strengthening model. This initial invitation expanded into the seven-year CCUSA Family Strengthening Awards program, which recognized and rewarded agencies doing exemplary work in strengthening low-income families and provided opportunities for these programs to share their strategies with the larger network.

This approach to supporting struggling families was championed by the Casey Foundation through a national awards initiative involving some of the largest networks of human services organizations in the country. The Foundation recognized that although they had significant reach and influence, partnerships with national provider networks would significantly increase knowledge and understanding of the family strengthening approach. Working through these orga-

22

| CHARITIES USA

Over the seven years of the CCUSA Family Strengthening Awards Program, CCUSA recognized a wide variety of programs ranging from family centers, farmworker housing, and refugee resettlement to grandparenting support, emergency and family shelter, and childcare. These programs all shared an openness to working with the entire family to address needs and concerns as well as a strategy for improving the economic stability of the household, often through financial education, GED instruction, or other asset development programs. CCUSA also organized site visits to the award-winning agencies for Catholic Charities agency staff members throughout the network. These site visits gave them the opportunity to learn from their peers and return home to implement the best family strengthening programs and strategies in their own agencies. Our network has benefited immensely from this initiative. First, through the award application process and site visits, we at CCUSA were able to learn in detail what our network is doing in family strengthening, to see the comprehensive narrative behind the numbers collected in our Annual Survey on family strengthening. Second, the initiative gave us the resources to recognize outstanding programs and elevate their best practices to national visibility at our annual gatherings. Third, we were able to bring program level staff to award-winning agencies to see their peers in action, learn from them, and gain a greater sense of the resources this network provides to its members. And fourth, and perhaps most importantly, this initiative helped many Catholic Charities agencies rethink the way they serve and to work toward an asset development, integrated, client-driven, and community partnership approach to helping vulnerable children and families. CCUSA expresses deep gratitude to the Annie E. Casey Foundation for making this initiative possible.
continued on page 24

CCUSA Family Strengthening Outcomes

•  CCUSA presented 23 Family Strengthening Awards and $575,000 in award money to 22 agencies. (Catholic Charities in Hartford, CT, received two awards.) •  Over 200 Catholic Charities staff members from 94 agencies participated in one or more of the 23 site visits to award-winning programs organized by CCUSA. •  Agencies throughout the network submitted over 400 applications for the awards.

FALL 2012 | 23

The opportunity to visit award-winning sites was invaluable for our agency. It allowed us to view successful programs in a “hands on” manner.

AN INVALUABLE OPPORTUNITY
Learning from Award-Winning Agencies By Bobbie Lison
In 2005, Catholic Charities Financial Health Program of the Diocese of Green Bay initially became engaged in family strengthening, and we applied for a CCUSA Family Strengthening Award. While we didn’t win an award that year, we were invited to visit a site that did. We chose Pio Decimo Center in Tucson, AZ, because this agency, like ours, provides services to the Hispanic population and we hoped to find innovative ideas. It was an incredible program, and we took back several good ideas. (Their transitional housing model is one that I continue to bring forward to our community partners.) Over the next few years, we had more opportunities to visit award-winning programs. In 2006 we visited the Family Resource Center of Catholic Community Services in Juneau, AK. We took back lessons on developing new services and navigating partnerships when stumbling blocks occurred. In 2007, we participated in the site visit at Thorpe Family Residence in New York, NY. We chose this program because

they provided housing services and worked with families that had been homeless. This fit well with the homeless clients that we serve through several community providers, and we went to see how we could further the collaborative efforts that we had begun in our community. In 2008, the opportunity to visit an award-winning site was again made available, and we visited Our Daily Bread Employment Center in Baltimore, MD. We chose this site based on their strong programming, which mirrored ours. We were eager to learn how they developed their “one stop shop” service center and how they furthered their community partnerships to make this a reality. We also learned from their data collection practices and tweaked our own to produce data more appealing to funders. The opportunity to visit award-winning sites was invaluable for our agency. It allowed us to view successful programs in a “hands on” manner. By looking at these programs from different points of view and asking questions, we could begin the process of implementing best practices in a way that worked within our own agency. Without this opportunity, change and growth would have been slow in coming.

24

| CHARITIES USA

In 2007 and 2008, after implementing things we had learned from other agencies, we were recognized as Family Strengthening award finalists, and then in 2009, our program received a Family Strengthening Award. It was a great honor, and we then had the opportunity to host people at our agency. Our hope is that the participants that attended our site visit were able to leave with ideas that helped make a difference for their family strengthening efforts. The site visits made a huge difference for us.

Philadelphia’s Family Service Centers won a Family Strengthening Award in 2011. “The award really validated everyone. It added another layer of credibility and really inspired our staff to do more. You’d have thought we won a million dollars. Family Strengthening was a process we grew into. It has really changed our service delivery, our programs, even our philosophy. We’ve moved from having a menu of services to having broad integration of services. We cross train at all levels. We encourage community and parent input, parents take leadership roles, and clients are viewed as partners. It’s a huge shift for us, but we’re excited! To finally have a framework that makes sense really helps our staff. It’s helped us develop meaningful programs. And the program designs are coming from families. Parents have a say and a role, and it’s very empowering to them. It hasn’t been an easy process, but it’s been an amazing process. It’s wonderful to see what our five counties are doing with this model.”
— Amy Stoner, director of the Community Based Services Division for Catholic Social Services of the Archdiocese of Philadelphia n

INSPIRING US TO DO MORE
Receiving a Family Strengthening Award
Chicago’s Lake County Family Self-Sufficiency program won a Family Strengthening Award in 2006. “Receiving a Family Strengthening award had an immediate impact. People from our network came to learn from us, and that was very important for our staff and board members to see. One board member in particular, who raises funds solely for this program, was especially pleased and very excited that other programs could be replicating what we are doing. Family Strengthening has permeated our agency. It’s given us a common way of talking about what we do, a new paradigm, new terms for understanding our work. We’ve relabeled and reorganized our programs under two categories: family stabilization and family strengthening, and our programs have benefitted greatly. We created a new Family Strengthening Center, and we’ve incorporated Family Strengthening ideas into our WIC and early childhood centers, our Fatherhood Initiative, and our parenting classes. It’s very good for our consumers, and it’s very good for our staff to see people flourishing.”
— Maureen Murphy, associate vice president of Family and Parish Support Services for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago

FALL 2012 | 25

CAN YOU

SURVIVE
A MONTH IN POVERTY?
CCUSA Hosts Poverty Simulation at Second National Poverty Summit

On September 21, in conjunction with the second National Poverty Summit hosted by CFED in Washington, DC, Catholic Charities USA conducted a poverty simulation to help non-profit leaders, Congressional staff, and members of the media gain a new perspective on the hardships of poverty. Developed by the Missouri Association for Community Action and facilitated by Step-Up Silicon Valley, an innovative poverty-reduction partnership sponsored by Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County in California, the simulation replicated the experiences of low-income families trying to get by. The approximately 100 participants took on new identities and for a few hours had to work through the challenges that low-income families and individuals frequently encounter in their struggle to maintain child care, provide food, make rent and utility payments, and navigate the complex and often contradictory public benefits system. Although participants acted out roles in a large conference room configured as a community, the simulation was not a skit or a game, but instead an experience enabling participants to better understand the reality facing those in need and to reflect on the potential for change.

26

| CHARITIES USA

Main Photo: © Steve Liss, AmericanPoverty.org

“JUST LIKE THAT”
One Participant’s Experience of Scraping By
By Roger Conner

Just like that, I became Anthony Xanthros, 52 years old and disabled. After receiving my identity packet from a volunteer, I made my way to my “home,” 406 Peacock Street, one of the various clusters of chairs in the center of the conference room. As I sat down, I met my “family”—Zelda, my 51-year-old wife, and Zoe and Xerxes, our 7- and 9-year-old granddaughters living with us. We chatted, unsure what to expect and oblivious to what we were about to experience. The instruction came quickly—“Open your packets.” The reality of our life was inside: who worked and who didn’t, who went to school, how much money we had, and, most troubling, how much our weekly and monthly bills were. There was no margin for error on this family balance sheet. We brought in $1,800 a month and had to find a way to pay for everything. With that, I was plunged into the poverty simulation of the 2012 National Poverty Summit. I had participated in various team activities before, but never a poverty simulation. Further, I had no idea what it was like to live in poverty, though I came from a fairly humble background. My father was a railroad worker, my mother was at home, and there were us four kids, but I never thought we were poor—we had a decent home, a car. We ate regular meals and went to little league baseball games and local carnivals. Nothing special, but it wasn’t poverty. Back in the conference room, a “month” in the life of the Xanthros family was underway—four 15-minute weeks with three-minute family meetings in between. To meet our family needs and obligations, we had to make our way to the various tables around the room, which represented various services and businesses in the community. Some were familiar to me—the bank, grocery store, and elementary school, while others were less familiar—the pawn shop, pay-day lenders, check cashing outlets, and jail. Between my wife’s $1,300 a month income and my $500 a month disability check, we had enough to make it—or so we thought.

Extra expenses kept crashing in: our granddaughters needed money for school field trips; one broke her glasses. I couldn’t do anything since I was disabled, and Zelda couldn’t get away from work to pay for things on time. We didn’t have a bank account, so we paid cash for everything, but we didn’t even have time to get our checks cashed because offices closed before we could get there. Then Zelda learned that she might be laid off. Next thing we knew, we were selling things at the pawn shop and receiving eviction notices. Role playing or not, it got stressful. Family discussions became testy and argumentative. The simulation was trying in every way possible to make us feel the pressure and stress of those living in poverty every day, and it was succeeding. For us and numerous other “families,” the simulation was eyeopening and heart-wrenching. Yes, there is the economic reality of not having enough money to meet your needs. That’s what most people relate to when they try to put themselves in the shoes of those in poverty. But it’s not just that—and the simulation really brought this home in a visceral way. It’s the lack of time, the inability to plan, the lack of connections to resources, the lack of understanding, the unfair and unjust treatment, and the never-ending battles to build a pathway out of poverty. Every day brings new obstacles and new barriers to a life of self-sufficiency. It hits you at every turn. By the end of the simulation, Zelda and I found a way to avoid eviction and keep the roof over our heads, but we did so by selling treasured family possessions for a pittance and getting a payday loan just in time at exorbitant rates. At the end of the month, we breathed a sigh of relief. But what were we going to do the next month? Poverty ended for us participating in the simulation, but we left sobered by the reality that poverty doesn’t end for more than 46 million Americans. We were also sobered by the realization that those of us who have not experienced living in poverty do not fully grasp what it is like. We who have been fortunate in our lives must be touched by poverty in some way if we are to build the political will for change. The simulation did that for me and for many others there, making us deeply appreciative for our own blessings but also deeply aware that we need to step up as a nation and do something about the silent crisis of poverty in America. n
Roger Conner is senior director of communications and marketing for Catholic Charities USA.

FALL 2012 | 27

Gateway to Justice & Opportunity
2012 Catholic Charities USA Annual Gathering
For three days in late September and early October, Catholic Charities professionals from across the country gathered in St. Louis, the Gateway City, for the Catholic Charities USA 2012 Annual Gathering. This gathering, the pre-eminent gathering for the Catholic Charities network, provided the opportunity for attendees to connect with colleagues, learn new ideas, and find inspiration and rejuvenation together. CCUSA extends a heartfelt thank you to Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis for being a fabulous host for the Annual Gathering.
Photos: Jerry Naunheim | Elias Kontogiannis (Baseball Game, Gala and Sojourn Theatre)

28

| CHARITIES USA

St. Louis Cardinals Baseball Game
Rev. Larry Snyder kicked off the gathering, throwing out the first pitch at the Saturday evening game at Busch Stadium between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Washington Nationals. In the stands, a large group of Catholic Charities folks cheered him on!

Opening Session
In the opening session of the gathering on Sunday morning, Rev. Larry Snyder gave his annual address, sharing his perspective on the present and future work of Catholic Charities USA and emphasizing the need for reform in our national safety net system. He introduced the Lab for Economic Opportunity (LEO), a new partnership between CCUSA and the University of Notre Dame. LEO will use academic rigor and methods to find the most effective poverty reduction programs, which will ultimately benefit providers and people, but will also enable evidencebased policy recommendations.

Opening Liturgy
The opening liturgy was held at the Cathedral Basilica of Saint Louis, a resplendent structure with one of the world’s largest mosaic installations. Cardinal Robert Sarah was the celebrant, with Archbishop of Saint Louis Robert J. Carlson, Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan of Brooklyn, Bishop Michael Driscoll of Boise, Rev. Larry Snyder, and others as concelebrants.

Keynote Speaker John Allen
John L. Allen, Jr., a prize-winning senior correspondent for the National Catholic Reporter, discussed two megatrends within the Catholic Church—the rise of the global church and the movement toward evangelical Catholicism in response to increasing secularism.

FALL 2012 | 29

Gala at the World’s Fair Pavillion
With dinner, dancing, and ice cream cones—the dessert novelty created at the 1904 World’s Fair in St. Louis, the Sunday evening gala was held at the World’s Fair Pavilion in the green and stately Forest Park. The bus ride to and from the gala was made merrier by a lively tour guide who had her group singing, “Meet Me in St. Louis, Louis!”

Cardinal Robert Sarah
Cardinal Robert Sarah, president of the Pontifical Council Cor Unum, addressed the gathering on Monday morning, noting the threat of aggressive secularism, which seeks to exclude the church from public life, and urging Catholic Charities to tap deeply into its Catholic roots for renewal.

Workshops
This year’s workshops covered a host of topics: public policy, fundraising, strategic planning, Catholic identity, family strengthening through healthy relationships, social enterprise, integrating service and advocacy, supporting military families, volunteer management, and many more.

Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Award
At the Awards Breakfast on Tuesday, Paul Martodam, one of the network’s long-time directors, received the Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Award for his work on behalf of children throughout his 35-year career at four Catholic Charities agencies. Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan of Brooklyn and Queens presented the award, describing Paul as “a model of Catholic charity.”

National Volunteer of the Year
Ellen Buelow, CCUSA’s 2012 National Volunteer of the Year, was honored for her work helping young refugee children prepare for and do well in school. A volunteer for several years for Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Santa Fe, Ellen has also helped immigrants and refugees learn English.

30

| CHARITIES USA

Centennial Medals
Two Centennial medals were awarded at the gathering. At the Awards Breakfast, a medal was presented to the Daughters of Charity in recognition of their contributions to this nation through their works of charity and good will. Sister Antony Barczykowski, a Daughter of Charity who has served for many years at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New Orleans, received the award on behalf of her order. In a gathering of the diocesan directors on the Friday preceding the gathering, Fr. Snyder presented a Centennial medal to Jack Lally, recognizing his more than three decades of service to Catholic Charities, both locally and nationally. Jack was the first lay executive director of Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of St. Louis, serving in that position from 1990 to 1998, after 24 years in various other positions and programs in the agency. Jack was also active with CCUSA, serving on several committees and the Board of Trustees.

Keynote Speaker Major Garrett
Major Garrett, a well-respected Washington correspondent and writer for the National Journal, gave the closing keynote address on Tuesday. He shared his insights on the political climate in Washington, DC, and expressed cautious optimism that Congress will be able to come together to address the “fiscal cliff” facing the country in January.

Sojourn Theatre
In the closing act for the gathering, Sojourn Theatre, an ensemble theater company known for its work in grassroots theater, captured the spirit of Catholic Charities. Through interviews they conducted with conference-goers throughout the gathering, they put together a moving performance that expressed the challenges, hopes, frustrations, and beauty of the work of Catholic Charities.

FALL 2012 | 31

Catholic Charities

Archdiocese of Saint Louis
Great Ideas at Work in the Gateway City

I

f you didn’t make it to the CCUSA Annual Gathering this year, don’t worry, you didn’t miss the opportunity to get to know Catholic CharitiesArchdiocese of Saint Louis (CCSTL). This agency in America’s heartland celebrated 100 years this year. But it isn’t showing its age. Instead, it’s brimming with energy and innovation, working to solve some of its community’s toughest social problems.

In 2005, Gateway to Financial Fitness, CCSTL’s comprehensive financial literacy program, won one of the first three Catholic Charities USA Family Strengthening Awards and drew the limelight onto this hardworking and smart-working agency, which boasts numerous of outstanding, and innovative programs. Here are a few: •  The Fatherhood Initiative was founded in 1998 to help men learn how to be involved fathers and to overcome the barriers to reconnecting with their children. Through a six-week intensive course, the participants, many of whom grew up without a father, learn how to better parent their children, communicate effectively, and maintain good relationships, especially with their child’s mother. The Fatherhood Initiative also helps men become better providers through education and employment training. The successes of this program are far reaching—men are active in their children’s lives, providing the love and support their children desperately need from them and experiencing the rewards of a good parent-child relationship.

32

| CHARITIES USA

•  City Greens is a weekly community market started in 2009 with the goal to get healthy, fresh, and affordable produce, meat, and staples into the kitchens of all families and promote healthy eating. Many health issues that families face are nutrition related. Diabetes, heart disease, and obesity are all difficult to manage without fresh, affordable, healthy food. City Greens, through its permanent location at CCSTL’s Midtown Center and its Supa’ Fresh Veggie Mobile, provides access to healthy food in neighborhoods where grocery stores are difficult to access, especially for families relying on public transportation. The food and produce sold by City Greens are naturally grown and produced by local Missouri farmers. •  McMurphy’s Grill opened its doors in 1990 as the firstin-the nation full-service restaurant for training people struggling with homelessness and mental illness. Run by St. Patrick Center, a CCSTL agency which assists people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, McMurphy’s Grill helps participants develop good work habits and learn food service skills. During 12 weeks of paid specialized training, they master 11 restaurant functions, including preparing food in a restaurant kitchen and waiting on or bussing tables. When the participants complete the training, St. Patrick Center helps them find permanent employment in a restaurant. Through the program, 30 to 40 people each year discover successful careers in the restaurant industry. •  Another St. Patrick Center program is the BEGIN New Venture Center (BEGIN), an innovative community partnership offering start-up and early-stage companies, as well as non-profit organizations, daily business assistance, access to experienced service providers, guidance from an advisory board/mentor program, marketing assistance, and a professional business location. BEGIN is a holistic approach to achieving positive personal and community outcomes through business success, with the ultimate objective of creating sustainable new jobs for the community. BEGIN gives preference to ventures that are committed to helping St. Patrick Center achieve its mission of building permanent, positive change in people’s lives by employing and/or training SPC clients. n

A Century of Service in the Heartland
For over a century, Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Saint Louis has changed lives, saved lives, and in many cases just helped people through life. In May 1912, Cardinal John Glennon, Archbishop of Saint Louis, convened all the charities that were Catholic and operating independently in St. Louis. The group met thereafter on an annual basis, and in 1932, took the name Catholic Charities of St. Louis, with the purpose to identify and address unmet needs. In the early years of Catholic Charities, caring for children in children’s homes was the major focus, but as time went by and Catholic Charities re-evaluated its own services and surveyed the needs of the community, other services developed: counseling, senior services, adoption, expectant parent care, refugee resettlement, foster care, therapeutic residential care for children, food pantries, emergency assistance, immigration services, homelessness prevention and alleviation, domestic violence shelter, behavioral health services, youth programs, and more. Catholic Charities-Archdiocese of St. Louis has grown to become one of the largest private providers of social services in the state of Missouri. It now comprises eight agencies and offers more than 100 programs to benefit more than 157,000 people annually. n

FALL 2012 | 33

Response
Something Good Rising from the Ashes
By David Aguillard

Disaster

F

rom a ridge miles away from the Waldo Canyon Fire— a fire that would become one of the most destructive in Colorado history, Jim Ball peered through binoculars and saw dots of fire in the night. They were eerie, like eyes peering through the darkness.“The whole sky had an evil glow,” he said.

flat screen TV, the air conditioner was running. His dogs happily greeted me when Jim invited me in for a Coke. Jim’s house was untouched. His next-door neighbor’s … was no longer. And yet, amoung these random acts of devastation were incredible acts of kindness, frequently small but significant: Bill Brecht, before fleeing his home, turned on a sprinkler that helped saved Pat O’Lear’s house. A few twists of a wrist and a home was saved. Being from south Louisiana, I have seen my home and my family’s homes wrecked by hurricanes. At Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Baton Rouge, we have responded to tornadoes, floods, an oil spill, and even the tsunami in American Samoa. But this is different. Jim Ball may have the most accurate description: Evil. Fire seems evil. It seems to have intention and purpose, target-

Then he realized, those were houses burning, probably his own. “We felt helpless. Our life was in suspension.” But a few days later, he saw his home in a photo on the front page of The Denver Post. It was untouched, alone among ashen ruins. “I was stupefied,” he said. The arbitrary destruction wrought by the Waldo Canyon Fire, which raged in June and July, is difficult to comprehend, seemingly impossible to accept. Twelve days after the fire, Jim Ball was back at home, piddling around in his garage. Inside, a movie played on his

34

| CHARITIES USA

“The arbitrary destruction wrought by the Waldo Canyon Fire was difficult to comprehend,...and yet, among these random acts of devastation were incredible acts of kindness.”

ing its victims. Red tomatoes remain on a bush just inches from a home that has gone up in smoke…. literally. There are no remnants to rescue, just a thin layer of ash. Fire taunts and tortures. Lona Byrd evacuated twice, and twice returned thinking the threat was over. Shortly after returning the second time, police rushed everyone out. That evening the fire intensified and attacked from the west, driven by hurricane-force winds. When she returned the third time, she found a scene “far worse than my worst nightmares.” Yet just like Katrina and disasters around the world, catastrophe brings out the best in us. “It’s amazing,” a Red Cross volunteer said. “There are some awful fine people in this city,” said Jim Ball. Some lives will be forever changed. Property recovery is possible, but emotional scars and economic difficulties can last a life time. Catholic Charities of Central Colorado helped on all fronts, providing cash assistance to people out of work, cooking meals for first responders, and praying with families amid their ruins. Walking to the top of a hill behind their house, Patricia O’Lear, wife of Pat, offers to show me a view of their neighborhood. Pat won’t go. “I refuse,” he said. “I don’t need to look. It’s absolute annihilation. Memories lying in ashes.” But stirring in the ashes, emerges something good. I heard it from Jim Ball, who was intensely curious about the relief work of Catholic Charities. After Katrina, Colorado Springs took in New Orleans evacuees. Maybe now more than then, he sees the necessity of neighbor helping neighbor even

when those neighbors are half way across a continent. He senses his life may be changing. “I have to give back.” n David Aguillard is executive director of Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Baton Rouge. He deployed with a CCUSA disaster recovery team to assist Catholic Charities of Central Colorado in responding to the Waldo Canyon Fire disaster this past summer.

FALL 2012 | 35

Update
CCUSA’s Rachel Lustig— One of “12 Catholic Women Under 40 Making a Difference”
Rachel Lustig, senior vice president of mission and ministry at Catholic Charities USA, was nominated by readers and selected by a panel of judges from National Catholic Reporter (NCR) as one of “12 Catholic Women Under 40 Making a Difference.” The poll, introduced for the first time this year, appeared in the July 7 edition of NCR, which highlights Rachel’s many accomplishments both inside and outside of her work at CCUSA. “All of us at CCUSA are extremely proud of this honor for Rachel. She is an indispensable leader and an invaluable ambassador for our organization and our work. She is very deserving of this award,” said Rev. Larry Snyder, president and CEO of CCUSA. Rachel has been at CCUSA since 2003, when she joined the organization as parish social ministry associate. She then served as director of parish social ministry from 2004-2009 before moving into her current role. She is also very active in the community; she serves on the Peace and Justice Commission for the Diocese of Arlington and on the boards of two nonprofits, Friends of Guest House and Beyond Borders. Rachel holds a bachelor’s of business administration from the University of Notre Dame and a master’s of public administration from George Mason University. n

CCUSA

CCUSA’s Ronald Jackson Receives Award from National Black Catholic Congress
Ronald G. Jackson, Sr., MSW, JD, senior director of government affairs for CCUSA, was recently honored by the National Black Catholic Congress at its annual conference in July with one of the first of its kind Servus pro Christo (Servant of Christ) Awards for outstanding leadership and service to the Catholic Church in the African American community. Most Reverend John H. Ricard, SSJ, president of the National Black Catholic Congress, said of Mr. Jackson’s service, “Having worked with Ron during his time at the D.C. Catholic Conference, I have seen first-hand his singular and tireless efforts in advancing the Catholic faith and the Gospel of Jesus Christ. This award honors his many years of exceptional service among his brothers and sisters and recognizes a commitment to continually go above and beyond the call of duty.” “I was quite surprised and humbled,” Jackson said after learning of the honor, “I do what I do because of my love for the Church and for God’s people. I can think of no better way to live than to spend it serving and saving those who are most in need.” Prior to joining CCUSA, Ron served for 15 years as the executive director of the D.C. Catholic Conference for the Archdiocese of Washington. n

36

| CHARITIES USA

A Thank You
TO THOSE WHO SUPPORT CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA
DOLORES PERRUSO
“Dolores with shiny, sparkling eyes.” That’s how Linda Mazzochi remembers her longtime friend when she first met her in the early 1980s at St. Stephen Martyr Church in Washington, DC. “We got to talking, and even though I didn’t know her, I felt so pleased that she was interested in knowing me.” Dolores had that effect on people—she just made people feel good by being around her. This vivacious woman grew up in Washington, DC, living above her family’s bustling Italian restaurant, attending Catholic schools, and developing her musical talents. She grew into a beautiful and sophisticated lady, turning heads and capturing hearts. In 1940, a newspaper reporter invited her to a White House dinner and dance, and nearly 50 years later, he described that evening in The Washington Times. “He wrote that she was the most beautiful woman there,” said Linda. “‘Gleaming, with… stardust (glitter) in her hair.’” During WWII, Dolores worked as an occupational therapist at Walter Reed Army Medical Center. After the war, she began a career of nearly 30 years at the U.S. State Department, serving as a social secretary to diplomat W. Averell Harriman and secretary to several other high-ranking officials. She spent some of her time overseas in places such as England, Yugoslavia, Switzerland, and Italy. In her fashionable Watergate apartment, Dolores took much joy in hosting gatherings for her friends and family and served good homemade Italian food and her frequently requested martinis. Dolores truly enjoyed her family, friends, and work, but the foundation of joy in her life was her faith and the Catholic Church. St. Stephen’s was her second home. She was a daily communicant for many years and played the piano for services. Deeply prayerful, she also helped organize a prayer group and started the daily recitation of the rosary and First Saturday Fatima Devotions—all three of which continue at St. Stephen’s today. Among those Dolores prayed for were the poor. “She cared for the poor. If she saw a homeless man near her home, she would make a sandwich for him,” said Linda. “And she was very conscious about not being frivolous. She wanted to leave money to help the poor.” That concern for the poor led Dolores to support the work of Catholic Charities USA. “Dolores liked what Catholic Charities USA was doing,” said Linda. “She was very aware of the campaign to reduce poverty. She saw it as a vehicle to help people, and she was happy about the opportunity to give.” Dolores passed away in 2010, leaving a gift to Catholic Charities USA to help the poor, just as she had desired. CCUSA is deeply grateful for her compassion, generosity, and joyful giving. n

FALL 2012 | 37

Catholic Charities of Tennessee Celebrates 50th Anniversary
Catholic Charities of Tennessee celebrated its 50th anniversary on July 17 with a Mass of Thanksgiving at the Cathedral of the Incarnation, followed by a reception for its staff, volunteers, board members, and supporters. Nashville Mayor Karl Dean spoke briefly, commending Catholic Charities for serving people in need throughout the community. The celebration came on the heels of the agency being named Nonprofit Best in Business by the Nashville Business Journal in its annual “Best in Business” competition. The agency also achieved Hague Accreditation this year through the Council on Accreditation (COA) as authorized by the U.S. Department of State, which allows the agency to facilitate international adoptions. Catholic Charities of Tennessee was formally established in 1962 to served the state. With the establishment of the Diocese of Memphis in 1971 and the Diocese of Knoxville in 1988, Catholic Charities of Tennessee’s service area was redefined. Today, the agency serves 38 counties in Middle Tennessee.

NewsNotes
Maine Dental Center’s Desire to Display Art Inspires Local Artist

When the Jessie Albert Dental and Orthodontic Center, a not-for-profit program of Catholic Charities Maine in Bath, ME, recently underwent a renovation, it wasn’t just about getting the latest state-of-the-art dental equipment. It was also about the art that would hang on the walls. “We’ve all been patients ourselves, and we recognize that a visit to the dentist can be anxiety-producing, so we wanted to create a space that was warm, welcoming, and promoted a healthful, healing environment,” said Dr. Meredith Davis, clinical director. Charged with creating the calming effect, Office Manager Elizabeth Graff sought out the works of local

artist John Gable, whose scenic prints now grace the lobby, halls, and exam rooms of the 5,000 square foot office. “Art can have a true healing effect, altering one’s mood instantly, so I wanted to have the best pieces on view for our patients,” says Graff. “And John’s works are so lovely that they seemed a perfect complement to our desire to soothe and transport patients to a comfortable space.” Luckily for the center, the artist believes art isn’t just for galleries and museums either. “I often hear from people how one of my pieces made them feel or that it left a lasting impression, and so I was impressed by the center’s vision to create a better

38

| CHARITIES USA

patient experience through art,” says Gable. He and his wife Bobbi became such fans of the project that they ultimately donated 27 prints. Local framer Mike Doucette provided a generous discount on materials and donated his time to frame and install the art. “I’m a former altar boy with a soft spot for all the good work Catholic Charities is doing in our community, so I was honored to help bring this project to life.”

and neighborhoods for our most vulnerable citizens.”

Fort Worth’s WORN Expands Product Line and Business Opportunities

own their own home-based business, earn commission from sales, grow a team of other Independent Brand Ambassadors, establish a flexible schedule, share in WORN’s mission, and represent a brand that is bringing social change to refugees living in the United States! For more information, write to [email protected].

Joe Buranosky Takes Helm of Catholic Charities of Central Florida
WORN is a socially-conscious business of Catholic Charities Fort Worth (CCFW) that produces hand-knit clothing accessories. The mission of WORN is to provide refugee women living in the United States an opportunity to utilize the traditional skill of knitting to increase their families household income, thus empowering them to rise above poverty. One hundred percent of the net profits from the sale of the scarves is reinvested back into CCFW as a source of unrestricted funds to further the agency’s mission to end poverty. WORN recently launched its FALL 2012 collection, with the theme “Rooted.” The name was selected because the refugee women that make WORN products are in the process of establishing new roots in the United States and getting a fresh start on life. View the collection at www.wornforpeace.com. WORN is also launching a new direct sales program, which will allow individuals to sell the WORN collection as Independent Brand Ambassadors. As such, individuals will be able to Joe Buranosky joined Catholic Charities of Central Florida on April 30, 2012, as its new executive director. As past director of operations at the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Queen of the Universe, Buranosky worked with the rector and staff to begin a ministry to help the poor and homeless and support local social justice initiatives. He shares a passion for this type of ministry and is dedicated to engaging Catholics in Central Florida in mission and ministry of Catholic Charities. “My principal hope is that we can, as a Catholic community, engage everyone in the idea that Catholic Charities is a ministry that belongs to all of us,” said Buranosky.

Providence Housing Breaks Ground on Affordable Housing Project
On August 3, Providence Housing broke ground on the Holy Rosary Apartments & Strategic Infill, a new affordable housing project in the northwest quadrant of Rochester, NY. The project will convert the Holy Rosary campus into a vital community center with 35 affordable rental units on the campus and 25 single family homes throughout the surrounding area. At the groundbreaking, funding partners, local representatives, and the development team celebrated the beginning of the adaptive reuse of this historic property into much-needed affordable housing for Rochester’s Edgerton Neighborhood. “This partnership has brought affordable, attractive housing to a community that eagerly awaits such good news,” said Congresswoman Louise M. Slaughter, 28th District of New York. “I am so proud of the work that Providence Housing performs in the Rochester community—creating opportunities where none existed before and bringing back to life buildings

Catholic Charities of Southwestern Ohio Welcomes Ted Bergh as CEO
May 2012 saw a change in leadership for Catholic Charities of Southwestern Ohio. After ten years with the agency and a career spent with Catholic Charities, Kathleen Donnellan retired as CEO, and Ted Bergh was appointed to take her place.

FALL 2012 | 39

Bergh joined the agency after serving as interim executive director for the Cincinnati Metropolitan Housing Authority. Prior to that position, Bergh was chief financial officer for Cincinnati Metro. “Ted brings a strong combination of business acumen and theological training that will serve well in the challenging job of effectively coordinating human services and charitable works for those in need,” said Archbishop Dennis M. Schnurr.

agencies will also provide information about and referrals to other programs and services that will help vets maintain their homes. For vets who are living on the street, the two agencies will work together to find a permanent home while providing other services that the vets and their families may need in order to stabilize their living situations.

Brooklyn and Queens Hosts South Korean Delegation
The Colin-Newell Early Childhood Development Center of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens recently hosted a delegation from South Korea which came to the United States to learn how Head Start centers operate. The group consisted of 25 social service workers and government officials from a program called “Dream Start,” which provides early care and education services for young children. Colin-Newell was chosen to be the model school by CCBQ Vice President of Early Childhood Services Robert Marquez, who felt that ColinNewell was an ideal program to convey the genuine experience of a Head Start center and to highligh the agency’s curriculum: the Montessori Method of teaching. The visitors from Dream Start learned ways to improve service delivery to children as well as to the family as a whole. Family Service Coordinator Faheem Pollard and Program Manager Sharon Turner educated the group on U.S. practices and mandates. They also explained the various workshops, trips, and social service referrals the center provides in order to keep the whole family involved in the child’s education. The Dream Start officials left with a wealth of information that will be used to improve early education for children in South Korea.

Charleston Catholic Charities Opens New Immigration Office
In April, Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Charleston’s Office of Immigration Services (CCOIS) opened a new sub-office in Hilton Head, SC. This office joins the offices in Mt. Pleasant and Greenville in providing high-quality, low-cost immigration services to immigrants across South Carolina. Mily Choy, a native of Peru, heads this office and brings her experience in international law and immigration to CCOIS. Emily Guerrero, CCOIS Supervising Attorney in Mt. Pleasant, stated, “The demand for immigration services in South Carolina is increasing, and we are excited to expand our services and further our mission of serving immigrants in need.” The office opened in response to the large Latino population in Hilton Head, often cited as an area with recent skyrocketing growth among the Latino population. In fact, between 2000 and 2007, Beaufort County’s Latino population grew by 73 percent, giving Beaufort County the second highest concentration of Latino immigrants in the state.

Catholic Charities in Wilmington to Serve Veterans and Their Families
Catholic Charities, Inc., Diocese of Wilmington, is one of four organizations that have come together and received $847,000 in funding from the Department of Veterans Affairs to provide supportive services to atrisk military veterans and their families. The agencies, Catholic Charities, Delaware Center for the Homeless, and People’s Place, under the leadership of Connections Community Support Programs, applied for and received the grant to provide shelter and other emergency services. Catholic Charities, in partnership with the Delaware Center for the Homeless, will focus mainly on Delaware’s New Castle County area veterans. Delaware Center for the Homeless will identify and refer at-risk military vets, and Catholic Charities will provide emergency financial grants to pay overdue rent, utility, or mortgage bills for those at risk of becoming homeless. Both

40

| CHARITIES USA

Galveston-Houston Agency Food Pantry Receives a Meaty Donation

Trini’s Corner Market is not your usual food pantry. With stocked shelves and freezers, it looks like many neighborhood stores, complete with grocery carts, fresh fruits and vegetables, meat, canned goods, bread, and toiletries.

Yakima’s Housing Services Builds Homes for First-Time Homeowners
Texas’ Fort Bend (TX) County Commissioner Richard Morrison and State District Judge Clifford Vacek, one a Democrat and the other a Republican, joined forces to answer a higher calling in donating hundreds of pounds of beef to the Catholic Charities’ self-select food pantry, Trini’s Corner Market, at Mamie George Community Center, an agency of Catholic Charities of Galveston-Houston. The two public officials, who attended the Needville Youth Fair’s Livestock Auction this past spring, teamed up for the winning bid to purchase the Grand Champion Steer, pitching in a total of $7,000. That amount was donated to the college fund of Cade Zurovec, who raised the steer. The steer also answered a higher calling—resulting in beef for Fort Bend County residents in need. Mamie George Community Center director Ernest Lewis III said, “We truly appreciate the generosity of the commissioner and judge. We mostly have canned goods at Trini’s and frozen chicken, so the beef really helps round out our clients’ groceries as families in our community are impacted by climbing food prices.” Catholic Charities Housing Services (CCHS) in Yakima, WA, recently dedicated and blessed its newly completed New Life Homes single family housing development in Mabton, WA, which has 32 new single family homes for first-time homeowners. Through its New Life Homes program, CCHS has completed 52 homes and has just started to build 20 new homes in various communities. The program provides hard-working families the opportunity to achieve homeownership. These first-time homebuyers must qualify for the program, attend homebuyer education classes, and invest 250 hours of “sweat equity” into their homes. CCHS developments typically serve families who earn at or below 80 percent of the area median income in Yakima County. The newly constructed New Life Homes include full site amenities, access to irrigation for underground sprinklers, exterior lighting, and circulation sidewalks. “Catholic Charities Housing Services is committed to envisioning and building communities where people are treated with dignity and respect, their basic needs are met, and they are empowered to enhance the quality of

their own lives,” says Bryan Ketcham, director for Catholic Charities Housing Services. “CCHS’ New Life Homes program showcases just how homeownership can lead to the empowerment of individuals who then have the ability to make positive outcomes in their lives.”

Pueblo Agency Instructs Parents of Preschoolers
Catholic Charities of Pueblo started a new program—Home Instruction for Parents of Preschool Youngsters (HIPPY). HIPPY is an evidence-based program that produces significant outcomes for both parents and young children: improved school readiness and early literacy skills amongst preschool-aged children; improved academic performance, test scores, attendance, and behavior throughout K-12 schooling; and increased positive parenting practice and parent involvement in children’s education. Pueblo ranks among the highest in the state of Colorado for disparities often caused by poverty, such as low educational attainment, teen pregnancy, gang involvement, and substance abuse. These extreme poverty factors negatively impact educational opportunity. The risk factor of living in poverty during the early years is a contributing factor that causes the children to most likely live a life of poverty even as adults. A recent study by the Aspen Institute advocated for a two-generation approach to breaking the cycle of poverty. The study noted the strong connection between maternal education and child outcomes. Part of the HIPPY program includes funding for

FALL 2012 | 41

peer mentors and provides educational stipends and work force development for these mentors.

Catholic Charities in Portland Re-Opens Affordable Housing Units

In June 2011, Catholic Charities Caritas Housing Initiatives in Portland, OR, temporarily closed its McCoy Village apartment complex for extensive renovations. The affordable housing complex re-opened in May 2012, welcoming back its previous tenants, who returned to apartments with all new appliances and a variety of spacious floor plans in one- to fourbedroom options. The remodeled site includes four new community center spaces, which will host an education and play space for pre-school-aged children, a training center for older youth and adults, a conference room, and a community space. Residents will have access to culturally-specific support from area community partners, which will offer educational opportunities in various topics, including computer, financial literacy, and housing basics to residents.

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, following the retirement of long-time director Ed Orzechowski. A native Washingtonian, Msgr. Enzler came to Catholic Charities with more than 40 years of experience as a priest, leader, and advocate serving the needs of the most vulnerable in our community. Msgr. Enzler has long been involved in the work of Catholic Charities, having served on the Catholic Charities Foundation Board of Directors and on the advisory council of the Lt. Joseph P. Kennedy Institute, a Catholic Charities agency in Washington for people with developmental disabilities. In his first year at Catholic Charities, Fr. Enzler has led the agency in launching ministries in parishes that connect people in need with Catholic Charities services, a full-time volunteer office, a mobile SHARE program that sells affordable food packages throughout the city, an employment program for mental health clients, an Annual Youth Day of Service, a Young Professionals Group, a President’s Council made up of community leaders, and other new ventures.

page and started blogging for the soup kitchen. This experimental process was crafted by Executive Director Christina Egan, who sought to increase the number of volunteers in the kitchens during the summer months when volunteers can be sparse. This initiative has been successful as most weeks have comfortably met the volunteer quota.

Ducks Inspire Compliance for Onondaga County Agency
Hundreds of miniature rubber ducks flocked to 30 program sites of Catholic Charities of Onondaga County in Syracuse, NY, during Compliance and Ethics Week, May 7-10. The theme “IF IT LOOKS LIKE A DUCK” was developed as a good-humored message to remind employees to pay attention to unethical behavior and report it. Under the guidance of Candace Murray, director of compliance and quality improvement, a committee planned numerous activities designed to highlight the importance of agencywide adherence to corporate compliance policies and procedures. Committee members visited program sites and delivered a duck for every employee, along with an invitation to participate in a variety of events during the week. Eight teams entered a contest for best compliance video, creating short presentations that incorporated a strong message about doing the right thing; these were shown at “lunch and learn” sessions attended by over 80 employees. Over 90 employees entered a compliance

Loaves & Fishes Kitchen Uses Social Media to Recruit Volunteers
The Loaves & Fishes Family Kitchen of San Jose, a close partner of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, CA, has been serving those in need for over 32 years. These past few summer months have been a social media revival for Loaves & Fishes, as the organization hired a social media intern who has taken over the Facebook

Msgr. John Enzler Heads Catholic Charities in Washington, DC
Reverend Monsignor John J. Enzler was appointed president and CEO of

42

| CHARITIES USA

word search puzzle contest, and approximately 200 employees stormed the agency’s administrative offices to find a well-hidden duck.

vice president of development.“This was a project that inspired them and encouraged creativity.”

Shelter Residents in Northeast Kansas Exhibit Pictures of Hope

Tucson Agency Launches Micro Enterprise Loan Program
Pio Decimo Center, an agency of Catholic Community Services of Southern Arizona, launched a micro enterprise loan program in June 2012. This is a new venture for the Assets for Families Program that was supported in its planning phase by a grant from the Ridgeway Foundation. The grant helped leverage $150,000 from Pima County for small business loans. Through this grant, Pio Decimo Center will be able to assist familyowned and other small businesses to improve or enhance their businesses to increase their profitability. Loans may range from $1,500 to $25,000 with competitive, fixed interest rates. In addition to loan services, clients will develop a business plan and receive one-on-one mentoring provided by volunteer business professionals or others with successful small businesses and will include coaching with marketing, inventory control, record keeping, business management, and legal responsibilities. The program will help low- and moderate-income business owners increase their income to better support their families and create jobs in the small business sector.

solidated congregations, but the cherished church took on new life as a new family center run by Catholic Social Services of the Diocese of Scranton. The building, which had served as the only Tyrolean Roman Catholic parish in the nation, is next to Catholic Social Services’ offices inside Our Lady of Mount Carmel’s former school and rectory. “I think when I consider all changes that occurred with the churches being closed, this is one of the finest examples of how life continues,” Diocese of Scranton Bishop Joseph Bambera said at the center’s recent dedication. “The church continues – and continues to embrace its goal of service. It’s a great testimony to the heritage of this building.”

Catholic Charities Foundation of Northeast Kansas’ Committee of Young Patrons recently presented a photo exhibit to raise awareness about homelessness. “Street Views: Finding Hope in Homelessness” featured photos taken by the men at Shalom House, a men’s homeless shelter owned by Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas. The residents of Shalom House were given disposable cameras to take photos that captured “hope” in their lives. The men returned the cameras a few days later, with smiles on their faces and a sense of pride their work. The film was processed and the exhibit prepared by the Committee of Young Patrons, a group of twenty- to fortysomethings who support the mission of Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas and strive to impact the lives of those in need. “We wanted to provide the men at Shalom House an opportunity to demonstrate what “hope” means to them,” said Wendy Doyle, executive

Missouri Agency Dedicates New Adminstrative Building
Bishop John R. Gaydos and the Board of Directors of Catholic Charities of Central and Northern Missouri held a blessing and dedication ceremony for their new administrative offices. The agency is now housed in the west wing of the Carmelite Monastery. “We are extremely grateful for the Carmelite sisters’ willingness to partner with us and lease a portion of the monastery for our administrative offices,” said Michael Van Gundy, executive director. Headquartered in Jefferson City, MO, Catholic Charities of Central and Northern Missouri serves as the professional social service arm of the Diocese of Jefferson City. n

Scranton Agency Opens Family Center in Closed Parish Church
Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Hazleton, PA, was closed in 2009 when the Diocese of Scranton con-

FALL 2012 | 43

Providing Help.

Creating Hope.
“To be Christian is to forgive,” says Julie. And even though she still has more surgeries to go, she is looking at bright future. She is deeply grateful to the attorneys and caseworkers of Catholic Charities of GalvestonHouston for helping her become a citizen. “People at Catholic Charities took the time to help me and explain the process to me,” she said. “I was like a dead body walking, but now I have so many dreams again.” n

W

hen Julie Aftab was sworn in as a U.S. citizen on July 31, 2012, her joy outweighed years of tremendous pain.

Years ago, when she was 16 and living in poverty in her homeland of Pakistan, two men attacked her where she worked as a public telephone operator. They threw acid on her face and poured it down her throat—all because she acknowledged that she was Christian when one of the men asked about the silver cross necklace she wore. The acid burned much of her face, arms, and neck, and destroyed most of her esophagus, one eye, and both eyelids. The cross, a precious gift from her grandfather, melted into her flesh. Julie was ostracized for her wounds and her religion, and her family’s home was burned down. Mercifully, asylum arrangements were made for Julie to come to the United States for medical treatment. In Texas, while she underwent surgery after surgery, Catholic Charities of Galveston Houston worked with a local law firm to gain asylum for Julie, which was granted in 2007. When enough time had passed, Catholic Charities’ immigration lawyers and caseworkers began helping Julie work toward becoming a U.S. citizen. Now 26 years old, Julie is working and earning a degree in accounting from a local university. She has forgiven the men who attacked her and says that her horrible hardship has strengthened her spiritually.

44

| CHARITIES USA

Calendar
2013 Trainings & Events Date
January 12 January 18-29 February 10-13 March 15-16 March 17-20 April 17 April 18-19

Meeting
Keep the Dream Alive Mass and Awards The O’Grady Institute Catholic Social Ministry Gathering Parish Social Ministry Regional Training From Mission to Service-Part I Capitol Hill Day Diocesan Directors Spring Gathering

Location
Washington, DC Jerusalem Campus Washington, DC Tucson, AZ South Bend, IN Washington, DC Alexandria, VA

Contact
Tina Baldera (703) 236-6233 Kathy Brown (703) 236-6245 Rachel Lustig (703) 236-6234 Tina Baldera (703) 236-6233 Troy Zeigler (703) 236-6239 Lucreda Cobbs (703) 236-6243 Kristan Schlichte (703) 236-6240

High Quality, Not High Cost!
Did you know that Charities USA is...
THE MAGAZINE OF CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA

• Designed in-house by CCUSA’s Creative Services Team? • Printed on an economical paper stock? • Sized and organized to get maximum use of the press sheet paper we purchase? • Printed by a press that is wind powered, uses recycled paper, and soy based inks?

Don’t be fooled by the quality look of Charities USA. We are committed to using our funds in the most cost-efficient way possible so that we can forward our work to reduce poverty in America.

SW130511 CatholicCharitiesBack ad_SW_942.04 BW_SocialJust Flyer 3/29/11 9:50 AM Page 1

Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA (617) 552-4020 www.bc.edu/socialwork DePaul University
Chicago, IL (773) 325-4141 http://las.depaul.edu/msw

Dominican University River Forest, IL (708) 366-3463 www.socialwork.dom.edu

Put your ideals into practice.
Pass along the social teachings of the church with a professional degree from a Catholic School of Social Work.

Fordham University New York, NY (212) 636-6600 www.fordham.edu/gss Loyola University of Chicago Chicago, IL (312) 915-7005 www.luc.edu/socialwork Marywood University Scranton, PA (570) 348-6282 www.marywood.edu/ssw Newman University Wichita, KS (316) 942-4291 ext. 2216 www.newmanu.edu/msw.aspx Our Lady of the Lake University San Antonio, TX (210) 431-3969 www.ollusa.edu/wordenschool St. Ambrose University Davenport, IA (563) 333-3910 www.sau.edu/msw St. Catherine University/ University of St. Thomas St. Paul, MN (651) 962-5810 www.stthomas.edu/socialwork Saint Louis University St. Louis, MO (314) 977-2752 http://socialwork.slu.edu Spalding University Louisville, KY (502) 588-7183 www.spalding.edu
2050 Ballenger Avenue Suite 400 Alexandria, VA 22314
SW1305_11

The Catholic University of America Washington, DC (202) 319-5496 http://ncsss.cua.edu University of St. Francis Joliet, IL (815) 740-5072 www.stfrancis.edu/academics/social-work

NON-PROFIT ORG. U.S. POSTAGE PAID Washington, DC Permit #3070

Barry University Miami, FL (305) 899-3900 www.barry.edu/socialwork

Sponsor Documents

Or use your account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Forgot your password?

Or register your new account on DocShare.tips

Hide

Lost your password? Please enter your email address. You will receive a link to create a new password.

Back to log-in

Close