Story - June 23, 2021 - On June 20, communities from around the globe celebrated World Refugee Day, established by the United Nations as an international day to acknowledge the strength and courage of people forced to flee their home countries due to conflict or persecution. Yet, the commemoration of World Refugee Day comes at a record low for refugee resettlement.…

News - March 9, 2023 - Leonard Catholic Charities of Long Island, New York After a divorce, Leonard rented a subpar “temporary” upstairs room. A diabetic, he developed infections that led to the amputations of his lower right leg and left toes. Navigating the stairs was difficult. After three years, he was still on waiting lists for other apartments.  He ended…

Story - January 10, 2019 - In the summer of 2014, Catholic Charities of the Rio Grande Valley (CCRGV), under the leadership of Sister Norma Pimentel, established a Humanitarian Respite Center as a response to the substantial increase in families seeking asylum at the U.S./Mexico border. Since then, more than 150,000 individuals, including separated and reunified families, have been welcomed at…

Story - July 15, 2020 - Across the country, Catholic dioceses, parishes and other church-run entities say the federal emergency “bridge loans” they applied for and received have helped keep much-needed ministries functioning during this coronavirus pandemic and the economic downturn that has resulted. By some estimates, thousands of individual churches, schools, food pantries and other social service programs would have…

Story - April 22, 2021 - By David Werning, Managing Editor “You don’t have to be in chains to be a human trafficking victim.” So says Ivonne Vadi, a case manager at the Bakhita Empowerment Program of Catholic Charities, Diocese of Palm Beach, Florida (CCDPB). The Bakhita program, named after Saint Josephine Bakhita, patron saint of human trafficking survivors, has two main…

News - March 9, 2023 - Jack Catholic Charities of the Diocese of St. Cloud, Minnesota  Jack, a disabled veteran with PTSD, had been homeless for more than a year, living in his car. A longtime cross-country truck driver, he could no longer drive due to back pain and had to put his mother in assisted living. His Social Security disability…

Story - July 7, 2020 - In an opinion piece in The Washington Post daily newspaper, Sister Norma Pimentel, known for her work with migrants on the U.S.-Mexico border near Brownsville, Texas, made a public plea July 6 to keep an eye on the plight of asylum-seekers during the coronavirus pandemic. She also called for an end to the Migrant Protection…

News - March 28, 2023 - Alexandria, Va. — On Monday, March 27, Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) submitted comments in response to the Department of Homeland Security and the Department of Justice’s Notice of Proposed Rulemaking titled “Circumvention of Lawful Pathways.” CCUSA opposes the proposed rule because it creates additional barriers for people fleeing harm to exercise their legal right to…

Story - January 7, 2019 - People living and working near the city dump in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, lived on $10 a day and had no bank accounts. Their sources of credit were street lenders with loans at exorbitant interest rates. In 2015, the Solidarity Foundation set up savings groups in the community. The organization provided financial information and training and…

Story - July 6, 2020 - Tharmini Umakaran came to the United States in 2018. She left her homeland of Sri Lanka at the age of five, fleeing civil war. Thirteen years later, as the nation celebrates World Refugee Day, June 20, Umakaran is thankful to those who helped her and her parents along the way. This year’s theme, “Every Action…

Story - November 28, 2021 - By David Werning, Managing Editor Imagine this scenario: you don’t know English, you lost your job, and you’re worrying about how – or if – you will recover. This situation did not have to be imagined by 225 refugees in the Cincinnati area during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, 31 of whom were…

News - June 13, 2017 - Catholic Charities USA is encouraged by the decision of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit affirming a nationwide preliminary injunction against the Administration’s executive order limiting and suspending the refugee program and banning travel from six Muslim majority countries.  However, the ongoing raids around the country, including the detention for deportation of dozens…