ANNUAL CATHOLIC APPEAL

What is the Annual Catholic Appeal?

 

The Annual Catholic Appeal was initiated in 1959 to provide for the ever-increasing educational, human, pastoral and spiritual needs of the people of Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden, and Hampshire counties. The Appeal enables our church to implement
and administer these and other critical services in a comprehensive framework in order to carry out the work of Jesus Christ. It would not be possible to carry out His work without your assistance.

Agencies, Ministries, Programs funded through your generosity to the Annual Catholic Appeal.

Elderly Services

For our elderly citizens, the Appeal provides financial support for “Take and Eat,” a program which provided 22,500 homebound elderly in Berkshire County with meals on weekends and holidays, when other meal programs do not operate. Not only do these homebound elderly receive a meal from “Take and Eat,” but they receive a visit from people who provide them with social contact when they deliver the meals.

The Appeal also provides financial support to St. Michael’s Residence, a retirement center for elderly clergy who have faithfully served the Church of western Massachusetts. The Appeal also supports a retirement fund, for the many elderly religious who committed and dedicated their lives to serve the Church and us.

Spiritual, Pastoral and Evangelization

	The Lay Ministry Program assisted 1,500 extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist and readers to assist our priests in proclaiming the Good News and ensuring that Holy Communion may be distributed in a reverent and orderly manner. Twenty seminarians benefit from financial assistance from the Appeal as they study to become tomorrow’s priests.
	One-half million viewers each week have access to the uplifting news from throughout western Massachusetts during Catholic Communications’ half-hour news magazine broadcast of “Real to Reel.” 28,000 homebound sick and elderly are spiritually nourished each week through Catholic Communications’ broadcast of the Mass, “Chalice of Salvation.” 18,367 Catholics relied on Catholic Communications’ news Web site iobserve.org accessing 504,584 items during 2007. The diocesan newspaper The Catholic Observer, published biweekly by Catholic Communications, reaches 30,000 homes at Christmas and Easter, 10,000 during the regular season.

 

Services to Those in Need

Our theme reflects God’s command “to love one another as I have loved you.” As church and individuals, we, as disciples of Jesus Christ, are called upon to live and act in a manner which demonstrates our love and care for all our brothers and sisters. Jesus definitively tells us what God will expect as irrefutable confirmation that we have carried out his command and show our love for him: “What you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.” So through your generosity to the Appeal, you enable our Church to offer a collective response in a comprehensive and integrated framework to the educational, human, pastoral and spiritual need of people in Berkshire, Franklin, Hampden and Hampshire counties.

More than 1,000 developmentally disabled individuals receive assistance through Jericho, The Bureau for Exceptional Children and Adults. The staff at Jericho strive to bring dignity, respect, and wholeness into the lives of people with disabilities. Jericho receives financial support from the Appeal.

 

Services to Youth and Young Adults

OUR CATHOLIC SCHOOLS NOT ONLY OFFER OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC PROGRAMS FOR STUDENTS, BUT THEY ALSO PROVIDE A LOVING AND NURTURING ENVIRONMENT IN WHICH STUDENTS LEARN SELF-DISCIPLINE, AND ARE ENCOURAGED TO LIVE THEIR FAITH ON A DAILY BASIS, REFLECTING THE LOVE AND TEACHINGS OF JESUS CHRIST.

More than 1,300 students attend Catholic high schools within the Diocese. Nearly 5,000 students attend Catholic elementary schools, grades pre-K through 8th grade. Through the Appeal, many of these students receive financial aid without which they might not be able to attend Catholic schools. The Appeal also provides financial support for technical, development, and marketing assistance to Catholic schools. In addition, more than 1,000 students are enrolled in after-school programs conducted through the Catholic Youth Center in Pittsfield, and more than 100 students from the poorest areas in Holyoke are helped at “Homework House,” both of which receive financial support from the Appeal.

Through the Newman Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, and at 13 other area colleges, young adults receive pastoral and spiritual care while they continue their education. Campus Ministry programs provide them with an opportunity to continue to grow in their faith, and offer many a respite from the pressures they face as students and young adults. Through Campus Ministry, the Church is there for our young adults, many of whom are away from home for the very first time.

	THESE CHILDREN AND YOUTH ARE THE FUTURE OF OUR CHURCH, AND MORE THAN EVER, THEY NEED TO BE SHOWN HOW TO LIVE OUT THEIR FAITH IN AN INCREASINGLY SECULAR ENVIRONMENT.
Through the Religious Education Program funded by the Appeal, 1,854 catechists have been trained, and more than 31,000 students from grades K-12 participate in parish-based religious education activities within the Diocese of Springfield.