Bishop Has Spearheaded Historic Capital Campaign

By Irene M. Lagan
HERALD Staff Writer
(From the Issue of April 10, 2003)

Envisioning a vibrant and thriving Catholic culture, Arlington Bishop Paul S. Loverde initiated the "Rooted in Faith — Forward in Hope" Capital Campaign in May 2002. The $75 million capital and endowment campaign will help the diocese better serve the rapidly growing population with an expanded array of diocesan institutions, while at the same time allowing some parishes to build facilities and others to renovate. The magnitude and scope of the campaign is a first for the diocese, and has been called a "historic moment."

"The capital campaign will allow us to come together in deeper unity," Bishop Loverde said. "What we do these next few years will have a tremendous impact on our future."

The diocese, which was established on Aug. 13, 1974, has increased by more than 260 percent, with a population that now exceeds 360,000. In addition, there are 34 parish elementary schools, including eight that have opened within the last 10 years, three high schools, 66 parishes and five missions in Virginia’s 21 northern counties and seven independent cities. In addition, the diocese has established eight parishes since 1996, and Catholic Charities has witnessed a tremendous increase in scope, with more than 40,000 people served in the year 2000.

Another impetus for the fundraising effort was to initiate the financial and physical structures that most older dioceses have in place, such as endowments for education and a retirement home for priests.

"Soon after my arrival in Arlington," Bishop Loverde said. "I began to receive letters from Catholics drawing my attention to needed services. When I visited parishes throughout the diocese, people would ask when our diocese would build new high schools and a diocesan center for retreats and spiritual meetings."

Campaign funds will help provide seed money to establish two new high schools ($25 million); endowments for Catholic school scholarships and faculty development ($12.5 million); Catholic Charities services ($10 million); a retirement home for priests ($5 million); a spirituality center ($5 million); religious education and youth ministry endowments ($2.5 million); and provide a minimum of $15 million for parish needs.

Preliminary discussion about the need for a diocesan capital campaign began during Bishop John Keating’s administration, well before Bishop Loverde’s installation as the third bishop of the Arlington Diocese. Some needs, like the priest’s retirement home have been discussed for over twenty years. According to the bishop, the rapid expansion of the diocese has created real needs that have dictated the timing for the fundraising efforts.

After months of study, dialogue and consultation with priests and laity to identify specific areas of need, Bishop Loverde launched the campaign that will end in June of this year. Prior to embarking on the campaign, the bishop established a separate non-profit corporation, Rooted in Faith — Forward in Hope, Inc., to ensure that funds raised are used only for the purposes for which they were collected.

Father Daniel J. Maher was appointed diocesan Episcopal Vicar for Finance by Bishop Loverde in August 2000 and has overseen the study process and the campaign coordination. The campaign in the Diocese of Arlington has been most successful as we have experienced extraordinary leadership from pastors and priests throughout the diocese. They have recruited very talented lay people to assist them in spreading the message of the campaign throughout each parish. And parishioners in various parts of the diocese have responded generously to the needs of the Church," said Fr. Maher.

Six parishes agreed to serve as test parishes during the pilot phase of the campaign that ran from March through July 2002. Included among the first group were: Precious Blood in Culpeper, St. John in McLean, St. John the Baptist in Front Royal, St. Raymond of Penafort in Fairfax Station, St. Veronica in Herndon and Our Lady of Lourdes in Arlington. The six pilot parishes raised $9.5 million in pledges, far exceeding their collective goals of $4.9 million. This proved to be an indicator of the extraordinary generosity of the diocesan Catholics, as well as, their interest in supporting the needs of the diocese and embracing a personalized fund-raising methodology. The overall campaign has witnessed an unprecedented level of giving, with the average pledge to the campaign exceeding $5,000.

The remaining parishes conducted the campaign in two groups, Bloc I and Bloc II. Thirty-one parishes and missions were active in Bloc I, which took place from August to December 2002. The final 35 parishes and missions that comprise Bloc II kicked off campaign efforts in February and will finish in May and early June.

Robert Mueller, director of the Office of Stewardship and Development, believes the campaign’s success is the result of several things. "One is the planning and study process that has outlined important needs of our local Church," he said. "Secondly, the commitment of time by Bishop Loverde, the pastors and parish lay leaders has allowed the needs of the campaign to be communicated to parishioners in the parishes. Finally, parishioners have responded in extraordinary ways. There are many people that have made once in a lifetime gifts to support this campaign."

Bishop Loverde continues to be encouraged by the response from parishioners. He has always seen that his obligation is to make the needs of our Church known to our diocesan families. In so doing, he is hopeful they respond generously so that the promotion of the gospel can be strengthened in the diocese. 

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