ALEXANDRIA, Va. — Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) has named Julie Abbott, a compassionate, caring voice on the other end of the phone line for Catholic Charities Maine, its 2026 Volunteer of the Year.
In the course of 15 years, Abbott has spent nearly 5,000 hours answering the Relief & Hope emergency services hotline, engaging people facing personal crises large and small. Responding with empathy and understanding, Abbott offers each caller her full-hearted attention, whether the challenge they face is related to finances, mental health, job loss, car repairs, loss of heating or cooling, housing, hunger, or any of a myriad of other reasons a caller might be in desperate straits. Attentive listening is a key part of her ministry to those in need. She is driven by faith to serve.
To support her work, Abbott has developed a massive database of resources covering Maine’s 16 counties. Its renown is such that the state’s 211 operators have been known to call her for guidance on how to refer one of their own callers to the appropriate services.
“Julie Abbott’s service to Catholic Charities Maine shows that sometimes, the quietest contributions can make the greatest impact,” CCUSA President and CEO Kerry Alys Robinon said. “Julie’s gift of presence and attention allow struggling neighbors to retain their dignity even in their most distressing and vulnerable moments. She is truly a good and faithful servant to those in need.”
The CCUSA Volunteer of the Year Award, given annually since 1998, is granted to an individual who embodies the mission of CCUSA to provide critical services to those in need, advocate for justice in social structures and call the entire Church and other people of good will to do the same. More than 200,000 people volunteer at Catholic Charities agencies around the country each year, and agencies nominate their most exemplary volunteers for this honor. CCUSA will formally bestow the award on Abbott at its 2026 Annual Gathering in Richmond later this year.
“When my years of home schooling my children ended, I searched for places where I could feel useful and talk freely about Jesus,” said Julie. “I often came home feeling depressed about the need around me, and how little I was able to help.”
Answering calls for the Relief & Hope hotline has given her the opportunity to be of service and has been enormously rewarding.
“Callers thank me for just being willing to listen and empathize. I really feel good after those calls,” Julie said. “And I appreciate working with people who put their faith into action every day at work. Catholic Charities is such a nice, friendly, Godly place to work. I don’t feel I do enough to have earned this award. I am flabbergasted to have received it! Thank you!”
About Catholic Charities USA
Founded in 1910, CCUSA is a national membership organization that supports and represents 169 Catholic Charities agencies across the United States and in five territories. Collectively, the Catholic Charities network each year serves more than 16 million vulnerable people, regardless of their faith or background, through food and nutrition programs, affordable housing, disaster relief and a variety of other humanitarian services.
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