Catholic Charities Ministry is a partnership with local parishes to help provide support to vulnerable individuals and families as we work to build just and caring communities. Parish and Community Engagement works with local parishes to develop opportunities for parishioners to help our community's most vulnerable. Some of our ministry opportunities include:
Foster Care
More than 10,000 children in Arizona are waiting to be welcomed into a loving, safe homes. There is a great need for families willing to foster school-aged children and sibling groups. Catholic Charities provides training and support tothose who wish to become foster parents.
In addition to the role of foster parent, many opportunites exist to use your gifts and talents to help children in foster care:
- Help an individual or family prepare their home for a foster child by providing home upgrades, furniture or other necessary items to help the family meet state requirements.
- Provide clothing, bedding or household supplies.
- Coordinate or support a parish Christmas giving tree or a back-to-school clothing and supply drive by becoming a Fulfill-A-List leader.
- Support families in providing fun activities by securing gift certificates or funds for movies, restaurants, toy stores, clothing stores or music, video or computer items.
- Pray for foster children and their care givers.
Providing DIGNITY
Catholic Charities Community Services recognizes prostituted women as victims of sex trafficking and helps them to escape “the life” through DIGNITY (Developing Individual Growth and New Independence Through Yourself).
89 percent of those who complete our jail diversion program do not re-offend.
93 percent of those who complete our residential program leave the life for good.
Parishes can partner with DIGNITY to provide:
- Transportation – Women or couples to transport clients to doctor appointments, Social Security Office, Department of Economic Security and appointments
- Shopping Assistance – Take clients to the store and help them learn to shop on a budget
- Workforce Development – Help clients to complete their GED, develop job skills, create resumes and provide other support to help them find and retain employment
- Recreational Support – Share your talent and have fun by teaching scrapbooking, sewing, knitting, crocheting, etc.
- Shift Volunteer - Hands on interaction with residents
- Fullfill-A-List- Become a Fill-A-Wish leader
Refugee Services
Catholic Charities assists refugees in starting a new life in the United States. The program has many functions, such as finding and furnishing a home for the refugees, picking them up at the airport, and coordinating initial health care visits.
Parishes can partner with Refugee Services to provide:
- Tutoring - Help families develop English as a Second Language
- Mentoring - Provide support for the newly arrived family
- Fulfill-A-List - Provide furnishing, household items and other needs to help the family settle into their new home.
Emergency Services
This program connects people in crisis with community resources to help them move beyond crisis to a state of emotional and financial stability. The program also offers financial assistance for various emergency needs , but funds are limited.
This is one of story shared by those who answer the calls for help:
No one really thinks about the things that make it so hard for the working poor. Someone diagnosed with cancer has to take a few days off each week to receive and recover from chemotherapy. Perhaps they have insurance for their healthcare, but what happens when they no longer have any sick leave at work? How do they make up for the lost pay from not working a couple of days each week? If we, as a community, don't step up to help our neighbors who experience this kind of crisis, then more people end up unable to pay their mortgage or rent and we have more people who need more assistance. Stepping in now, will help people maintain their abiltity to care for themselves and their families.
What do people need? They need neighbors who care. Utility assistance, rental assistance, networking to find employment or transportation, short-term loans...all of these are ways you can be involved in the lives of the poor and vulnerable. In short, eveyone needs a community to support them through crisis and help them get back on their feet.
This program can also always use diapers and wipes!