Catholic Diocese of Austin
Ministries Parishes Schools

 

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Capital Campaign

Catholic Charities - $3,000,000

As an expression of our faith in and love for God, Catholic Charities is dedicated to serving children, immigrants, older adults, families and communities through effective programs.  Making a difference through service, advocacy and collaboration, Catholic Charities assesses community needs and develops strategies and partnerships to address the needs of the most vulnerable.

To carry out its work, Catholic Charities collaborates with a broad range of partners including Catholic parishes, clergy, schools and youth, human services organizations and the business community. Programs administered by Catholic Charities are provided to anyone without regard to religion, race or age.

Although a number of social service agencies exist in Central Texas, we have a long way to go to meet the needs of family, friends and neighbors around us.

  • In 2003, there were 6,153 confirmed cases of childhood abuse/neglect within the diocese’s 25-county service area.
  • The same year, 11,194 incidents of family violence took place within our diocese.
  • In the Diocese of Austin, children under the age of 17 account for 36% of all persons living below poverty.
  • Almost 18% of the residents in our diocese have no high school diploma.  Teens that drop out of school have little or no job skills necessary to obtain viable employment.
  • Parishes and social services providers report significant increases in requests for basic needs such as food, clothing, medications, utilities and housing assistance.
  • 1 in 5 persons in the diocese are uninsured.
  • 202,512 adults over the age of 65 comprise 9% of the total diocesan population. 
  • While the majority of seniors have health insurance through Medicare and/or Medicaid, some have difficulty accessing services due to lack of transportation or lack of services in their home communities; more than 90% of the counties in the diocese are considered medically underserved.

Results of a recently completed diocesan-wide community assessment of Catholic Charities programs showed a great need for developing and expanding services in unserved or underserved parts of our diocese, especially outside the city of Austin.  To address specific needs by area, Catholic Charities will establish up to four satellite offices in locations such as Lampasas, Temple, Waco and Bryan.  Efforts will be focused on health and human services, affordable childcare, services for victims of domestic violence, older adult assistance and family literacy.  In addition to continued work in the area of immigrant concerns, Catholic Charities will work more closely with parishes to strengthen their parish social ministries by providing grant-writing assistance, training on Catholic social teaching and other resources.  Our campaign will help cover start-up costs of new outreach efforts while providing a steady stream of revenue for ongoing activities resulting from increased programs.