Charities expands reach of CSA funds “Only if I serve my neighbor can my eyes be opened to what God does for me and how much he loves me.” From Pope Benedict XVI’s 2006 encyclical on Christian love, “Deus Caritas Est (God is Love)”
By Fabvienen Taylor JACKSON — “I think that quote truly expresses what Catholic Charities offers the Catholic Service Appeal (CSA) donor, said Greg Patin, executive director of Catholic Charities.
“We offer the opportunity for that donor to serve another person through us and therefore open themselves up to the love of God,” he said. “That is such a unique piece of Catholic Charities’ mission.”
“Imitate Christ’s Love” is the theme of the 2009 CSA collection/pledge weekend, Saturday and Sunday, May 2-3, in all parishes/missions in the Diocese of Jackson.
In addition to Catholic Charities, the CSA helps fund priests’ retirement and clergy assistance, seminarian education, mission parishes/schools, campus ministry, and evangelization.
These ministries are too broad to be supported by an individual parish or a group of parishes.
For 2008, the CSA donation/pledge was $1,201,138 from 5,753 donors. The average gift was $209.
As of Tuesday, April 14, $1,117,997 (93.1 percent of pledges) had been collected, according to George Roman, director of the Office of Stewardship. The 2008 CSA allocations were: Catholic Charities $456,281; priests’ retirement $65,000 and clergy medical $30,000; seminarian education $65,000; campus ministry $87,260; mission schools/parishes $125,000; and evangelization $145,000.
The allocation total was $973,54.
In the 16 years of the CSA collections, $12,392,214 has been allocated to the five areas.
Catholic Charities, the social service arm of the Catholic church, has received close to $5,832,520 of that total.
The 16-year totals for the other areas are: priests’ retirement, $1,609,058 and clergy assistance, $832,522; mission schools/parishes, $1,535,000; evangelization, $1,153,872; campus ministry $930,442; and seminarian education, $498,800.
Catholic Charities has offices in Natchez and Vardaman in addition to Jackson and in 2008 served over 25,000 persons through its 30-plus programs.
“We serve some of the most vulnerable people in our population with an array of services such as counseling for families, for children who have suffered trauma, disaster victims, and women who may be escaping abuse or seeking to remove themselves from alcohol and substance abuse,” Patin said.
He said Pope Benedict XVI’s quote from “Deus Caritas Est” is the theme for Catholic Charities’ next strategic plan in the Diocese of Jackson.
“We are broadening the number of programs that will receive CSA dollars.
“This year no CSA dollars are going to administration, or the finance office or the development office. One hundred percent of the funds are going directly to programs,” Patin said.
For the first time, the Born Free and New Beginnings residential treatment programs for pregnant and/or parenting women needing assistance to recover from chemical addictions, will receive direct funds from the CSA.
“We felt this was very important,” he said. “This year we are applying some CSA money to help their budget directly.
These are programs where a woman, who may be pregnant or have very young children, wanting to get off alcohol or drugs can live with us for up to two years,” he said.
Patin said 75 percent of the women who graduate from the programs are still drug-free six months later.
Additional programs designated to for CSA direct funds are the Shelter for Battered Families, Karitas Therapeutic Day Care Center, and the Charities Northeast office in Vardaman.
Franciscan Sister Terri Rodela is the director of the Northeast office.
“Sister Terri has worked very, very hard the last two years to build relationships in Deanery V with other community organizations and government entities,” he said.
The office provides services to legal immigrants, migrant workers, and the poor in direct assistance programs, parenting classes, and English as a Second Language (ESL).
“We want to continue to develop and grow our services in that area,” Patin said.
“A successful CSA will allow us to stay in the Northeast office and continue to spread our services.”
In the Natchez office, Martha Mitternight, director, said the CSA provides the underlying support for everything they do. “We have programs dealing with family issues, we have the Guardian Shelter and the Guardian Sexual Assault Center and other programs,” she said.
In addition, the office runs the Community Food Pantry which serves over 400 families a month.
“We give out the equivalent of one week’s worth of food to supplement what they earn on their own and receive from food stamps. We provide a variety of food with good nutrition,” Mitternight said.
Opened in 2006 in conjunction with the Natchez Children’s Home, Charities Pre-School Day Treatment Program provides services to young children diagnosed with mental illness or a serious emotional disturbance.
Currently there are three classrooms with eight children each, said Mitternight.
The program provides a structured curriculum that builds social skills, anger management skills and school readiness.
“We provide loads of positive care and positive attention,” she said.
Patin, on the job less than a year, has been getting to know the people, parishes and organizations in the Jackson diocese.
“I have met many generous and wonderful people and I just want to say, Thank you to all CSA supporters and if you have not supported the appeal in the past, I would like to ask you to consider it,” he said.
rve some of the most vulnerable people in our population with an array of services such as counseling for families, for children who have suffered trauma, disaster victims, and women who may be escaping abuse or seeking to remove themselves from alcohol and substance abuse,” Patin said.
“We have programs dealing with family issues, we have the Guardian Shelter and the Guardian Sexual Assault Center and other programs,” she said.