Associated Catholic Charities
Encyclopedia
Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Baltimore cares for more than 160,000 people and serves over a quarter million meals every year to those who are hungry. Eighty programs offer a diverse array of services in Baltimore City and Baltimore
, Harford, Howard, Carroll, Anne Arundel, Frederick, Washington, and Garrett Counties of Maryland
. The agency cares for children and families, people who are poor and disadvantaged, seniors, and those who have developmental disabilities. The goal of the organization is to improve lives by offering meaningful help and hope so that every person can realize her or his full potential.
Catholic Charities is the leading private provider of human services in Maryland, widely known for creative and compassionate caregiving and for developing programs aimed at self-sufficiency. Ninety cents of every dollar goes to direct service.
“To
The services provided include:
. John Carroll, the first Bishop of Baltimore, declared in 1792 that one-third of all parish revenues should go to “the relief of the poor.”
In the mid-19th century, services focused on caring for orphaned immigrant children. The first program, St. Vincent’s Orphanage, opened in 1856. Over the next century, numerous homes for such children were established by the Archdiocese, as Baltimore became the point of entry for more 19th century immigrants than any other U.S. city outside of New York.
In 1923, the Archdiocese incorporated all of the children’s orphanages under a new “Bureau of Catholic Charities” and the care of disadvantaged people became the specialized mission of Catholic Charities, which continues today. Over the next century, the orphanage focus changed as the need for treating neglected and abused children and those with emotional disabilities became greater. As a result, St. Vincent’s Center and Villa Maria opened in Dulaney Valley in the 1960s.
Catholic Charities became innovators in developing programs for people with developmental disabilities through the establishment of the Francis X. Gallagher Center in the 1970s. Also located in Dulaney Valley, both the residential and day programs have grown and now have multiple locations.
In the following decade, the Agency expanded to include programs for poor, homeless, and unemployed people. Our Daily Bread, a daily hot meal program, opened its doors in 1981 and has never missed a day of service since. Our Daily Bread has become Catholic Charities’ most well-known program, involving thousands of volunteers from around the region. These kind individuals take poverty to heart and respond by providing and serving the vast majority of the nearly quarter million meals each year. As the necessity arose, additional programs opened to serve the related needs of the homeless men (Christopher Place Employment Academy) and women (My Sister’s Place).
Continuing its tremendous growth of services in the 1980s, Catholic Charities began evolving into one of Baltimore’s largest providers of services for seniors. The first of 18 affordable, independent living apartment communities for seniors, Basilica Place, opened in 1980. The Agency also transformed the Jenkins Memorial Home into what is today the Jenkins Senior Living Community, a beautiful campus that includes two independent senior living apartment buildings (St. Joachim House and DePaul House), St. Ann Adult Day Services, Caritas House Assisted Living, and St. Elizabeth Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.
In June 2007, Catholic Charities undertook its most ambitions effort to date with the opening of Our Daily Bread Employment Center. It is Baltimore’s comprehensive resource center for people who need not only food, but assistance and guidance to achieve long-term employment and housing. An array of services in one location shifts the focus from primarily dining to achieving self sufficiency.
Over many years, Catholic Charities’ programs and services have evolved in tandem with the needs and challenges faced by the most vulnerable people in our society. The one constant is that the work of the Agency is rooted in the Gospel of Jesus that encourages all to serve the “least of our brethren”—people of all faiths, ages, and races.
Baltimore County, Maryland
Baltimore County is a county located in the northern part of the US state of Maryland. In 2010, its population was 805,029. It is part of the Baltimore-Washington Metropolitan Area. Its county seat is Towson. The name of the county was derived from the barony of the Proprietor of the Maryland...
, Harford, Howard, Carroll, Anne Arundel, Frederick, Washington, and Garrett Counties of Maryland
Maryland
Maryland is a U.S. state located in the Mid Atlantic region of the United States, bordering Virginia, West Virginia, and the District of Columbia to its south and west; Pennsylvania to its north; and Delaware to its east...
. The agency cares for children and families, people who are poor and disadvantaged, seniors, and those who have developmental disabilities. The goal of the organization is to improve lives by offering meaningful help and hope so that every person can realize her or his full potential.
Catholic Charities is the leading private provider of human services in Maryland, widely known for creative and compassionate caregiving and for developing programs aimed at self-sufficiency. Ninety cents of every dollar goes to direct service.
Mission
Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Baltimore’s mission is threefold:“To
- provide healing and care to those in need at programs for vulnerable children and adults throughout Maryland,
- educate people to social awareness and motivate them to act, and
- advocate for public policy that ensures a just society. “
Services
Catholic Charities provides services to people of all faiths. The general groups for whom services are offered include:- children
- poor
- developmentally disabled
- elderly
The services provided include:
- adoptions
- advocacy
- behavioral health services
- crisis intervention
- employment placement
- employment preparedness training
- family support services
- food and meals
- Head Start programs (for pre-school children)
- immigration legal services
- residential treatment centers
- senior housing
- senior support services
- shelter (for men, women, children, and families)
- special education
- treatment foster care
Donors
Associated Catholic Charities has a strong history of responsible financial stewardship (more than 90% of operating revenues go towards providing services http://www.guidestar.org/FinDocuments/2007/520/591/2007-520591538-03bc7c91-9.pdf). Donations are still very important to the organization and account for 10% of operating income. The organization provides services to people of all faiths, and the approximately 20,000 active donors also come from all faiths.Volunteers
The agency has permanent staff of about 2,000, but relies on more than 10,000 volunteers each year to help provide services for more than 160,000 people. Volunteers come from all faiths, races, and age groups. As tough economic times drive up the demand for services, and government funding decreases, the need for additional volunteers will continue to rise.Geography
Associated Catholic Charities provides services within the geographic boundaries of the Archdiocese of Baltimore–Baltimore City and Baltimore, Harford, Howard, Carroll, Anne Arundel, Frederick, Washington, and Garrett Counties of Maryland. Most donors, volunteers, employees and clients come from the same area, though quite a few come from outside the Archdiocese.History
Catholic Charities began with the establishment of the Catholic Church in AmericaRoman Catholicism in the United States
The Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, the Christian Church in full communion with the Pope. With more than 68.5 registered million members, it is the largest single religious denomination in the United States, comprising about 22 percent of the population...
. John Carroll, the first Bishop of Baltimore, declared in 1792 that one-third of all parish revenues should go to “the relief of the poor.”
In the mid-19th century, services focused on caring for orphaned immigrant children. The first program, St. Vincent’s Orphanage, opened in 1856. Over the next century, numerous homes for such children were established by the Archdiocese, as Baltimore became the point of entry for more 19th century immigrants than any other U.S. city outside of New York.
In 1923, the Archdiocese incorporated all of the children’s orphanages under a new “Bureau of Catholic Charities” and the care of disadvantaged people became the specialized mission of Catholic Charities, which continues today. Over the next century, the orphanage focus changed as the need for treating neglected and abused children and those with emotional disabilities became greater. As a result, St. Vincent’s Center and Villa Maria opened in Dulaney Valley in the 1960s.
Catholic Charities became innovators in developing programs for people with developmental disabilities through the establishment of the Francis X. Gallagher Center in the 1970s. Also located in Dulaney Valley, both the residential and day programs have grown and now have multiple locations.
In the following decade, the Agency expanded to include programs for poor, homeless, and unemployed people. Our Daily Bread, a daily hot meal program, opened its doors in 1981 and has never missed a day of service since. Our Daily Bread has become Catholic Charities’ most well-known program, involving thousands of volunteers from around the region. These kind individuals take poverty to heart and respond by providing and serving the vast majority of the nearly quarter million meals each year. As the necessity arose, additional programs opened to serve the related needs of the homeless men (Christopher Place Employment Academy) and women (My Sister’s Place).
Continuing its tremendous growth of services in the 1980s, Catholic Charities began evolving into one of Baltimore’s largest providers of services for seniors. The first of 18 affordable, independent living apartment communities for seniors, Basilica Place, opened in 1980. The Agency also transformed the Jenkins Memorial Home into what is today the Jenkins Senior Living Community, a beautiful campus that includes two independent senior living apartment buildings (St. Joachim House and DePaul House), St. Ann Adult Day Services, Caritas House Assisted Living, and St. Elizabeth Rehabilitation and Nursing Center.
In June 2007, Catholic Charities undertook its most ambitions effort to date with the opening of Our Daily Bread Employment Center. It is Baltimore’s comprehensive resource center for people who need not only food, but assistance and guidance to achieve long-term employment and housing. An array of services in one location shifts the focus from primarily dining to achieving self sufficiency.
Over many years, Catholic Charities’ programs and services have evolved in tandem with the needs and challenges faced by the most vulnerable people in our society. The one constant is that the work of the Agency is rooted in the Gospel of Jesus that encourages all to serve the “least of our brethren”—people of all faiths, ages, and races.
See also
- Catholic CharitiesCatholic CharitiesCatholic Charities is a network of charities whose aim is "to provide service to people in need, to advocate for justice in social structures, and to call the entire church and other people of good will to do the same." It is one of the largest charities in the United States...
- Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of ChicagoCatholic Charities of the Archdiocese of ChicagoCatholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago is the largest in a nationwide network of faith-based social service providers that form Catholic Charities. Together they form the largest private network of social service providers in the United States...
- Roman Catholic Archdiocese of MiamiRoman Catholic Archdiocese of MiamiThe Archdiocese of Miami is a particular church of the Roman Catholic Church in the United States of America. Its ecclesiastic territory includes Broward, Miami-Dade, and Monroe counties in the U.S. state of Florida. The archdiocese is the metropolitan see for the Ecclesiastical Province of Miami,...
- Roman Catholicism in the United StatesRoman Catholicism in the United StatesThe Catholic Church in the United States is part of the worldwide Catholic Church, the Christian Church in full communion with the Pope. With more than 68.5 registered million members, it is the largest single religious denomination in the United States, comprising about 22 percent of the population...
External links
- Associated Catholic Charities home page: http://www.catholiccharities-md.org
- GuideStar charity evaluations: http://www.guidestar.org/
- Baltimore archdiocese: http://www.archbalt.org/