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For the nationwide network of Catholic Charities agencies, “We Are There” is more than words. It’s a promise that the staff and volunteers at all 168 agencies do their best to live up to every day. Whether walking with clients through mental health crises, the difficulties of unemployment/underemployment or the joys (and challenges) of pregnancy and parenting, Catholic Charities agencies are there to serve communities like yours. Catholic Charities is making a difference, offering compassion and support to neighbors in need, because We Are There (WeAreThere.US) isn’t just words, it’s a promise.
Integrating Health and Wellness, Mentally and Physically
A client who is homeless, sick and vulnerable needs health care and behavioral health services, as well as social services. Many Catholic Charities agencies collaborate with local health systems and other partners to offer counseling, addiction recovery, case management and caregiver support. Consider Jean. Once a client, she’s now a peer advocate for PACT (Program for Assertive Community Treatment) at Catholic Charities Diocese of Trenton. For years, she struggled with her mental and physical health and was ultimately on the verge of death owing to liver failure. But thanks to the integrated health model, she is now healthy, housed, working and passing on the wisdom and compassion of her lived experience to other clients. “It was just my journey of living well and fully with mental illness, and you can do both,” says Jean. “It is possible.”
Developing Workers, and Communities
Many Catholic Charities agencies offer a combination of workforce development programs — to provide those who are unemployed or underemployed with the necessary skills to pursue meaningful work — and social enterprise programs that offer opportunities for clients to hone their new skills in a supportive environment. It’s a way of uplifting entire communities, one person at a time.
The CCUSA Innovation Challenge demonstrates how it is possible to think creatively to cultivate opportunities for our neighbors. Take Public Sector Pathways to Prosperity, a program of Catholic Charities Diocese of Nashville, that operates in four largely rural middle Tennessee communities. One of the winners in the 2023 Innovation Challenge, the program is helping 40 households move out of poverty to economic stability in the first year and will expand the model by 50% each following year.
Laying a Firm Foundation
To help clients — especially those living in poverty and other vulnerable persons — reach their full potential, Catholic Charities agencies provide community and parish-based foundational services using a holistic approach of integral human development. Person- and family-centered services build on individual strengths and respond to evolving life needs. That may include programs for children and youth; family, pregnancy and adoption; seniors; those with disabilities; and persons involved with the criminal justice system.
Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Denver offers a broad range of services for pregnant and parenting women, including housing at Marisol Homes and medical care through Marisol Health. Women like Jennifer, who came to the housing program after a stint in rehab and delivered a baby boy two weeks later, have found a supportive, loving environment in which to regroup and put their lives back together. Parenting classes are making her a better mother to her infant son and two school-age children. “They show me a lot of things that I didn’t know, things I need to know, things I’ve done wrong and could do better,” she says. “Nobody cares about us like that anywhere.”
Give, Volunteer, Support
The Catholic Charities network could not do all that it does without the dedication of its more than 215,000 volunteers and the many generous donors who support their work. Learn more about how you can play a part in this life-giving work at WeAreThere.US.
