FaithWorks December 2009 Issue
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December, 2009
From the Catholic Charities Spokane Executive Director...
As I write to you this holiday season, I am so thankful for the support you have given to us this past year. Although it has been a difficult year, we have been able to continue to provide help and create hope for over 50,000 different persons in the past 12 months. Our 15 programs are filled with stories that will deeply touch your hearts. They are stories of our everyday efforts to find the face of Christ in the poorest of the poor. As the end of the year approaches, our annual Christmas Collection begins. This is the time of the year when we at Catholic Charities tend to hold our breath a little, pray a lot and hold onto our faith even more. In one month's time, during December, we will try to raise all of the dollars we will need to keep our programs running for the next calendar year. Last year's Christmas collection was down significantly, however I am prayerfully hopeful that this Christmas will tell a different story. You are all a part of the great story that is Catholic Charities, and we simply cannot thank you enough for walking this path with us.
The greatest Christmas gift we receive each year is your continued support and prayers! From all of us at Catholic Charities, please accept our warmest Christmas wishes.
Many prayers,
Rob McCann
Executive Director
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Providence Sacred Heart and Providence Holy Family just recently hosted a Soap & Shampoo Drive. Catholic Charities was one of the beneficiaries of this wonderful drive. Sister Rosalie Locati delivered these most needed items to the Family Services Center so that program directors could gather items for their clients. We are blessed by this generous donation of supplies. Thank you, Providence Health Services!
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 32 West Pacific
P.O. Box 2253
Spokane, WA 99202
509.624.7821
December, 2009
With the holiday season upon us I must admit I am having a hard time focusing on the upcoming events and transitioning from soccer to skis and skates, and from slick tires to knobby tires on my bike. Then I think...was there a Christmas last year? I remember snow, lots of snow, bitter cold weather, and lots of shoveling, walking down streets instead of sidewalks, and working more than usual. Gonzaga University had done a great job keeping their streets and sidewalks plowed and that was my route to and from work for a month or so. But somehow I was forgetting Christmas during all that snow and Arctic weather.
So I tested my sons and asked them about Christmas 2008. Did they remember it? They confused some of the day's events with Christmas 2007 but only the dinner. They remember the exact gifts they received, all the snow, along with the snow forts that they had built. They recalled their extended Christmas vacation due to the snow, and I have to admit I was impressed as I started recalling it too. There was Christmas 2008 captured in their memories!
The Christmas season is a busy one for the staff at the House of Charity and other social providers in our area. It is during this season that we are seen doing our best work. Last year in the two weeks leading up to Christmas, we slept 1,512 men upstairs and 601 in our dayrooms and dining room. We made room for anyone who needed it. We had volunteers snowshoe to the House of Charity to help prepare meals, our patrons kept our sidewalks and the surrounding sidewalks free of snow, and people still managed to drop off donations of coats, gloves and hats for those in need. It was a great Christmas!
In January, the House of Charity newsletter will return to its original format as requested by so many of our long time supporters. It will be the single page letter and you will find it in your mailbox once a month, twelve times a year. It will be featured in FaithWorks for a couple of months thereafter and then that page will become an opportunity for other Catholic Charities' programs to share what they are doing.
Thank you for interest, your prayers, and your concerns for our patrons who are often ignored. Thank you for your generosity and for helping us share the spirit of Christmas with so many.
Ed McCarron |
Counseling
BY THE NUMBERS
Average calls for services per month - 75
Average number of new clients per month - 18
Average number of service hours provided monthly - 237
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Rubberband Ensemble entertains St. Anne's pre-school
In mid October, St. Anne's preschool classes were treated to some entertaining music provided by the Rubberband Ensemble from the Rockwood Retirement Center. This group gathers purely for the joy of making music. This creative ensemble played nursery rhymes for the children using the following instruments...the Gut Bucket Bass, Washboard, Kazoo, Harmonica, Flutaphone, Ukulele, and Fiddle. The kids were delighted and sang and clapped along. It truly was a wonderful event that bridged the generation gap with the magic of music!
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The Blitz
was a Blast!
More than 200 volunteers turned out on Saturday, November 7th for the 11th Annual Volunteer Chore Services' "Leaf Raking Blitz." The volunteers included church and business groups, college clubs, service organizations, families and individuals. All arrived bright and early at St. Aloysius church to have muffins and coffee and get their instructions. Each group was assigned between 2-4 homes of Volunteer Chore Services clients, who are low-income seniors or low-income disabled adults. With rakes and leaf bags in hand, everyone headed out on what was a gorgeous fall day. Volunteers raked and bagged leaves all morning and then were invited back to O'Malley Hall at St. Al's to have a hot lunch, prepared by a wonderful group of volunteer "lunch ladies." In all, 75 clients in Spokane and Spokane Valley were helped, with a total of 1,107 large leaf bags filled. The VCS staff extends a big "thank you!" to all those who helped make this such a successful community event.
Volunteer Chore Services coordinates group activities throughout the year to help low-income seniors and disabled adults. For more information contact Program Manager Judy Lee at (509) 459-6172 or jlee@ccspokane.org.
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WSU students from the School of Nursing hosted a Diaper Drive for CAPA (Childbirth and Parenting Alone program) at the Albertson's store on the South Hill. In four hours they were able to collect an amazing amount of diapers for CAPA. Thank you WSU Nursing Students...we are so incredibly appreciative!
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A Howling
Good Time....
On October 29th, CAPA's leadership team put on a Halloween party for all CAPA families. Thanks to the Florence Wasmer Fund for Children and Families, several CAPA moms planned and implemented the Halloween event. Trick or treating throughout the building, pictures of the children in their Halloween costumes and arts & crafts were just part of the Halloween fun!
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Lavan House Dedication
Bishop William Skylstad and about 30 guests gathered on Oct. 14th for a blessing and dedication of Spokane's second Jesuit Volunteer house. Bishop Skylstad commented that "These men and women who generously give a year or two of their lives in service to those in need are truly inspiring and wonderful examples of Christian charity.
The new residence is located on E. Augusta Ave. and was purchased by Catholic Charities this summer. The house is named in memory of Matthew Lavan, a former Jesuit Volunteer who served at the House of Charity from 1998-1999. Matthew returned to New York where he served at a soup kitchen and shelter at St. Francis Xavier. He passed away in his sleep in March of 2003.
Rob McCann, Catholic Charities Executive Director, shared that "The JV's have been an essential part of Catholic Charities for the better part of four decades. The reality is we could not run most of our programs without them. We are thrilled to have a second house which brings our total number of JV's up to 12. We are blessed to have these folks and are excited to start a new tradition with this second house."
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Leave Your Mark
The IRA Charitable "Rollover" is a giving opportunity with potential tax savings. If you are at least 701/2, tax legislation allows you to give the Catholic Charities Foundation up to $100,000 directly from your IRA without triggering federal income taxes. This is a great way to share your blessings with someone besides Uncle Sam!Mary Ann Heskett, Foundation Director509-358-4255 mheskett@ccspokane.org |
To find out more about Catholic Charities Spokane, please view our new
Catholic Charities video on our website at CatholicCharitiesSpokane.org or on YouTube.
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Project Timothy in Columbia Co.
When Rev. Paul Wood of St. Joseph Parish in Dayton started Project Timothy in 1990, he surely had hope that it would still be thriving almost 20 years later. Today Project Timothy stands as the sole emergency assistance organization in Columbia County, raising volunteers and funds from local churches, and channeling governmental monies to pay the rent and utilities when a crisis hits. Most Dayton/Waitsburg area churches provide volunteers and donations, but as St. Joseph Parish spearheads the project, Catholic Charities serves as its fiscal agent. Over 200 households receive help throughout the year, given entirely by volunteers. St. Nicholas Program in Okanogan Co.
For several years, a dedicated group of volunteers has delivered food for families and gifts for kids throughout Okanogan County with the St. Nicholas Program. Begun by the Skirko family at Our Lady of the Valley Parish in Okanogan, the St. Nicholas Program brought food and gifts - as well as winter clothes - to 153 families, including 427 children. It's an all-volunteer effort and Catholic Charities is pleased to serve as fiscal agent, allowing for corporate donations and payroll deductions. We are proud to support this parish-based community Christmas program.
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