From April 2020 to March 2021, diocesan Catholic Charities gave
$4.8 million in aid through nearly 90,000 client interactions, expanding its
food, emergency rent and utility assistance to serve the escalating number of
individuals impacted by the pandemic.
According to Catholic Charities, the number of clients seeking
emergency rent and utility assistance increased the most — 130 percent — as the
organization doled out $1.4 million to 3,800 people.
The majority of the donations — $3.4 million — went toward food
for more than 27,000 individuals, an increase of 115 percent from last year.
“The need for assistance, be it food or financial support, during
the past year was unmatched in recent history,” said Stephen Carattini,
president and CEO of diocesan Catholic Charities. “The impacts of the pandemic
were felt deep within our communities, by family, friends and neighbors. We
have not seen the need subside as the long-term impacts of the pandemic
continue to sharpen. Our commitment continues to be to meet this need wherever
it exists. Catholic Charities’ food pantries and ministries are reminders that
we are called to serve our neighbors and that help is never far away.”
