Catholic Charities of Denver created Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House, an original children’s book, to celebrate Samaritan House’s 40th anniversary while helping children understand and feel at home in a place that may be unfamiliar during a difficult time.

Inspired by the organization’s Cozy Companion Drive, the story follows Sammy, a teddy bear who helps children feel brave by explaining Samaritan House through a child’s eyes. The book introduces young readers to the history, purpose, and people of Samaritan House while reinforcing a simple but powerful message: they are welcome, they belong, and they are loved. It also serves as a unique storytelling and engagement tool, connecting donors, parishes, and community partners to the mission of supporting children and families experiencing homelessness.

Challenge or Need

For children experiencing homelessness, arriving at a shelter can be confusing, frightening, and overwhelming. Many do not understand why they are there, what will happen next, or whether they are safe. As Catholic Charities prepared to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Samaritan House—the nation’s first purpose-built shelter for individuals and families experiencing homelessness—we saw an opportunity to tell its remarkable story in a way children could understand while helping them feel welcomed and secure.

Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House was created to meet that need. Rather than relying on adult explanations, the book introduces Samaritan House through the eyes of Sammy, a friendly teddy bear who reassures children that they belong, explains what they can expect, and helps reduce fear of the unknown. Inspired by our Cozy Companion Drive, the story reinforces the comfort children experience when they choose a stuffed animal to keep as their own.

The book also addresses a broader need by helping donors, parishioners, schools, and volunteers better understand the experience of children facing homelessness. Through a child’s perspective, it builds empathy, inspires community involvement, and celebrates 40 years of Catholic Charities welcoming families with dignity, compassion, and hope.

Why It’s Innovative

Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House transforms a traditional anniversary publication into a ministry tool designed specifically for children experiencing homelessness. Rather than creating a commemorative book for donors or supporters, Catholic Charities chose to tell the 40-year story of Samaritan House through the eyes of Sammy, a teddy bear who helps children understand their new surroundings and reminds them they are safe, loved, and not alone.

The book was inspired by our Cozy Companion Drive, which provides every child arriving at Samaritan House with a stuffed animal to keep. By making a teddy bear the narrator, the book extends the comfort of that first gift into a story children can read again and again. At the same time, it gives donors, parishes, schools, and community groups a meaningful way to participate in welcoming children, creating a tangible connection between those who give and those who receive.

This initiative also preserves the legacy of Samaritan House — the nation’s first purpose-built shelter for individuals and families experiencing homelessness — in a format accessible to children. By combining children’s literacy, trauma-informed storytelling, Catholic history, and community engagement, Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House creates a replicable model that helps children feel they belong while inspiring others to support families with dignity, compassion, and hope.

Program Impact

Created to celebrate Samaritan House’s 40th anniversary in 2026, Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House is already making a meaningful impact on the children we serve and the community that supports them. Hundreds of children will receive the book as part of the anniversary celebration, and it will become a permanent part of the welcome experience for future children arriving at Samaritan House. Rather than encountering an unfamiliar environment with uncertainty, children receive a story that helps them understand where they are, what they can expect, and, most importantly, that they belong.

The initiative has also expanded the impact of our Cozy Companion Drive while creating a unique fundraising opportunity. Corporate sponsors and individual donors are helping underwrite the printing of the books, allowing every child to receive a copy at no cost. Many donors have embraced the opportunity because they can see exactly how their gift helps comfort and encourage children during a difficult season of life. Parishioners, schools, and community organizations continue donating stuffed animals, creating a tangible connection between those who give and the children they serve.

Beyond its impact in Denver, the concept is easily adaptable for other Catholic Charities agencies. Any agency serving children could create a similar story reflecting its own ministry, helping young readers understand their surroundings while giving supporters a meaningful way to invest in welcoming children with dignity, compassion, and hope. In this way, a simple children’s book has become a lasting ministry resource, a creative fundraising tool, and a catalyst for deeper community engagement.

Lessons Learned

One of our biggest lessons is that small gestures can have a profound impact when they are intentional. A stuffed animal may seem simple, but paired with a story that reflects a child’s experience, it becomes a powerful source of comfort, familiarity, and hope during a difficult transition.

We also learned the importance of remaining open to the Holy Spirit. The idea for Sammy’s Adventures at Samaritan House began with a dream experienced by our vice president of marketing and community engagement. Trusting that God might be calling her to something meaningful, she wrote the story and shared the vision with Catholic Charities’ graphic designer and project manager, who brought Sammy to life through warm, engaging illustrations. Together, they transformed the idea into a resource that now comforts children and celebrates Samaritan House’s 40-year legacy. Looking back, we believe this initiative is a reminder that God often plants ideas in unexpected ways and invites us to respond with faith, creativity, and perseverance.

We also discovered that celebrating an organizational milestone can do more than honor the past—it can create new opportunities to serve. By marking Samaritan House’s 40th anniversary with a children’s book rather than a traditional commemorative publication, we preserved our history while directly benefiting the children and families we serve today.

Finally, we learned that donors and community partners are eager to support tangible, mission-driven projects. Inviting corporate sponsors and individual donors to underwrite the printing of the books—and engaging parishes, schools, and community groups through the Cozy Companion Drive—created new ways for people to participate in our ministry and see the direct impact of their generosity. Most importantly, we learned that a simple idea, faithfully pursued, can become a lasting ministry that welcomes children with dignity, compassion, and hope.