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Jean-Paul and Gerrie Musicco have been named Chair Couple of the 2010 "Living Our Faith" Annual Bishop’s Appeal.
The New Canaan couple, members of St. Aloysius Parish, bring a deep and renewed faith along with their commitment to building a more compassionate community.
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The Diocese of Bridgeport has an email newsletter, Living Our Faith, in addition to our periodic e-mail updates on the Appeal and other areas. Sign up for our e-newsletter today!
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<< Back to Article Index
Catholic Charities Depends on Your Donations: “Now more than ever,” Appeal Support is Vital
BUILDING CONFIDENCE AND PARENTING SKILLS – Forty-year-old Victoria Bejar, a native of Peru, is the mother of four children, three of whom are already in school. She and her youngest, three-year-old Victoria, visit Merton Family Center every day. “I like coming here because it’s really preparing Victoria for school and helping me to be of more help to my older children with their homework,” she says, noting that her own confidence has grown from making friends with other mothers at the center. (PHOTO BY BRIAN WALLACE)
Article Appears in the February 21, 2009 Edition of the Fairfield County Catholic
BY BRIAN D. WALLACE
With a growing number of individuals and families in Fairfield County feeling the effects of the recession, the 2009 Living Our Faith Annual Bishop’s Appeal has become more important than ever in the effort to reach out and help those in need.
What has become very clear to many people throughout the Diocese of Bridgeport is just how important the Appeal is and how the diocese has been able to stretch the funds to create an unparalleled network of services in the region.
Largest Provider
In launching this year’s campaign, Bishop William E. Lori reminds the faithful that the Catholic Church is the largest provider of social services outside of the government in southwestern Connecticut and a primary source of help for people of all faiths in their communities. The diocesan network of schools, health care providers, and social service agencies, in addition to the pastoral care and other works provided through 87 individual parishes, makes a massive contribution to life in the state.
Add in the thousands of Catholic volunteers at work in communities every day throughout the diocese and the impact is nearly incalculable. Catholic Charities is but one of many essential ministries of the Church that depend on funding from the Annual Bishop’s Appeal.
“‘Now more than ever’ is our current theme, and it could not be more appropriate,” says Al Barber, president/COO. “We’ve been watching things build for months, but we’re on the verge of a perfect storm that can devastate families. For many of them, Catholic Charities may be the first or only place they can turn. Without a successful Annual Bishop’s Appeal, we cannot help them.”
Crisis Level
Barber and other Catholic Charities officials report that the emphasis of their work has turned to crisis level services in the last few months as more people feel the pain and uncertainty of the economy. Whether it’s a need for emergency food, shelter, counseling or other basic assistance, the number of calls is increasing to Catholic Charities’ offices throughout Fairfield County.
Perhaps most people are coming to know Catholic Charities best by the more than 875,000 meals it serves each year through soup kitchens, food pantries, senior nutrition sites, home-delivered meals, and other programs throughout the region. But Barber says the meals are just the tip of the iceberg for the agency that reaches out daily with counseling and family services, adoption, child care, immigration services, and housing.
“I like to remind our donors that Catholic Charities is one of the most efficient social service networks in Fairfield County and, indeed, the U.S.,” Barber says. “Dollar for dollar, we often provide services at half the cost of government providers.”
In fact, even at a time of economic downturn, the agency has recently expanded two programs – the Thomas Merton Family Center in Bridgeport and the New Covenant House of Hospitality in Stamford – based on the urgent needs of those who rely on them.
Merton Family Center
A growing number of women and children depend on the Merton Family Center for meals and pre-school socialization, according to Mark Grasso, director. "We’ve added a fifth day to the program,” Grasso says. “Parents were asking for it, and we all knew there was a great need. In this difficult economics situation, the women really needed that fifth day.”
The Family Center, located at 96 Catherine Street (just behind the Merton Center soup kitchen), is now open Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Funding for the expanded hours comes from the Annual Bishop’s Appeal as well as a “Celebrating Life” concert held at the end of last year.
Each weekday, up to 40 women and pre-school children from Bridgeport and surrounding towns come to the Merton Family Center for breakfast and lunch, child play groups, and programs that help build parenting skills. Many come in with multiple needs, ranging from a lack of basic necessities such as food or housing to help with language barriers or mental health issues.
The program’s goal is to create a safe, hospitable nurturing environment where kids can grow and parents can learn to be role models.
Issues
“Many of the women don’t speak English, and some may be dealing with domestic violence situations,” says Marie Paulemon, Family Center coordinator, noting that many don’t have families to help them and they often live in neighborhoods where their children are exposed to danger and violence.
Their children may suffer from development delays, mental health issues, behavioral problems, or isolation that slows their learning and social interaction. The staff is bilingual and includes specialists with expertise in the areas of early childhood development and mental health.
Home
One of the more remarkable aspects of the Family Center is that, once women walk through the doors, they are likely to stay for years, bringing each new child into what Paulemon calls “a home away from home.”
Maria Cuhuizo, 30, has her hands full with two pre-school daughters, three-year-old Beatrice, and one-year-old Fatima. Maria has been coming to the Merton Family Center for nine years since first arriving in this country from Mexico with her husband, Feliciano. Her two oldest children, now enrolled in Bridgeport schools, also participated in the program, which transformed their lives. “The program really helped my kids to mature, to play with other kids, and to get ready for school,” says Cuhuizo, who is grateful for the support she has received at the Family Center.
“It was very difficult when I first came here. I was shy, I didn’t speak the language and there were a lot of different things that I didn’t know how to do for my children,” she recalls. “This is a place I can come to when I’m stressed out or when I need help.”
New Covenant House
Just before Christmas, the New Covenant House of Hospitality (NCH) got an urgent request from the Yerwood Center in Stamford, which in addition to serving hundreds of Stamford youth also houses the NCH soup kitchen on the West Side of Stamford.
The Yerwood Center had been providing snacks for over 100 youth, ages 5-12, after school each day, but they were not happy with the quality of the cost they were paying. After a brief meeting with Brian Jenkins, director of New Covenant House, the Yerwood staff was delighted to learn that NCH would provide the children with a complete, nutritious meal.
The soup kitchen now sends meals upstairs to feed the kids who come in after school every day for the recreational, social and educational programs provided by the community center. “The food we send upstairs after school will be the last good meal of the day for many of these children,” says Jenkins of the collaboration between the two social service agencies. “The kids thoroughly enjoy the meal, especially when you serve the kinds of food that they love.”
“There was an urgent need,” Jenkins continues. “Many of their parents are working poor who may also depend on our food pantry to get by in this difficult economy.
The Center really wasn’t set up to provide food, and the snacks they were giving kids were expensive for them. When we offered to help, it was a great relief to them.”
Full Meal
Now, the soup kitchen staff sends up a full meal every day at 4 p.m. as it prepares to serve the evening meal at the soup kitchen. Some days, the kids eat what the adults get, but quite often the soup kitchen prepares something just for the kids. Jenkins says NCH chef Maria Lagos “tries to prepare things with children in mind,” and makes sure that a cup of yogurt and fruit are part of every meal.
“The kids love sliders (mini hamburgers) and fries, but the staff also makes sure they get vegetables,” he says with a smile.
Statement
Al Barber says the outreach to the Yerwood Center makes a statement about the quality of Catholic Charities’ programs. “Everyone is feeling it with the downtown of the economy, but the fact that Catholic Charities can reach out during these tough times says something about our commitment and our ability,” Barber concludes. “We can’t do it without the support of our volunteers and donors, especially those to the Annual Bishop’s Appeal.”
(For more information about the 2009 Living Our Faith Annual Bishop’s Appeal or to make a donation, call 416-1479 or visit online: www.bridgeportdiocese.com).
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