Every Eucharistic celebration draws us into communion with Jesus Christ, our hope and our strength. His life, death and Resurrection demonstrate so clearly God’s care for all of us. While he was in our midst, Jesus showed God’s love so clearly by healing the sick, feeding the hungry and teaching us how to love one another as God loves us. As his disciples, we are called to do the same and the Catholic Charities Appeal is one of the best ways we can be most effective in doing this throughout our archdiocese. Through your contribution to the Catholic Charities Appeal last year, you cared for 133 diocesan retired and infirm priests, including Msgr. Jagodzinski. You also provided 7.5 million meals to feed the hungry and helped to fill 50 food cupboards throughout the archdiocese. Twenty-two mission parishes, including our sister parish, St. Martin de Porres, received funding that allowed them to serve our fellow Catholics in the poorest areas of our archdiocese. Over 140 students received tuition assistance to attend special education institutions through your generous support of the Catholic Charities Appeal.
The Catholic Charities Appeal is the largest fundraising initiative in the archdiocese and, as you can well imagine, this assistance is particularly important at this time as we all face the effects of ongoing inflation. The needy are particularly affected as they struggle to feed their families, care for their aging parents and grandparents and educate their children with special needs in a Catholic environment. Your contribution helps to fund over 100 Catholic Social Services and Nutritional Development organizations and programs. The Catholic Charities Appeal supports agencies in all five counties of the archdiocese. Last year, 650,000 men, women and children received assistance from these services.
Your annual commitment to this important work assures that the Catholic Charities Appeal can continue to provide much-needed assistance for men, women and children throughout the archdiocese. As followers of Jesus Christ, we are called to be our Lord’s heart and hands in loving care for those in the greatest need and, in their name, I thank you!
Like all households in our parish and, indeed, throughout the archdiocese, you have or will soon receive a packet with a letter from Archbishop Nelson Pérez inviting you to participate in the annual Catholic Charities Appeal with a sacrificial gift. The theme for this year’s appeal is “Giving Hope to All,” and the goal is $10 million. Aware of God’s love for you, we are asking you to embrace those with special needs. You are crucial to the success of this campaign. Prayers and contributions of any size will further the Appeal’s goal to instill full faith, firm hope and fervent charity within our community. Our parish goal this year is $90,000.00. As you have done over the past dozen years, last year, you and your fellow parishioners exceeded our parish goal, contributing $135,000, so I am confident that we will once again reach and, indeed, exceed our goal.
Your Catholic Charities Appeal mailing includes a return envelope. Please use it to send your most generous donation or, to make your donation online, go to catholiccharitiesappeal.org. And, be assured that your generosity will be used wisely; 95 cents of every dollar you give goes directly to care for those in need!