Editor’s Note: This mini spotlight is sponsored by Catholic Charities as part of our local giving guide that highlights nonprofits leading up to Giving Tuesday on Nov. 30. To see more nonprofits, click here.
For more than one hundred years, Catholic Charities has been providing the community with over a dozen helpful services through the Diocese of Toledo.
“Catholic Charities makes real the love God has for each individual – regardless of their faith or background – by serving the poor, speaking for and assisting the neglected and forgotten, respecting and promoting life from beginning to end and nurturing and supporting individuals and families,” Development Director Tom Waniewski said.
Since 1914, Catholic Charities ministries have included adult advocacy, elderly assistance, rental assistance, food pantries and soup kitchens, homeless shelters, transitional housing, furniture ministry, employee assistance for businesses, clothing assistance, prison ministry, respect life programs and crisis navigation.
In the past year, Catholic Charities has made an important impact that largely benefits the community.
“26,983 people received groceries and hygiene kits, 7,546 received clothing and shoes, 2,825 elderly residents were assisted through advocacy services and 38,591 nights of shelter were provided,” Waniewski said.
In 2022, they are preparing for a rise in services as things like the price of food increases.
“Our plans are to be ever-more responsive to the needs of the vulnerable,” Waniewski said. “Money raised will go directly to the services thus helping people who need it most directly. The impact of our nonprofit is that we are serving the most vulnerable in Richland County.”
Waniewski believes that Richland Gives “shines a bright light on the true needs in the community.”
“Catholic Charities provides services that are not redundant. We are Jesus Christ’s hands and heart in the world. When we feed the poor, we feed Christ,” Waniewski said.
To learn more about Catholic Charities, donate, or get involved, visit click here or call 419-244-6711.
To donate to Catholic Charities through Richland Gives, click here and make an online donation.
