It’s possible to quantify the number of times the ministries of Catholic Charities of Philadelphia (CCoP) have reached out in Christ’s love to those in need throughout the five counties that it serves.

It may be impossible to quantify the Holy Spirit’s effect on 294,403 people served through countless encounters of compassion in the 2023-24 fiscal year, according to Catholic Charities of Philadelphia’s latest annual report.

“This is about real, heartfelt Gospel values,” says Catholic Charities of Philadelphia Secretary and Executive Vice President Heather Huot. “This is the Church at its best.”

“Over the past 18 months, I have had the privilege of visiting many of our 40-plus programs, meeting the dedicated staff who embody the spirit of service and hearing the personal stories of those we are blessed to serve. Each encounter has strengthened my awe at how we fulfill the mission of the Church.”

The report summarizes the work that more than 40 organizations accomplished from July 2023 through June 2024. It also reveals how in that time frame, more than $126 million – 79.6% of all funding in that time span – came to Catholic Charities of Philadelphia from government sources. Contributions and bequests led to nearly $26 million – 16.3% of that funding.

Most people are familiar with the incredible remarkable work done to help the hungry and unhoused, such as St. John’s Hospice and the 5.6 million meals offered to children through Nutritional Development Services.

The report also shows how Catholic Charities of Philadelphia – recently rebranded to encompass Catholic Social Services, Catholic Housing and Community Services, and Nutritional Development Services — touched tens of thousands more people last year through its legal immigration work, pregnancy services, and residential and day programs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) as well as senior adults.

The greatest allocation of the more than $158 million received by Catholic Charities of Philadelphia that fiscal year, $82.3 million (52.2% of the total budget), served people with IDD.

That money empowers people like Kimberly Cowley, a family case worker at St. Edmond’s Home for Children in Bryn Mawr, Delaware County, which offers 24-hour holistic care from infant ages to young adulthood for those with IDD.

“Jesus means for us to really care for and focus on advocating for those who society has overlooked,” said Cowley in the report. “That definitely inspires me to consider things like dignity and integrity when I’m working with anyone with intellectual and physical disabilities.”

26% of the fiscal year’s funding – about $40.7 million – served the region’s hungry and unhoused through the efforts of people like Lisa Radano, a case manager at Catholic Charities’ Delaware County Family Service Center, an effort in conjunction with the Office of Adult and Family Services in Delaware County.

She regularly empowers people through programs to find everything from furniture to donated gift cards, while advocating for them in conversations with landlords, helping people at risk of “having no other safety net.”

“I’ll say a Hail Mary, and the next day, a landlord will call and say they’ll work with us.”

That funding also aided Visitation Homes in North Philadelphia, where Shawna Murray encounters people enduring homelessness like some of her first experiences after emigrating to America in the 1980s. She helps families like a young mother and her two sons who fled a domestic violence situation in South Carolina. Partially through Murray’s assistance, the mother obtained custody.

“Without financial support, she wouldn’t have been able to do that,” said Murray.

“I work with (people), but don’t judge them because homelessness can happen to anyone.”

The other $35.6 million in the 2023-24 fiscal year was allocated to efforts helping seniors and charities focused on children, youth, and families.

Huot says that the size and scale of Catholic Charities of Philadelphia, plus its ability to help individuals in multiple ways, allows for it to offer more holistic and effective compassion across a plethora of needs.

“We’re not just a one-stop shop kind of organization,” said Huot. “We are identifying needs, we’re adapting to needs, and we are meeting them whatever they might be.”

“We’re not just looking at one aspect of the lifespan, but the entire lifespan, and then figuring out how their needs are changing. How do we need to best meet their needs during this progression of life? I don’t think you’re going to find many providers out there that do that and who care that much from beginning to end.”

That flexibility, plus the trust Catholic Charities of Philadelphia have earned in serving people since 1797, puts them in a uniquely special position to effectively minister and see Christ’s face in everyone they serve.

“Someone passed along a story of someone who came to their door asking for help, and when they were asked why they came, they said, ‘I knew since you are part of the Catholic Church, I would be treated well,’” said Huot.

“That really speaks to just the way all of our programs function in a way of compassion and love. It’s not just a transaction.”

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