Showing 25 - 36 of 55 results
Struggling mom turns her life around with help of Catholic Charities
Story - January 21, 2016 - Kim came to our Homeless Services Center “a broken woman,” as she called herself. Born in Ukiah, California, Kim was a bright young woman who graduated college with a business degree. She worked for a Fortune 500 company in San Francisco, then moved back to Ukiah for her “dream job” as the sports editor for…
A home for homeless teens provides solid foundation to build on
Story - August 12, 2015 - In St. Cloud, Minnesota, a Catholic Charities group home dedicated to homeless teens is helping young people begin their adult lives on a solid foundation. Opened in 2014, Youth House gives young people, ages 16-24, not only a roof over their heads, but round-the-clock guidance as they build the foundations for the rest of their…
A mother’s grit is a gift to her daughter
https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/stories/a-mothers-grit-is-a-gift-to-her-daughter/
Story - March 21, 2024 - When Sarah came to the Pregnancy Health Center (PHC) in 2021, her life looked much different than it is now. She was dealing with multiple challenges while anticipating the arrival of her little girl. She enrolled in our Earn While You Learn classes and began learning about labor and delivery, self-care and parenting. Sarah invested…
Thomas Merton Center celebrates fifty years of serving the community
Story - February 14, 2024 - Catholic Charities Fairfield program has grown exponentially since ‘soup kitchen’ days It started with a challenge. Back in 1974, Fr. John Giuliani, the charismatic Sacred Heart University (SHU) campus minister, and his prayer group invited Kathleen Thorsby of the Washington, D.C. Center for Creative Non-Violence to report on the recent opening of a soup kitchen…
MAX: A unique intervention program from Catholic Charities Cleveland
Story - December 1, 2021 - By Tara McMullen A patient awakens in a hospital room. Bright lights. Beeping monitors. A nurse enters and informs them they’ve been revived from an opiate overdose. They were lucky this time. Would they like to speak with someone about recovery? Here in this hospital room is where the Max Kolbe Program (MAX), a unique intervention program launched by Catholic Charities, Diocese of Cleveland (CC…
A father and daughter find housing and a new beginning
Story - July 25, 2022 - Stepping off a plane at Boston Logan Airport, moments after returning home from a trip, Orlando Fontanez’s phone began to buzz with text and voicemail notifications. One was from the mother of his then three-year-old daughter Najla. The other was from the Department of Children and Families. Both conveyed the same nerve-racking news — Najla…
Friday of the fourth week of Advent, 2022
https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/about-us/prayers-reflections/advent-reflection-2022-27/
Prayer & Reflection - December 23, 2022 - The celebration of Christmas is almost upon us, and in today’s scriptures we’re given lots of hints about what we might expect. From my reading, seems we’re being told to expect the unexpected. First, there’s the covenant messenger whose appearance might be hard to take. While this close to the holiday we might be hoping…
Thursday of the third week of Advent, 2022
https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/about-us/prayers-reflections/advent-reflection-2022-19/
Prayer & Reflection - December 15, 2022 - Today’s first reading ends with a promise from God: “Though the mountains leave their place and the hills be shaken, my love shall never leave you.” (Isaiah 54:10) Who among us has not felt abandoned in times of distress? We all carry wounds from what we have done and what others have done to us. …
Fostering a faith-based support network
Story - February 16, 2022 - Deadly pandemics are nothing new to the 104-year-old organization known as Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Founded in 1917 as the Spanish Influenza Epidemic was sweeping the globe, Catholic Charities originated as a central charity intended to relieve the burden on Catholic parishes as they struggled to meet the needs of the poor…
Looking with eyes of faith
https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/about-us/prayers-reflections/looking-with-eyes-of-faith/
Prayer & Reflection - December 3, 2023 - Happy New Year and welcome to Advent! This is my favorite liturgical season — filled with amazing, courageous people, wonderful stories of discovery and dedication, and beloved musical themes. Speaking of music, today’s first reading, while calling us to repentance, contains concepts and images that have proven to be hymn writers’ inspiration: “No ear has…
Feeding our bodies and souls
https://www.catholiccharitiesusa.org/stories/feeding-our-bodies-and-our-souls/
Story - November 10, 2021 - Coming from a big family, I always enjoyed dinners with my siblings and parents. At times, all 15 of us would be seated around the table, and it wasn’t just the food we enjoyed. It was also being together, enjoying each other’s company, and sometimes even discussing difficult issues. I believe that a good bit…
A pause … and you move forward: Living with mental illness
Story - June 24, 2021 - With pandemic restrictions easing as summer approaches, people from Princeton to Palmyra are planning road trips, parties, and more. Tricia Risley is brushing up on motherhood. Tricia lost custody of her daughter eight years ago because of her mental illness. But now 15-years-old, her daughter is coming to live with Tricia for the summer –…