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Transcript of Charities USA Magazine Summer 2013
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7/29/2019 Charities USA Magazine Summer 2013
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THE MAGAZINE OF CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA SUMMER 2013 VOLUME 40 NUMBER 3
REACHINGTHE HUNGRYTHROUGH
WALMARTGRANTA TRIBUTE TO
BISHOPSULLIVAN
CATHOLICCHARITIESHEADS TO
SANFRANCISCO
SUPPORTING
PEOPLEWITH
DISABILITIES
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FeaturearticlesontheworkofCatholicCharities
Povertyreductionsuccessstories
UpdatesonCCUSAslegislativeandpolicywork
NewsfromCCUSAandmemberagencies
Andsomuchmore!
Charities USA is the quarterly magazine
o Catholic Charities USA. In each issue,
youll nd:
Youre missing out...i youre missing
THE MAGAZINE OF CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA
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Charities USA (ISSN 0364-0760) is
published by Catholic Charities USA.
Address all correspondence to the Managing
Editor. 2013 Catholic Charities USA,
Alexandria, Virginia.
Editorial and Business Ofce
2050 Ballenger Avenue, Suite 400
Alexandria, VA 22314
tel:703-549-1390 ax:703-549-4183
www.CatholicCharitiesUSA.org
Publisher
Rev. Larry Snyder
Managing Editor
Ruth Liljenquist
Sr. Creative Director
Sheena Leaye Crews
Contributing Writers
Patricia Cole
Patrick Brown
Ruth Liljenquist
Editorial Committee
Jean Beil
Candy Hill
Kristan Schlichte
Jane Stenson
Catholic Charities USA is the national oce or one
o the nations largest social service networks. Member
agencies and institutions nationwide provide vital so-
cial services to over 10 million people in need, regard-
less o their religious, social, or economic backgrounds.
Catholic Charities USA supports and enhances the
work o its members by providing networking opportuni-
ties, national advocacy, program development, training
and consulting, and nancial benets.
Donate Now: 1-800-919-9338
Last Issue: SPRING 2013
When I read the U.S. Bishops 1978 Pastoral Statement on People with
Disabilities, one part particularly moved methe passage that reminds
us o Jesus particular concern or people with illnesses and disabilities.
Trough them He maniested, in very real and concrete ways, His
divinity and His power to save, both in body and spirit. He gave sight
to the man who was blind rom birth sitting outside the temple inJerusalem. He quickened the limbs o a paralyzed man lowered on a
mat rom a synagogue roo. He opened the ears and mouth o a dea
mute man. And responding to a desperate athers plea, he drove out the
torments aicting a young boys mind.
What touches me most about these passages is Jesus compassion. He
saw peoples suering and could not stay his hand. And even though
He sometimes chided their lack o aith, He still healed them, renewing
their bodies and their spirits. Were He here with us, I believe He would
be moved with compassion to heal us, all o us, but certainly, those o us
living with disabilities.
Te people in Catholic Charities who dedicate themselves to serving
people with disabilities are also, I believe, moved with compassion to
heal. Our healing is limited, o course, but the gits we bring o hope,
kindness, patience, and service go a long way toward healing the spirit,
even though the physical challenges remain.
Our network provides a number o services to people with disabilities and
their amilies, which this issue oCharities USA presents. Tese services
range rom residential care to recreation camps, rom job development
to Braille instruction, rom guardianship services to lie skills education.
Tese services empower and enrich the lives o people with disabilities,
giving them hope and strength to carry on and the courage to reach their
ull potential.
Until the day when disability no longer exists, this is the healing we can
bring to pass, and in doing so, walk in the ootsteps o Jesus. n
RuthLiljenquist,ManagingEditor
To comment on this issue, please write to Ruth Liljenquist
Supporting People with Disabilities
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10
20
44
6 Contents7 Supporting People with Disabilities
8 Living with Disability
Te Ongoing Struggle or Full Inclusion in Our Society
11 Working ogether oward Independence
Te Kennedy Institute, Catholic Charities, Archdiocese o Washington
13 Not Just a Residence, But a Home
La Paz and CAHI Housing, Catholic Charities, Diocese o St. Cloud
15 Always Looking or Ways to Serve
Community Outreach Program or the Dea, Catholic Community Services
o Southern Arizona
16 Ensuring a Secure Place in the Human Community
Te U.S. Catholic Bishops on the Responsibilities o the Church to People
with Disabilities
20 A rue Servant and a Shining Example
Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan, 1930-2013
22 Feeding Rural Communities From Coast to Coast
Walmart Foundation Grant Supports Approaches ailored to Local Needs
26 Tree Journeys, One Destination
New Leadership Structure Positions Catholic Charities USA or the Future
28 Empowering Mission through Storytelling
Sojourn Teatre to Bring New Approaches and New Voices to Annual Gathering
30 Working or Better Solutions in San Francisco
2013 Annual Gathering Host Helps People Trive in the City by the Bay
Features
5 Presidents Column
32 Disaster Response
36 CCUSA Update
38 NewsNotes
44 Working to Reduce Poverty in America
Departments
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4 | CHARITIES USA
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SUMMER 2013 | 5
Every year, Catholic Charities in Germany
Deutscher Caritasverbandconducts a publicawareness campaign dealing with a particular
social issue. A ew years ago, the campaign o-
cused on people with disabilities. One poster that I remem-
ber eatured a young woman conned to a wheelchair with
a caption that expressed her thoughts: I wish I had red hair.
Another young man, also sitting in a wheel chair, was think-
ing: I hate my big nose. I was struck by these captions.
What they expressed was unexpected, but the meaning was
clear. People with disabilities are not that dierent rom
people without disabilities.
ypically when we look at people with disabilities, we see
their decits rather than their assets, or we ocus on what
makes them dierent rom us rather than what makes them
the same. Te U.S. Catholic Bishops talked about this per-
ception o dierence in their 1978 Pastoral Statement on
People with Disabilities:
Prejudice starts with the simple perception o dierence,
whether that dierence is physical or psychological.
People with disabilities are visibly, sometimes bluntly
dierent rom the norm, and we react to this dierence.Even i we do not look down upon them, we tend all too
oten to think o them as somehow apartnot complete-
ly one o us.
Te Caritas Germany campaign understood this human im-
pulse and worked to diuse it, seeking a more inclusive soci-
ety by inviting people to see those with disabilities in a new
wayas people like the rest o us, living with a challenge but
not being dened by it. While we shouldnt deny or overlook
peoples disabilities, we can oer ull acceptance, recognizingthe challenges they ace, accommodating them, and welcom-
ing their gits and talents.
We as a network are working toward these ends. We provide
services that help people with disabilities reach their ull po-
tential and achieve a good quality o lie. We provide con-
sultation with parishes on how they can better accommo-
date and welcome people with disabilities. We also work to
arm peoples assets and abilities. At Catholic Charities in
the win Cities, where I used to work, our disabilities ser-
vices oce was called the Oce or Persons with disAbili-ties, emphasizing what people with disabilities have to oer.
Pope John Paul II said that there is no one so poor that they
do not have something to give, and there is no one so rich
that there is not something they need to receive. While he
may have been speaking o economic and spiritual realities, I
think it also applies to the talents and gits we have all been
given.
Our job is to build community, to create the inclusivity that
is an integral part o our Christian values. It takes people
changing the way they think, as the Caritas Germany cam-
paign pointed out, but the eort is worth it. With the en-
gagement and participation o our brothers and sisters with
disabilities, we as communities, as parishes, and as individu-
als are all the richer.
ColumnPresidents
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6 | CHARITIES USA
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The care that Catholic Charities agencies provide today or Americans with disabili-
ties has its roots in the long-standing tradition o compassion exercised by aithul
Catholics, particularly religious orders, who throughout much o the nineteenth cen-
tury provided sanctuary to people with cognitive disabilities and taught religious edu-
cation to the dea and blind. In the late nineteenth century, these eorts developed, in tandem
with public eorts, into large residential institutions or the dea, blind, and cognitively disabled.Later, ater the push or deinstitutionalization in the 1960s, Catholic Charities agencies respond-
ed to the need or supportive housing, establishing small group homes and community living
support programs.
Since that time, particularly in the last 20 years, the Catholic Charities networks care or people
with disabilities has broadened into a wide spectrum o services: job development, case man-
agement, counseling, guardianship, recreation, special education, and others. This expansion o
services, while still ounded in compassion and charity, has been inormed by a greater appre-
ciation or the gits that people with disabilities oer, the potential they have or a sel-directed
lie, and their desire to experience ull inclusion in the lie o our society. n
SUMMER 2013 | 7
SUPPORTINGPEOPLE
WITHDISABILITIESWhat individuals with disabilities need, frst o all, is acceptance in this dierence that can
neither be denied nor overlooked. No acts o charity or justice can be o lasting value unless
our actions are inormed by a sincere and understanding love that penetrates the wall ostrangeness and afrms the common humanity underlying all distinction.
The Pastoral Statement o the U.S. Catholic Bishops on People with Disabilities, 1978
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THE ONGOING STRUGGLE FOR FULL INCLUSION IN OUR SOCIETY
Adisability is dened by law as a mental or physical impair-
ment that substantially limits one or more major lie ac-
tivities. Disabilities include, or example, having diculty
seeing, hearing, communicating, walking, bathing, dress-
ing, eating, taking care o onesel, doing activities outside the home,
maintaining emotional health, and other activities. These dicul-ties arise rom a host o physical and mental conditions that may be
present at birth, arise rom illness or disease or genetic predisposi-
tion, or come about as a result o injury or aging. Whatever the cause
or whenever the onset, disabilities signicantly aect peoples lives,
making it dicult or them to unction and achieve a high quality o
lie without support.
Historically, people with disabilities have been mistreateddenied
basic human and civil rights, abused and neglected, and oten insti-
tutionalized or segregated rom society in various ways. This mistreat-
ment stemmed largely rom ear, ignorance, and a lack o compas-
sion, but as societies have come to learn more about disability and
respect the human rights o all people, people with disabilities have
been aorded greater opportunities or personal development and in-
clusion in the lie o the community.
Twenty-three years ago, the Americans with Disabilities Act was signed
into law, marking a huge turning point or people with disabilities in
the United States. This landmark civil rights legislation ensured that
people with disabilities had equal opportunity and access to educa-
tion, employment, housing, public services, transportation, technology,
and the community. Since that time, great strides have been made to
expand the rights and opportunities or people with disabilities, but
people with disabilities still ace signicant barriers that prevent ull
inclusion in our society. These issues include:
8 | CHARITIES USA
LIVINGWITH
DISABILITY
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Housing: People with disabilities ace a severe housing crisis.
Finding aordable and accessible housing is extremely dicult.
Accessible housing oers eatures that accommodate the needs o
people with disabilities, such as lowered kitchen counters, wheel-in
showers, widened doorways, and entrances with no steps. However,there is a shortage o accessible housing and the cost to rent such
units is oten high. Further, people with disabilities oten ace dis-
crimination when seeking housing.
Employment: Most people with disabilities are unemployed or un-
deremployed, even though they want to participate in the work
world. This occurs primarily because o a lack o training and sup-
port. Young people with disabilities oten need a good deal o sup-
port to make the transition rom school to employment. State
vocational rehabilitation programs are helpul, but are typically un-
derunded. Poor wages and nancial disincentives also contrib-
ute to the low employment rate. According to U.S. Bureau o Laborstatistics, roughly 18 percent o people with disabilities were em-
ployed in 2012, in contrast to roughly 64 percent o people without
disabilities.
Education:Even though children with disabilities have been as-
sured a ree and appropriate public education, many o them strug-
gle to get the quality education that will help them achieve success
in their uture lives. Special education programs are underund-
ed, and too oten, children with disabilities are not taught by quali-
ed special education teachers. Children with disabilities are also
oten segregated into sel-contained classes, with ew opportunities
to participate socially or academically with their peers who do nothave a disability. This oten leaves them alienated and unprepared
or adult lie.
Health Care:Whether due to unemployment, low wages, or pre-ex-
isting conditions, most people with disabilities do not have access
to private health insurance and thereore rely heavily on Medicaid
or both short- and long-term health care services and support.
While the Aordable Care Act will provide a signicant benet
by prohibiting discrimination based on pre-existing health status,
Medicaid still has large biases toward institutionalized care as op-
posed to home-based or community-centered care. Additionally,
unding or disability care is highly susceptible to budget cuts.
Recent state cuts to Medicaid budgets have reduced the amount
o unding available or health care or people with disabilities,
making it that much harder or them to acheive their ull potential.
Family Support:More than 65 million Americans care or a loved
one who has a disability or who is chronically ill or elderly. These
caregivers contribute a vast amount o time caring or their loved
one, oten oregoing jobs, career advancement, and other opportuni-
ties to do so. It is vitally important to meet caregivers needscoun-
seling, respite, cash assistance, training, inormation, reerralsso
they can continue to provide care and keep people with disabili-
ties in their homes and communities and out o costly institutional-
ized care. Some states oer limited support to amily caregivers and
there are some national programs that provide assistance, but gen-
erally amily support is underunded.
Poverty: All o the above actors contribute to a high poverty rate
among people with disabilities, signicantly higher than the rate o
poverty among people without disabilities. Disability contributes to
poverty because o high unemployment, decreased educational op-
portunities, and discrimination. At the same time, poverty contrib-
utes to disability through lack o adequate health care, dangerous
living conditions, and poor nutrition. Keeping saety net programs
intact or people with disabilities is vital, as is addressing the
above issues to prevent and mediate poverty.
Right to Lie:At a very undamental level, people with disabilitescan also ace challenges to their very right to liethe right to be
born and the right to die a natural death. The unique challenges
posed to people with disabilities by an adverse prenatal diagnosis,
denial o medical care, or assisted suicide are evident.
While these barrires are serious, people with disabilities who have ad-
equate supports are achieving greater personal success and enjoying
greater inclusion in our society. They represent what is possible and
give hope to others with disabilities and to those who love, serve, and
advocate or them. n
SUMMER 2013 | 9
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Housing
Catholic Charities o Brooklyn and Queens operates 21 residences
or adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, oering
24-hour supervision, daily skills training, recreation, and a variety o
psychological, social, and clinical services, such as medical care and
speech training. The services and support provided at these residenc-
es give individuals with disabilities the opportunity to live indepen-
dently and experience real autonomy.
Guardianship
Catholic Charities o North Dakota provides guardianship and other
protective services or people with developmental disabilities through-
out the state. Guardians act in the best interest o vulnerable adults
who are unable to make their own decisions, while ostering the high-
est degree o independence possible.
Services or Autistic Children
Catholic Charities, Diocese o Madison, WI, employs autism special-
ists to provide amilies with inormation and resources related to
Autism Spectrum Disorders. These specialists urther provide consul-
tations and trainings and host an autism conerence each year. The
agency also provides residential care or children with severe autismthrough its Youth Living Alternatives program.
Youth Activities
Catholic Community Services o Lane County in Springeld, OR, par-
ticipates in a Transition Garden program or local youth with disabili-
ties. CCS provides space or the garden plots and Transition Garden
participants maintain and harvest the produce. The ood is shared
with homeless and low-income Lane County residents through the
agencys ood pantries.
HOW WESERVEPEOPLE WITHDISABILITIES
10 | CHARITIES USA
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SUMMER 2013 | 11
For more than 50
years, the Kennedy
Institute o Catholic
Charities, Archdiocese
o Washington has been serv-ing children and adults with a
wide range o intellectual or
developmental disabilities, as
well as the amilies that love
and care or them. With ser-
vices that bridge the lie span,
the Kennedy Institute has been
an invaluable support to the
people it serves.
Just ask Deatress McMillen. Her
daughter, Kimberly, was bornalmost 20 years ago with an in-
tellectual disability. She was
reerred early on to Catholic
Charities Kennedy Institute,
where she has been enrolled
since she was a toddler. Kim
grew up in the halls o the
Kennedy School, where special-
ized learning programs helped
her gain condence in speaking
and all in love with technology.
Deatress watched with awe as
her daughter grew into her own
young adult, eventually securing
a job at the U.S. Department othe Interior.
Kim is now ready to tackle
travel training, almost a rite o
passage into the working world
or young people who have a
developmental or intellectu-
al disability. It involves learning
how to navigate public transit
systems, including buses and
trains. For a young person with
a disability, the transit systemcan be a very overwhelming,
distracting, and vulnerable en-
vironment. Yet it also represents
the last barrier to the indepen-
dence a job provides.
Deatress has some trepidation
about it all. I know Kim is ear-
less and that scares me a little,
but I know the sta will teach
her. I trust the sta at Kennedy
completely. From day one, they
were so loving, so protective
and so caring, said Deatress.
She remembers when two-year-old Kim still wasnt speaking
at all. Kennedy sta saw that
Kimberly responded to music
and started teaching her to
speak through song.
Deatress also credits Kennedy
with helping her. For amilies
with a special needs child, time
is a rare commodity. Providing
a caring and supportive en-
vironment entails long hoursresearching school options,
teaching lessons at home, and
nding someone trustwor-
thy to take care o ones child.
Deatress says Kennedy gave her
the daily peace o mind that al-
lowed her to return to school
and eventually start her own
small business while raising her
daughter.
As Kimberly commutes to her
job at the Department o the
Interior, shell travel via public
transportation, taking a bus and
the train. At rst, shell ride witha sta member rom Kennedy,
who will point out ways to re-
member the stop and saety
habits. Then, shell start riding
alone or part o the trip, with
sta meeting her on the train
halway or meeting her at the
end. Finally, shell make the trip
alone.
Her mom will be a nervous
wreck, o course, but thats justpart o being a parent. Its a big
step or Kim, and or Mom as
well. It represents the culmina-
tion o years o hard work, late-
night phone calls with Kennedy
sta to address challenges, and
working together on Kims road
to independence.n
THE KENNEDY INSTITUTE, CATHOLIC CHARITIES, ARCHDIOCESE OF WASHINGTON
WORKINGTOGETHER TOWARDINDEPENDENCE
Kimberly
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Independent Living Skills
The Community Habilitation Program o Catholic Social Service in
Guam is an independent living skills training and day program or in-
dividuals, age 18 and over, with severe disabilities. Participants learn
to bathe and use the toilet, dress and groom themselves, use public
transit, prepare simple meals, perorm domestic chores, recognize
surroundings, manage basic nances, shop or personal needs, and
complete other tasks. The program also provides socialization op-
portunities, exercise and body awareness learning, and recreational
activities.
Case Management
Commonwealth Catholic Charities in Richmond, VA, is one o
the largest case management providers or individuals with
developmental disabilities and their amilies in central Virginia. The
program serves people with developmental delays by providing
oversight, coordination, and monitoring o the clients health care.
Recipients receive coordination o care services, which aims to
prevent placement in an intermediate care acility.
Services or the Blind and Visually Impaired
Catholic Charities Maine oers state-wide education services or
blind and visually impaired children rom birth through 21 years o
age. The program provides assessment, instruction, and consultation
to the children, their parents, and school personnel. Services include
low vision training, braille instruction, and assistance in use o adap-
tive equipment to help children reach their ullest potential as inde-
pendent, successul members o the community.
Work Training and Supported Employment
Catholic Charities Bureau, Inc. in Superior, WI, operates our commu-
nity rehab/work preparatory training centers that help individuals with
multiple disabilities prepare or and secure community employment.
The centers serve more than 400 individuals each year.
12 | CHARITIES USA
47 agencies oer programs specically or people with physicaldisabilities. In 2011, these agencies served 36,119 clients.
23 agencies engaged in legislative advocacy surrounding
disabilities issues.
19 agencies provide sheltered workshops or employment programs
or people with disabilities.
20 agencies provide supervised living or people with
developmental disabilities.
47agencies
23agencies
19agencies
20agencies
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SUMMER 2013 | 13
In 1984, the movement that
resulted in the Americans
with Disabilities Act was
gaining momentum. The
National Council on Disability
was assessing ederal laws and
programs that aected people
who were physically challenged.
In St. Cloud, MN, the local dis-
abilities council recognized a
need or specialized housing or
those with physical challenges.
I went to meet with one po-
tential resident at the time,
and hal o his living room
was taken up by a ramp sohe could use his patio, said
Harvey Schmitt, housing direc-
tor at Catholic Charities o the
Diocese o St. Cloud. When he
exited his building, they had a
ramp, but it was so steep, he
turned his wheelchair around
so he wouldnt all out rom the
momentum.
The St. Cloud area disabilities
council partnered with Catholic
Charities to build Catholic
Charities La Paz Community
housing. The apartment com-
plex houses 36 units o one-
and two-bedroom apartments,
designed or adults with physi-
cal disabilities and their amilies.
We had no ADA guidelines at
the time. We just listened to the
people who were potential resi-
dents, recalled Schmitt.
At the time, almost all poten-
tial residents were wheelchair
bound. About 25 percent othem had cerebral palsy or
some other issue they had had
since birth, and the rest had
been involved in automobile or
other accidents. All could care
or themselves in their new
surroundings.
Fast-orward 20 years, and
Catholic Charities o the
Diocese o St. Cloud was
again approached to meet
a community need or those
who are physically challenged.
Catholic Charities CAHI
(Community Alternative or
Handicapped Individuals) was
built in Paynesville, a rural town
o about 2,000 people. It was
a completely dierent building
experience because we had
ADA Guidelines, best practices,
and building codes we could
rely on, said Jim Rudolph,
ormer director o property
management at Catholic
Charities.
CAHI is dierent rom La Paz in
that it is an adult oster care a-
cilitysta is on hand 24 hours
a day to meet residents physi-
cal and medical needs. This
is because residents physical
needs are coupled with a de-
velopmental illness, a traumatic
brain injury, or some other situ-
ation that aects cognition.
Both acilities have residents
who have lived in them rom
the time they opened to nearly
present day. We really eel that
means that were meeting their
needs, and not just providing
a place to reside, but truly a
home, said Rudolph.
One o our residents raised her
son at La Paz, says Schmitt. To
that young man, this place truly
is his home.n
The St. Cloud area
disabilities council
partnered with CatholicCharities to build
Catholic Charities La Paz
Community housing. The
apartment complex was
designed or adults with
physical disabilities and
their amilies.
LA PAZ AND CAHI HOUSING, CATHOLIC CHARITIES, DIOCESE OF ST. CLOUD
NOT JUSTA RESIDENCE,BUT A HOME
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VOLUNTEERS STRETCH THE REACH
OF CATHOLIC CHARITIESVolunteers are an invaluable help to Catholic Charities agencies in providing lie enriching services and activities topeople with disabilities.
Volunteer Chore Services
Catholic Community Services o Western Washingtons Volunteer Chore Services program serves thousands o seniors
and adults with disabilities statewide, helping them remain independent in their own homes through a network o caring
community members. The services are provided at no charge and serve as a saety net or those individuals who cannot
aord to pay or assistance and do not qualiy or other assistance. Volunteers assist with housework, laundry, shopping,
transportation, minor home repairs, respite care, cooking, and other tasks.
Recreation Camps
Catholic Charities o Orange County, CA, oers its ReCreation Camps, summer and weekend residential camp pro-
grams or adults and children with developmental disabilities, oering participants opportunities or un, social interac-
tion, and spiritual growth while providing valuable respite or parents and caregivers. The camp is staed entirely by vol-
unteers, rom high school students to grandparents, who generously share their time, energy, and talents. The volunteers
make possible a 1-to-1 counselor-to-camper ratio, ensuring that each camper eels included and supported.
Patricia Callahan and Students at St. John the Baptist HighSchool, West Islip, NY
As campus minister at St. John the Baptist Diocesan High School in
West Islip, NY, Patricia Callahan encourages her students to devel-
op their gits while giving back to help others. Annually since January
2010, Tricia has brought students rom St. John the Baptist to col-
laborate with residents in Catholic Charities o Rockville Centres
Residential Services Program or Developmentally Disabled Adults to
stage an annual variety show. The production, which eatures spirited
singing and dancing between students and residents, is the culmi-
nation o nearly 1,700 total volunteer hours o practice and peror-
mance by Tricia and the students. About 85 students take part everyyear, building relationships with the developmentally-disabled adults
and creating or each a moment to shine. For the high school stu-
dents as well as the program residents, the variety show is truly a
highlight o the year.n
A MOMENT TO SHINE
14 | CHARITIES USA
Photo: Greg Shemitz, 3Vphoto.com
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Forty years ago, a
small group o dea
and hearing students
and aculty at the
University o Arizona ounded avolunteer-run program to pro-
vide services or dea people in
the community. Four decades
later, that programCommunity
Outreach Program or the
Dea (COPD)is a proession-
al agency going strong, provid-
ing a multitude o vital services
or dea, dea-blind, and hard
o hearing people throughout
Southern Arizona.
With just a desk and a phone
at Catholic Community Services
o Southern Arizona, COPD rst
ocused on providing interpre-
tation and employment servic-
es, counseling, and technical
assistance with communica-
tion devices. Over the years, it
has broadened its reach with a
number o other valuable servic-
escase management, summer
programs or dea youth, lie
skills education, computer and
nancial literacy classes, and
various other services. The pro-gram has also reached out to
underserved people, seniors
experiencing hearing loss, the
dea-blind, and, most recently,
dea reugees.
The program is always evolving,
said Anne Levy, executive di-
rector o COPD. We are always
looking or ways to ll in service
gaps, always looking at unding
opportunities that will allow usto serve people.
Just recently, or example, COPD
entered into a partnership with
the Federal Communications
Commission to distribute cut-
ting edge communication devic-
es to help income-eligible dea-
blind people communicate and
thrive in the world. COPD dis-
tributes the devices and trains
dea-blind people in using them.
One device is a braille display,
which can be linked wireless-
ly with computers, smartphones,and tablets. Through this device,
text is transmitted into braille
signals that dea-blind people
can read through specialized
touch pads. Then users can
type out a response using a
braille keyboard. This device
allows dea-blind users to easily
read and respond to emails and
text messages, which makes a
huge dierence in their lives.
COPD has also been working re-
cently with dea reugees. These
people are some o the most
challenging people to work with
because they have very limited
communication skills and have
grown up without access to
dea services. Further, they have
oten been regarded as children
in their native cultures and have
great diculty adjusting to the
responsibilities they are expect-
ed to ulll as adults here in
the United States. Slowly, COPD
is making progress with thisgroupteaching them American
Sign Language and building a
supportive community or them.
Through COPD, dea, dea-blind,
and hard o hearing people
throughout Southern Arizona
are nding opportunities that
help them and their amilies
thrive. They are communicat-
ing, learning lie skills, nding
jobs, understanding their amilyand work responsibilities, ad-
vocating or themselves, and
contributing in their communi-
tiesgreat accomplishments or
them and the little group o vol-
unteers who started COPD 40
years ago. n
COMMUNITY OUTREACH PROGRAM FOR THE DEAF, CATHOLIC COMMUNITY SERVICES OF SOUTHERN ARIZONA
ALWAYSLOOKING FOR WAYS
TO SERVE
SUMMER 2013 | 15
Photo: Jay Rochlin
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16 | CHARITIES USA
Thirty-fve years ago, in 1978, the U.S. Conerence o Catholic Bishops released a pastoral statement regarding people with disabilities.
The statement called on the people o the church to examine their attitudes toward people with disabilities, act with justice and compassion
toward them, and, recognizing their gits, work to integrate them into the lie o the community and o the church. The ollowing excerpts,
still relevant today, eloquently explore the churchs response to people with disabilities and their relationship to the church.
Concern or people with disabilities was one o
the prominent notes o Jesus earthly minis-
try. When asked by Johns disciples, Are you
He who is to come or do we look or another?
Jesus responded with words recalling the prophecies o Isaiah
Go back and report to John what you hear and see; the blind
recover their sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the
dea hear, dead men are raised to lie, and the poor have
the Gospel preached to them.(Mt. 11:3-5) Persons withdisabilities became witnesses or Christ, His healing o their
bodies a sign o the spiritual healing He brought to all people.
Which is less trouble to say, Your sins are orgiven or Stand
up and walk? o help you realize that the Son has author-
ity on earth to orgive sinsHe then said to the paralyzed
manStand up! Roll up your mat and go home.(Mt. 9:5)
Te Church that Jesus ounded would surely have been der-
elict had it ailed to respond to His example in its attention
to people with disabilities. It remains aithul to its mission
when its members become more and more a people o the
Beautitudes, a people blessed in their meekness, their suer-
ing, their thirst or righteousness. We all struggle with lie.
We must carry on this struggle in a spirit o mutual love, in-
spired by Christs teaching that in serving others we serve the
Lord Himsel. (c. Mt. 25:40) In doing so, we build a com-
munity o interdependent people and discover the Kingdom
o God in our midst.
Te Church, through the response o its members to the
needs o their neighbors and through its parishes, healthcare
institutions and social service agencies, has always attempted
to show a pastoral concern or individuals with disabilities.
However, in a spirit o humble candor, we must acknowl-
edge that at times were have responded to the needs o some
o our people with disabilities only ater circumstances or
public opinion have compelled us to do so. By every means
The U.S. Catholic Bishops on the Responsibilities o the Church to People with Disabilities
The Churchs Response to the Person with a Disability
ENSURING A SECUREPLACE IN THE HUMANCOMMUNITY
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SUMMER 2013 | 17
possible, thereore, the Church must continue to expand its
healing ministry to these persons, helping them when neces-
sary, working with them and raising its voice with them and
with all members o society who are their advocates. Jesus re-vealed by His actions that service to and with people in need
is a privilege and an opportunity as well as a duty. When we
extend our healing hands to others, we are healed ourselves.
On the most basic level, the Church responds to persons
with disabilities by deending their rights. Pope John XXIIIs
encyclical Pacem in erris stresses the innate dignity o all
men and women. In an ordered and productive communi-
ty, it is a undamental principle that every human being is a
person. . . . [One] has rights and duties . . . fowing directly
and spontaneously rom [ones] very nature. Tese rights are
thereore universal, inviolable and inalienable.
Te word inalienable reminds us that the principles on which
our democracy is ounded also guarantee certain rights to
all Americans, regardless o their circumstances. Te rst o
these, o course, is the right to lie.Deense o the right to
lie, then, implies the deense o other rights which enable
the individual with a disability to achieve the ullest measure
o personal development o which he or she is capable. Tese
include the right to equal opportunity in education, in em-
ployment, in housing, as well as the right to ree access to
public accommodations, acilities and services. Tose who
must be institutionalized deserve decent, personalized careand human support as well as the pastoral services o the
Christian community. Institutionalization will gradually
become less necessary or some as the Christian community
increases its awareness o disabled persons and builds a stron-
ger and more integrated support system or them.
It is not enough merely to arm the rights o people with
disabilities. We must actively work to make them real in the
abric o modern society. Recognizing that individuals with
disabilities have a claim to our respect because they are per-
sons, because they share in the one redemption o Christ,
and because they contribute to our society by their activity
within it, the Church must become an advocate or and with
them. It must work to increase the publics sensitivity toward
the needs o people with disabilities and support their right-
ul demand or justice. Moreover, individuals and organiza-
tions at every level within the Church should minister to
persons with disabilities by serving their personal and social
needs. Many can unction on their own as well as anyone
in society. For others, aid would be welcome. All o us can
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18 | CHARITIES USA
visit persons unable to leave their homes, oer transporta-
tion to those who cannot drive, read to those who cannot
read, speak out or those who have diculty pleading their
own case. In touching the lives o men, women and children
in this way, we come closest to imitating Jesus own example,
which should be always beore our eyes. (c. Lk. 4:1719, 21)
Persons with Disabilities and the Ecclesial
CommunityJust as the Church must do all in its power to help ensure
people with disabilities a secure place in the human commu-
nity, so it must reach out to welcome grateully those who
seek to participate in the ecclesial community. Te central
meaning o Jesus ministry is bound up with the act that He
sought the company o people who, or one reason or anoth-
er, were orced to live on the ringe o society. (c. Mk. 7:37)
Tese He made the special object o His attention, declaring
that the last would be rst and that the humble would be ex-
alted in His Fathers kingdom. (c. Mt. 20: 16, 23:12) Te
Church nds its true identity when it ully integrates itsel
with these marginal people, including those who suer rom
physical and psychological disabilities.
I people with disabilities are to become equal partners in
the Christian community, injustices must be eliminated and
ignorance and apathy replaced by increased sensitivity and
warm acceptance. Te leaders and the general membership
o the Church must educate themselves to appreciate ully
the contribution people with disabilities can make to the
Churchs spiritual lie. Tey bring with them a special insight
into the meaning o lie; or they live, more than the rest ous perhaps, in the shadow o the cross. And out o their ex-
perience they orge virtues like courage, patience, persever-
ance, compassion and sensitivity that should serve as an in-
spiration to all Christians.
In the case o many people with disabilities, integration into
the Christian community may require nothing more than is-
suing an invitation and pursuing it. For some others, how-
ever, ull participation can only come about i the Church
exerts itsel to devise innovative programs and techniques.
At the very least, we must undertake orms o evangelization
that speak to the particular needs o individuals with disabil-
ities, make those liturgical adaptations which promote their
active participation and provide helps and services that re-
fect our loving concern
Full participation in the Christian community has anoth-
er important aspect that must not be overlooked. When we
think o people with disabilities in relation to ministry, we
tend automatically to think o doing something or them.
We do not refect that they can do something or us and with
us. As noted above, people with disabilities can, by their ex-
ample, teach the non-disabled person much about strength
and Christian acceptance. Moreover, they have the same
duty as all members o the community to do the Lords workin the world, according to their God-given talents and ca-
pacity. n
We must undertake orms o evangelization that
speak to the particular needs o individuals with
disabilities, make those liturgical adaptations which
promote their active participation and provide helps
and services that refect our loving concern.
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Union with God and the Church
The National Catholic Partnership on
Disability provides support and resources
to diocesan disability ministries, which are
sometimes located within Catholic Charities
agencies. Catholic Charities Cleveland is
one such agency, having a centralized oce
that provides both disability services and
the dioceses disability ministry. The servic-
es run together seamlessly, led, uniquely,
by two brothers, Dennis McNulty and Fr. Joe
McNulty.
Everything we do is ministry, provided right
across the spectrum o needs, said Dennis,
who oversees the disability services side but
works closely with his brother on the ministry
side. Everything we do is geared to integra-
tion into the church and the community.
The Disability Ministry provides services to
help people with disabilities participate ully
in the lie o the church. These include con-
sulting with parishes to help them become
more welcoming and accommodating to
people with disabilities; providing ministeri-
al services that parishes do not have the re-
sources to provide, such as catechetical in-
struction or children and young adults with
severe intellectual and developmental dis-
abilities; and coordinating and perorming
signed liturgies or the dea and audio de-
scriptions o special church celebrations or
the blind. The program also provides edu-
cational and social events and a number o
camps and retreats, which give disabled in-
dividuals opportunities to develop their aith,
while providing respite to caregivers.
Helping people with disabilities participate
in the church is prooundly meaningul, not
just or disabled individuals but also or
their amilies, said Dennis. When we bring
in people with disabilities or union with the
church and union with God, it has a wonder-
ul impact on their growth and wellbeing.
And or their amilies, its healing. They gain
a sense o hope. n
SUMMER 2013 | 19
The National Catholic Partnership on
Disability (NCPD) was ounded in 1982
to implement the directions set orth in
the U.S. Bishops 1978 Pastoral Statement
on People with Disabilities. Since that time,
NCPD has worked to ensure meaningul
participation o people with disabilities in all
aspects o the lie o the Church and society.
NCPD implements the Pastoral Statement by:
advocating on issues aecting the lie
and dignity o people with disabilities,
providing ongoing support and
guidance to diocesan disability
directors and other leaders in
catechetical and pastoral ministries,
evaluating diocesan services and
training priests, seminarians,
deacons, and other parish and
diocesan personnel, and
developing a variety o resources
to help parishes and diocesesunderstand disabilities and the
issues surrounding them.
Our charge is basically pastoral, said Jan
Benton, executive director o NCPD. We
ensure that Catholics with any disability at
any age can be nourished in their aith, pre-
pared or the sacraments, and able to par-
ticipate in and contribute to the lie o their
parish.
Partnership 2013:
Where Faith &
Disability Meet
November 1-3, Houston, TX
For registration inormation, visit www.ncpd.org.
NCPD will be hosting its 2013 National
Disability Ministry Conerence
THE NATIONALCATHOLIC PARTNERSHIP
ON DISABILITY
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On June 7, Bishop Joseph
M. Sullivan, retired auxilia-ry bishop o the Diocese o
Brooklyn and decades-long
advocate and leader in the Catholic Charities
movement, passed away at the age o 83.
With sadness but also gratitude or a lie
ully lived in service to all o Gods children,
Catholic Charities USA pays tribute to this in-
spiring and endearing man.
Bishop Sullivan was a true servant o God
and a shining example o what it means to
ully live out the Gospel call to serve, said
Father Larry Snyder, president o Catholic
Charities USA. He was a respected leader
that all looked up to and were inspired by.
Born and raised in the Bay Ridge neighbor-
hood o the borough he would devote his lie
to serving, Joseph Sullivan turned down a
potential career as a proessional baseball
player and was ordained a priest on June 2,
1956. Ater 24 years as a diocesan priest, in-cluding serving as executive director o the
dioceses Catholic Charities agency, he was
named auxiliary bishop o Brooklyn by Pope
John Paul II in October 1980 and served in
that role until his retirement in 2005.
During his time as auxiliary bishop o
Brooklyn, Bishop Sullivan was a constant
representative o those served by Catholic
social services agencies, sharing their stories
in his responsibilities on numerous boards
and coalitions. In 1999, he led the approv-
al o a pastoral letter on charity by the U.S.
Conerence o Catholic Bishops titled In All
Things Charity: A Pastoral Challenge or the
New Millennium.
Bishop Sullivan played a ormative role in
developing the ongoing mission and vision
o the Catholic Charities network. In 1972,
he was a key member o the group that
produced the seminal report, Toward aRenewed Catholic Charities Movement, com-
monly known as the Cadre Study. He served
as chair o the Catholic Charities USA Board
o Trustees rom 1974-1975, and rom
1982 to 2000, served as Catholic Charities
USAs Episcopal Liaison. Following Bishop
Sullivans retirement, Catholic Charities USA
named an annual award ater him. This
award recognizes an individual who demon-
strates excellence and leadership in deliver-
ing social services to children and amilies.
Catholic Charities USA and the entire
Catholic Charities network will always be tre-
mendously grateul or the tireless example
and inspiring leadership o this true servant
o God.
20 | CHARITIES USA
A RUE SERVAN
& A SHINING EXAMPLE
Bishop Sullivan was a true servant o God and a shining example o what
it means to ully live out the Gospel call to serve. He was a respected leader
that all looked up to and were inspired by.
Rev. Larry Snyder
BISHOP JOSEPH M. SULLIVAN1930-2013
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SUMMER 2013 | 21
On June 12, a Mass o Christian Burial or
Bishop Sullivan was held at Saint EphremsParish in Brooklyn, the church he attend-
ed as a child and the church where he cel-
ebrated his frst Mass as a young priest in
1956 and his frst Mass as a bishop in 1980.
Bishop Sullivans close riend, Msgr. Joseph P.
Nagle, delivered the eulogy, excerpted below,
which captures the person he was.
[Bishop Sullivan] possessed a great human-
ity.He was sympathetic to the human con-
dition, and he understood and accepted the
human railties and weaknesses o people;their ailings and ailures, their human sinul-
ness and weakness. Because o those quali-
ties he was ound very approachable and
very realreal to people.
He made us very proud to be a Catholic.
Why? Because he gave credibility; he gave
tremendous credibility to the Catholic
Church in the public square, in the board
rooms o New York City, in the congressio-nal hearing rooms in Albany and Washington,
and in public speaking platorms across this
country. His voice was not a strident voice
but an intelligent, articulate, respectul and
compassionate voice always speaking on
the behal o the disenranchised, those on
the periphery o lie, the poor, the vulnera-
ble, the needy; always speaking or them, or
them.
On one occasion, in his lie, he received a
letter rom his riend, the ormer Governor oNew York Mario Cuomo, [who wrote:]
With all o your gits, and skills, and
energy, you oer dozens o standards
we would all do well to aspire to, but one
stands above the rest, because it is sweet
and particularly rare. There may never
have been a time when the world was
more in need o the Churchs model o re-
straint, respect, and responsibility, andyou have taught and lived those stan-
dards admirably; but through your public
work and in your private lie, you have
also expressed a deeper truth; that the
greatest beauty o our aith springs rom
its positive applications in compassion, in
charity, in giving ourselves up entirely to
a good greater than we can comprehend.
Certainly your career is a testament to
the eloquence o Christs model o love.
How ortunate, how blessed, how gited weall have been to have had Joe Sullivan a
part o our lives. And secondly, how ortunate,
and blessed, and gited he was to have had
the long, and satisying, and happy lie and
ministry that he did. n
POSSESSING A GREA HUMANIY
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22 | CHARITIES USA
FEEDINGRURAL
COMMUNITIESWALMART FOUNDATION GRANT SUPPORTS APPROACHES TAILORED TO LOCAL NEEDSFROM COAST TO COAST
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Aroostook County in
Maine stretches across the
northern hal o the state,
a 7,000-square-mile area
made up o small rural communities
that is the largest county by land area
east o the Mississippi River. Catholic
Charities Maine has served the people
in Aroostook County or years, and
like many agencies serving rural popu-
lations, ound it a challenge to ensure
that each o their 25 ood pantries
serving clients across such great dis-
tances had resh, nutritious ood.
When they received a git o donated
armland, Catholic Charities Maine
began to explore growing their own
ood to supplement their ood out-
reach eorts. Te large price tag o
arm equipment was initially daunt-
ing, but thanks to an opportunitythrough Catholic Charities USA, the
agency was able to secure unds rom
the Walmart Foundation aimed at ex-
panding access to healthy and aord-
able ood.
Dixie Shaw, program director or the
project, called Farm or ME, said
that the money received rom the
grant has gotten them o the ground.
Te Walmart unding has allowed us
to put this plan into actionits not
how we do make this happen any-
more, its how can we expand this
even wider? Te money has gone
toward the purchase o a tractor, rock
picker, and other heavy-duty arm
equipment.
Te Farm or ME program is just one
aspect o the nationwide partnership
between the Walmart Foundation and
Catholic Charities USA to support
rural ood programs and expand the
capacity o Catholic Charities agencies
to serve the needs o hungry people
across America. Serving as a national
intermediary, Catholic Charities USA
acilitated the distribution o $1.7
million in unding over 2 years to par-ticipating member agencies to ocus
on serving rural communities and
providing much-needed ood services
to amilies and individuals in need.
Te rst year o the program ocused
on building capacity among rural
service providers, says Jane Stenson,
SUMMER 2013 | 23
Catholic Charities Maine began to explore growing their own ood to
supplement their ood outreach eorts. The large price tag o arm equipment
was initially daunting, but thanks to an opportunity through Catholic Charities
USA, the agency was able to secure unds rom the Walmart Foundation aimed
at expanding access to healthy and aordable ood.
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senior director o poverty reduction strategies at Catholic
Charities USA. Te second year o the grant broadened theocus rom strictly rural agencies to cover a more diverse
set o target populations and included a heavier emphasis
on enrollment in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance
Program.
One program in the rst year that used the Walmart
unding to expand rural services was Catholic Charities
San Bernardino & Riverside Counties in southeastern
Caliornia. In trailer parks located outside o population
centers, immigrant amilies, and other low-income work-
ers live in dicult conditions, ar rom anywhere that sellsresh produce or other nutritious ood. Reaching out to
these populations was a challenge, says Ken Sawa, CEO
and executive vice president o Catholic Charities San
Bernardino & Riverside Counties.
We were aware o the needs o hundreds o poor ami-
lies living in very isolated trailer parks that dot the desert
valley that our existing programs were not addressing, says
Sawa. While previous eorts to secure unds to target this
underserved community were unsuccessul, the Walmart
Foundation grant enabled the agency to begin an unprece-dented eort to reach out to these rural areas. Te agencys
existing inrastructure was expanded to bring a greater dis-
tribution o resh groceries and aordable ood directly to
the people in need, rather than relying on central distribu-
tion sites.
Sawa says the response to these outreach eorts has been
overwhelming. Historically, those receiving groceries rom
our program have been a highly neglected population. Te
amilies have been amazed by our outreach because it is not
common, and it is ongoing. Sawa says his agency plans toeventually provide ood distribution services to 15 trail-
er park communities, benetting over 300 individuals.
Over the long-term, Catholic Charities San Bernardino &
Riverside Counties hopes to build a volunteer ood bank
that will have the potential to double their outreach eorts
to these underserved communities.
In addition to simply ensuring that individuals and am-
ilies are able to put healthier ood on the table, nutrition
24 | CHARITIES USA
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The ollowing agencies participated in the rst two years o the
Walmart Foundation grant program, each using the unds to ad-
dress the unique needs o their communities.
Catholic Charities, Arlington, VA
Catholic Charities, Charlotte, NC
Catholic Charities, Chicago, IL
Catholic Charities, Fresno, CA
Catholic Charities, Houston, TX
Catholic Charities, Madison, WI
Catholic Charities Maine
Catholic Charities o Central Colorado
Catholic Charities o Central Florida
Catholic Charities o Corpus Christi, Inc., TX
Catholic Charities o Gallup, NM
Catholic Charities, Omaha, NE
Catholic Charities, Raleigh, NC
Catholic Charities, Reno, NV
Catholic Charities, San Bernardino & Riverside Counties, CA
Catholic Charities, Springfeld, IL
Catholic Charities, Stockton, CA
Catholic Charities West Virginia
Catholic Social and Community Services, Biloxi, MS
Northern Valley Catholic Social Services, Tehama County, CAn
BUILDING CAPACITY,
RESPONDING TO NEED
SUMMER 2013 | 25
outreach eorts also lead to broader engagement with the
communities being served. Food is oten a gateway to
more conversations, says Stenson, adding that the outreach
around ood and nutrition oten leads to a better under-
standing and approaches to addressing the needs o a local
community. She pointed to Catholic Charities o Omaha,
which worked together with leadership on nearby Native
American reservations to expand the eorts o the agency
among those needing services. Sawa says that the ood out-reach eorts have broadened engagement with those served
in San Bernardino as well: Our work with these amilies
has created a trust that opens the door to other communi-
ty services and programs that could be very benecial to the
amilies and their children.
In Aroostook County, ME, Shawis leading the Farm or
ME program, which is using the arm equipment purchased
by the grant unds to grow organic vegetables. Tis year
were expanding to three acres o resh vegetables; one acre
o squash, one o beets, and one o rutabaga, Shaw says.We hope to work with a small processing plant so we can
have them in our reezers in the all as well.
With the equipment bought and paid or, the ongoing
growing and harvesting o crops can continue or years into
the uture with very little expense to the agency, Shaw said.
Teir current initiative, like San Bernardinos, is building a
volunteer base rom local colleges, raternities, and service
organizations to help recruit volunteers to help harvest the
crop every all.
For the Catholic Charities agency serving those in north-
ern Maine, just as agencies serving rural communities across
America, the Walmart grant has allowed them to ensure
that no matter where the people they serve live they have
access to high-quality, aordable, and delicious ood.
Tis has really set the stage or us to be able to bring in
so much resh and nutritious ood to the people we serve,
Shaw says. Its been a blessing. n
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26 | CHARITIES USA
ONE DESTINATIONNEW LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE POSITIONS CATHOLIC CHARITIES USA FOR THE FUTURE
One worked as a
successul lawyer
in private practice,
advising Fortune
500 companies, entrepreneurs,
non-prot and government
organizations in real estate
transaction, nancing deals,
and governance issues. One
spent over two decades working
in state government beore
translating that experience intoa career advocating or human
services reorm at the local
and national level. And one is a
ormer high school teacher who
ollowed Christs call to a lie o
service and ministry and just
celebrated his 25th anniversary
as a priest.
By combining their diverse
skills and experiences, Keith
Styles, Candy Hill, and Rev.
Larry Snyder are providing
leadership in a revamped and
renewed management structure
at Catholic Charities USA.
Through the creation o new
positions and the delegation o
key responsibilities, the three
top executives o the national
oce o the Catholic Charitiesmovement hope to bring best
leadership practices to an
organization with over 100
years o history as it pursues
its mission o service, advocacy,
and convening.
The three executives recently
sat down at Catholic Charities
USAs national headquarters to
refect on the rst two months
o the new leadership structure
and their calling to be leaders
o CCUSAs national eorts to
reduce poverty in America. Fr.
Larry Snyder, president, said
there were three reasons he
believed the creation o a chie
operating ocer (COO) and
an executive vice president
would help CCUSA be more
responsive to the needs o itsmember agencies.
First, the national oce has
become more complex as an
organization, Fr. Larry said.
There are several layers o
complexity now at the national
oce. In the past ew years,
Catholic Charities USA has
seen the creation o separate
corporations to run its health
benet trust and manage itsbuilding, and urther separate
corporate structures are in
development.
Additionally, Fr. Larry pointed
out, his role as the public
ace o Catholic Charities USA
has produced ever-increasing
demands on his time. The
role o the president has
changed; I spend more time
out o the oce than I do in
the oce, representing our
network to numerous other
national organizations, to church
organizations, and to the Vatican.
Simply put, he said, he ound
himsel with not enough time to
eciently manage a corporation.
In examining other peer
institutions, he saw the needor an experienced leader
dedicated to increasing
eciency in the organizations
daily work. We looked at the
best management structures,
the best management practices
in the nonprot world, and saw
that having a COO to direct the
management o the oce and
manage liability was the best
structure, Fr. Larry said.
The need or a COO becamevery apparent.
For his part, Styles said, the
opportunity to ollow a new
career path to help serve the
poorest and neediest among
us was a challenge he couldnt
pass up. His responsibilities
include the daily management
and administration o all
The executive leadership o CCUSA, pictured rom let to right, Rev. Larry
Snyder, Keith Styles and Candy Hill.
THREE JOURNEYS,
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SUMMER 2013 | 27
operational aspects o Catholic
Charities USA, overseeing the
nance, mission and ministr y,
programs and services, and
disaster response departments,
as well as inormation
technology, the CCUSA health
care trust, nancial relationships,
and business operations.
While Styles will ocus largely
on improving the operations o
Catholic Charities USA, Hills
portolio will expand to cover all
external-acing communications
and undraising eor ts. Theormer senior vice president o
social policy and government
aairs, Hills new titleexecutive
vice president o social policy
and external aairsrefects her
new roles and responsibilities.
Her experiences in her previous
role, she said, will help her
succeed in her new position.
In working with the adminis-
tration and Congress, advoca-
cy work is all about building
relationships and being a re-
source when called on, Hill said.
Likewise, development is also
about building relationships, at-
tracting people to support our
mission. While the stakeholders
are somewhat dierent, the skill
sets are the same.
With a combined 16 years
o experience in leadership
roles at Catholic Charities
USA, both Hill and Snyder
believe this new way orward
will help the organization to
accomplish even more. Styles
also has a history o working
to position Catholic Charities
USA or the uture, serving as
outside general counsel or
eight years beore joining the
organization. I believe our new
internal structure will allow us
to continue our work o ghting
poverty in better, more creative
ways, said Fr. Larry.
While the president, chie
operating ocer, and executivevice president all come rom
dierent backgrounds, they
have a single ocusto continue
CCUSAs pursuit o excellence
and to live out its mission
in ever-more eective and
productive ways. The three o
us have a strong oundation
o respect, trust, and doing
whats best or the organization,
Styles said. Make no mistake,
Fr. Larry is still the president o
CCUSAits up to Candy and I
to execute his vision and help
CCUSA become an ever-better
organization. n
HARVESTING THE SEEDSOF SERVICE & JUSTICE
Keith Styles, CCUSAs new chie operating
ofcer and general counsel, shared the
ollowing thoughts about his new role on Fr.
Snyders blog, Think and Act Anew.
My parents always stressed the importance
o serving those in need and giving back o
your time and talents. Throughout my career, I
sought out opportunities to lend my expertise
and knowledge to organizations that shared
that mission o service to those in need.
Over the years, my ongoing work with Catholic
Charities USA, as well as Central Union
Mission in Washington, D.C. and other non-
prots, was a constant reminder o what was
really important, and a way to reconnect to
my roots o aith-based service. The energy
and commitment I saw rom Catholic Charities
agencies to help individuals and amilies
achieve sel-suciency and make a better lie
or themselves was inectious.
One experience that will always stick with me
was travelling with CCUSAs leadership or
a meeting in early 2006 in New Orleans,
just ve months ater Hurricane Katrina had
devastated the region. The rows and rows o
destroyed houses, each marked with a spray-
painted tally o the number o survivors and
deceased, was an unbelievably powerul
experience that sticks with me to this day. I
remember the superhuman eorts o Catholic
Charities New Orleans, which served so
many despite a severe lack o resources.
Experiencing the devastation rst-hand lled
me with resolve that we as a nation simply
cant let something like that happen again.
I couldnt resist the call to become part o
this organization with such a long history o
helping people in need and such potential
or bringing about substantive change.Its as
i Im coming ull circle, back to the seeds o
service and justice planted in my childhood in
Connecticut. I couldnt be more excited. n
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28 | CHARITIES USA
Sojourn Theatre To Bring New Approaches and New Voices to Annual Gathering
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The stories, experiences, and successes o case
managers, program directors, executive leader-
ship, and even bishops were heard during last
years Catholic Charities USA Annual Gathering
but not in the way you might think. They were
presented in an unexpected and powerul new medium
a dramatic work acted out on stage by a group o talent-ed actors dedicated to highlighting the power o storytell-
ing to advance an organizations mission.
The group, Sojourn Theatre, is an innovative theatre en-
semble that sometimes collaborates with civic organi-
zations to tell their story through creative practice and
documentary theatre. Throughout the Annual Gathering,
Sojourn Theatre artists interviewed dozens o conerence
attendees, which culminated in a powerul closing per-
ormance drawn directly rom the words o those inter-
viewed during the conerence.
This perormance, titled Lean In, explored the work, mis-
sion, and values o the Catholic Charities movement
and its ongoing national campaign to reduce pover-
ty. Portions oLean In have been presented at regional
Partners in Excellence gatherings, bringing the insights
and stories shared at the Annual Gathering to hundreds
more who were unable to attend.
The partnership with CCUSA has given Sojourn Theatre
the opportunity to develop a very specic maniestation
o cross-sector collaboration, one that other organiza-tions can look to and consider or themselves.
Michael Rohd, ounder o Sojourn Theatre, says this
new collaboration and relationship with CCUSA is just
about perect. Its engagement as artists-in-residence or
CCUSA, allows Sojourn Theatre to use its artistic assets
to help Catholic Charities agencies build capacity and
strengthen their organizational culture o speaking out on
behal o those who do not have a voice.
Throughout their work with Catholic Charities agencies,
such as workshops and eatured presentations, Sojourn
Theatre has led members o CCUSAs network in discov-
ering the power o telling a compelling story based on
the experiences o those they serve.
Our capacity building workshops ocus on building col-
laboration through story, and by story, I mean the ram-
ing o narrative as a tool or communication internal-
ly and externally, said Rohd. We also practice a model
or bringing people into discourse. In the workshop, we
model a way to have a conversation about poverty.
Rohd has long been interested in bringing perormance
art out o the world o drama and into dialogue with civic
organizations and other mission-driven organizations.
Artists bring certain assets. Their job is to listen, to syn-
thesize, and then to express what theyve heard, saidRohd. Whats benecial about our partnership with
Catholic Charities USA is that we are getting to build a
model o work between ourselves and a national organi-
zation, showing how this kind o collaboration can serve
the needs o an organization.
This year Sojourn Theatre will develop another original
perormance to share the story o the Catholic Charities
movement. It will continue the dialogue that began with
their perormance last year and will include what they
gathered through their interviews o attendees rom the
regional gatherings.
We will come ull circle, said Rohd. We will tell the story
o what we learned and saw and bring in new and dier-
ent voices. n
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30 | CHARITIES USA
WORKINGFOR BETTERSOLUTIONSINSANFRANCISCO2013 Annual Gathering Host Helps People Thrive In The City By The Bay
By Traci Mysliwiec
In the Archdiocese o San
Francisco, Catholic Charities
CYOs (CCCYO) mission is to
serve and advocate or the
poor, the vulnerable, and the
marginalized by strengthening
amilies, building community,
and reducing poverty. For
member agencies o the
Catholic Charities network,
these are amiliar ambitions.
We all ace the same challenges
and experience the same joys
when a amily achieves stable
housing, a senior enjoys ahot meal, or a child begins
to fourish as his or her sel-
esteem improves.
CCCYO sustains 34 programs
that provide lielines or more
than 35,000 clients each year
across San Francisco, Marin,
and San Mateo counties, rom
providing support or at-risk
youth and amilies, caring or
people with HIV, welcoming
newcomers with respect, and
assisting seniors and their
caregivers with adult day care.
For those particularly struggling
with meeting their basic needs,
the agency works to improve
stability and sel-suciency.
We aim to address social issues
and eect better long-term
solutions, not simply help in
the moment. Building bridges
to opportunity or the people
we serve, we oer those who
need it a hand up, not just a
hand-out, as they strive or sel-
suciency, explains Je Bialik,
executive director o Catholic
Charities CYO. There is no
ceiling on opportunity here in
the United States, but there
has to be a foor below which
no one is allowed to all. We
provide that social saety net
here in the Bay Area.
To help alleviate homelessness
in San Francisco, Catholic
Charities CYO recently partnered
with private philanthropists
Marc and Lynne Benio and
the Salesorce.com Foundation
to create the Star Community
Home, an emergency shelter or
homeless single women with
children.
Catholic Charities CYO was able
to mobilize quickly, said Bialik.
In a miraculous three weeks
in December 2011, the Star
Community Home went rom
concept to move-in through
quick work and collaboration.
This partnership refects a new
model o tackling community
needs by combining private will
and nancial resources with
non-prot inrastructure and
capacity.
The shelter helps 15 amilies
at a time stabilize their living
situation by meeting their basic
needs and providing intensive
case management services,
parenting education, childrens
activity programs, and housing
placement assistance. Since
it opened, nearly 30 amilies
have ound a permanent home
and a brighter uture due to the
oundation they were able to
establish while living at the Star
Community Home.
Catholic Charities CYO
urther operates a number
o homelessness prevention
programsrental subsidies,
wrap-around case management,
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SUMMER 2013 | 31
and comprehensive supportive
serviceswhich are designed to
help clients break the cycle o
poverty and ultimately achieve
long-term housing stability and
independent living.
The agency also works or the
long-term benet o youth,
newcomers, and the sick and
elderly. Catholic Charities CYO
helps at-risk youth create a
healthy, sel-sucient uture
through residential treatment
acilities, oster amily
placement, and group homes.
St. Vincents School or Boys, or
example, provides residential
treatment and mental health
services or some o Northern
Caliornias most emotionally-
challenged youth. The children
receive intensive behavioral
therapy, comprehensive
mental health services, and
educational support that allows
them to return to their amilies
to heal together.
Children and youth throughout
the area also benet rom
CCCYOs enrichment activities
summer camps, sports, and
outdoor educationwhich
oster their physical, intellectual,
emotional, and spiritual growth
and help prevent at-risk
behaviors.
The agencys Reugee and
Immigrant Services assists
newcomers in becoming
ully-active participants in
the economic, social, and
civic lie o our communities.
During the past ew months
alone, the program has
assisted nearly 1,000 young
DREAMers with deerred action
applications and hosted a
number o outreach events to
educate the community about
comprehensive immigration
reorm.
Since 1985, Catholic Charities
CYOs Assisted Housing and
Health Programs have provided
HIV positive men and women
with long-term housing, health
education, and counseling
support, ensuring that the
program residents medical,
psychological, social and
vocational needs are met. More
than 900 clients are served
with housing and other support
services annually.
Catholic Charities CYOs Aging
Services programs maintain
and improve the physical
and mental well-being o
seniors and those who care or
them. We help prevent their
premature or unnecessary
institutionalization, while also
providing respite and supportive
services or their caregivers,
said Bialik. By nding ways
to break isolation barriers and
support the elderly in their
homes and community, we oer
a range o services so they are
able to age in place.
With this brie glimpse into
our world, we look orward to
welcoming the CCUSA network
to the City by the Bay this
September. We invite you to
visit our programs, watch our
innovation at work, and share
your ideas in strengthening
the work we all do to serve the
most vulnerable among us. n
Traci Mysliwiec is communications
ofcer or Catholic Charities CYO.
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32 | CHARITIES USA
A PERPETUALSTATE OF DISASTERWith so many disasters occurring across the nation, both natural and manmade, our network is in a per-
petual state o disaster response. Its been less than a year since Superstorm Sandy hit the North Atlantic
coast, and even as our agencies in that region continue helping storm victims recover, other agencies are
responding to still more disasters, many incredibly destructive and deadly. Catholic Charities USA has
provided support and emergency grants o $10,000 to impacted agencies, including the our mentioned
below, as they have responded to people in need.
Just hours ater the shooting at Sandy Hook
Elementary School on Friday, December 14,
2012, in Newtown, CT, sta at Catholic Charities
o Faireld County and the Diocese o Bridgeport
were deciding how to respond. Learning that 9
o the 20 victims were members o the towns St.
Rose o Lima Parish, they knew they could best
serve by supporting the parish and the Catholic
community in Newtown.
By evening, three counselors were at the parish,providing a supportive presence to the par-
ishs pastor, Msgr. Bob Weiss, and the throngs o
people seeking a place to sit and pray and cry.
They stayed through that weekend and the ollow-
ing week, oering comort and consolation, pro-
tecting people rom the media, assisting with the
numerous unerals, and counseling with parish
school sta about the well-being o the children.
Catholic Charities also began oering counsel-
ing to anyone aected by the tragedy at its local
oces.
A ew months ater the tragedy, when it became
clear that the mental health needs were great-
er than the parish could manage, Msgr. Weiss ar-
ranged with Catholic Charities to provide coun-
seling to the children in the parish school and in
the parishs Religious Education program, as well
as to teachers, parents, and parishioners. FromMarch until June, the counselors were a calm-
ing presence at the school and in the lives o
the children, helping them understand what hap-
pened, especially rom a aith perspective, and
encouraging their recovery. When school starts
again in the all, Catholic Charities is prepared to
support the children as long as necessary.
ResponseDisaster
SANDY HOOK SCHOOL SHOOTING, CONNECTICUT
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EF-5 TORNADO, OKLAHOMA
The EF-5 tornado that blasted through Moore, OK,
on May 20, let a swath o destruction 17 miles
long and 1 mile wide. It was the worst o a series
o tornadoes and severe storms that aected
more than 14,000 amilies in several areas on
the outskirts o Oklahoma City in late May.
Catholic Charities in Oklahoma City has been
active in the response since the beginning. With
the assistance o several disaster personnel rom
other Catholic Charities agencies and Catholic
Charities USA, the agency provided emergen-
cy disaster services at ve multi-agency disas-
ter assistance centers. Through the generos-
ity o donors, the agency was able to give out
$380,000 in git cards to over 3,000 amilies or
immediate needs, in addition to providing coun-
seling, reerrals, nancial assistance or hous-
ing and utility payments, and other services. The
agency has also been helping amilies assess the
condition o their homes and understand the ins
and out o disaster unding and insurance claims,
while coordinating volunteers and trade workers
to help clean up and make repairs to homes.
Catholic Charities is now transitioning to long-
term disaster case management and recovery,
providing case management at a multi-agency
center ormed through a collaboration o com-
munity nonprots and disaster responders. With
so many people aected, every agency is scaling
up, including Catholic Charities, which is hiring 12
new sta members or the duration o the disas-
ter recovery eort.n
BLACK FOREST WILDFIRE, COLORADO
Less than a year ater the Waldo Canyon re
blazed near Colorado Springs, CO, another wild-
re brought disaster back to the region. On June
11, the Black Forest re shot up quickly in the
orested hills northeast o the city, burning homes
in its rst hour on its way to becoming the states
most destructive re. Over 500 homes were de-
stroyed, ranging rom trailer homes to multi-mil-
lion dollar mansions.
Catholic Charities o Central Colorado took part
in the communitys eort to respond. They ed
county emergency responders at the agen-
cys dining center and helped set up and sta a
Disaster Assistance Center. While providing as-
sistance to re victims, sta members saw such
grie, conusion, and anger that they organized
an Out o the Ash gathering or re victims at
Our Lady o the Pines parish in Black Forest.
Counselors and Stephen ministers were there to
listen and accompany people through their grie.
More than 100 re victims attended, most o
whom were elderly and extremely overwhelmed.
The agency also partnered with a local ca in
Black Forest to provide a staging center or the
agencys outreach eorts. An outreach team
based there traveled around the area, visiting
peoplemany living in tents and campers on their
propertyto assess their needs and deliver sup-
plies. Catholic Charities is now working with its
community partners to develop a long-term case
management strategy.
FERTILIZER PLANT EXPLOSION, TEXAS
The ertilizer plant explosion that rocked West, TX,
on April 17, killed 15 people, injured 200, and
damaged or destroyed more than 800 structures,
including two schools, a nursing home, an apart-
ment complex, and hundreds o homes. Some
homes were totally de