The staff and volunteers of the 170 Catholic Charities agencies nationwide and in five territories work not just to reduce poverty in their communities, but to lift up their sisters and brothers so they may reach their potential and live lives of meaning and consequence. That may mean caring for mothers and children, the unhoused, or disaster survivors – any neighbor who needs support and encouragement to fully flourish.  

Unexpectedly Expecting 

More than 108 Catholic Charities agencies offer pregnancy, parenting, and family support and services, including Catholic Charities, Archdiocese of San Antonio, where Seton Home shelters and educates pregnant and parenting teenage girls. Many of the girls come from the foster care system and are learning life skills that will carry them into adulthood and make them better parents and role models for their children.  

Learn how that agency is accompanying girls and women through crisis pregnancies.  

Innovative Housing Transforms Lives  

Among those most often overlooked in our communities are the unhoused, living on the streets among us but seemingly entirely separate from our own lives. Catholic Charities of Northwest California has responded to the crisis of homelessness on its doorstep by building Caritas Village, whose state-of-the-art facilities offer service with dignity to those in need. 

Watch the difference responding with love and compassion made for one man. 

After the Hurricane, Healing 

In the aftermath of Hurricane Helene’s devastating 2024 hit on western North Carolina, Catholic Charities Diocese of Charlotte sprang into action with lifesaving aid for residents of the city of Asheville and the surrounding region. Catholic Charities staff were among those who lost their homes, but they continued to provide care for their community. 

Read about the collective response that helped a wounded community take the first steps toward healing. 

Catholic Charities programs are available to all those in the community in need of assistance, whether they’re members of the armed forces who have served their country, refugees who’ve fled hardship in their homelands, or men and women who have paid a debt to society and are now rebuilding their lives. The throughline is that they’re doing so in a country that allows them the freedom to live in peace and safety and to give back.

Serving Those Who Served 

Life on the homefront often presents as many challenges for veterans and retired service members as their time in the military did. Catholic Charities agencies nationwide are responding with supportive housing, counseling, employment and other programs to help former military members acclimate to being home again.  

Read about five programs that serve those who served. 

Out of Disaster, Opportunity 

A Red Cross disaster worker fled Afghanistan as a refugee and was resettled by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Owensboro, only to find himself working for the same agency as it responded to a series of deadly tornadoes. As they say, it could only happen in America.  

Watch Khaibar’s incredible true story of hope and resilience. 

Incarceration, then a Second Chance 

A second chance should never be squandered, and with the support and wisdom of a volunteer prison reentry mentor through Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Dubuque, Nicole is making the most of hers. Like so many returning citizens, she is learning that navigating life after incarceration is full of obstacles, but she’s not doing it alone.  

Learn about a program bolstering community members looking for another shot at the American dream. 

Where is happiness found? In the delight of summer campers with disabilities who experience the freedom of a day at the pool? In the newly discovered musical talent of a struggling student? In the retirement camaraderie of three men who now deliver food four days a week to food-insecure neighbors? A thousand times, yes! Catholic Charities agencies provide the opportunity, but the volunteers and participants bring the joy.  

Everyone Is Someone at Camp I Am Special 

It’s called Camp I Am Special for a reason, because the participants and volunteers are very special, indeed. The program of Catholic Charities Jacksonville offers a full camp experience to those living with intellectual and physical disabilities, and they embrace the opportunity with abandon.  

See how love and acceptance radiate outwards in the Florida sunshine.  

Making Music and Making the Grade 

A community schools program piloted by Catholic Charities Archdiocese of Hartford is supporting families with the basics, such as food assistance, and students with academics and extracurriculars that allow them to explore all facets of their personalities.  

Meet a young scholar who turned his grades around through love of the violin. 

Delivering Groceries with a Smile 

Retirement can leave you with a lot of time on your hands, but three friends found new purpose bringing food to struggling communities in their region through a program of Catholic Charities of Southwest Louisiana. The food is a Godsend to the families who receive it, but the men who deliver it say the real blessing is theirs.  

Learn about volunteers who deliver food with a smile.