With profound joy and gratitude, we celebrate this month the 90th anniversary of Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Hartford. At the same time, we mark the 100th anniversary of Catholic Charities U.S.A. Our parishes will highlight these anniversaries in the weekend Masses of Sept. 25-26.

These occasions are opportunities to note that the Catholic Church, after government, is the highest provider of social services in our society, as well as of educational services and medical services. Pastoral services occupy a distinguished plain of their own. Our call goes back to Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: "I have come to serve, not to be served." The corporal and spiritual works of mercy have their roots in Sacred Scripture and their resonance in our hearts.

Catholic Charities, originally called the Diocesan Bureau of Social Services, has continually centered on child welfare, the strengthening of families, health care, elderly care, and early childhood education. Prior to the formation of Catholic Charities on the national and the diocesan levels, the response for basic human needs (food, clothing, and shelter) fell on the shoulders of the individual parishes and religious communities. The parishes and the communities still provide these services, but Catholic Charities has continued to expand and develop them on larger levels.

Today, Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Hartford serves more than 34,000 people annually from 38 sites spread through the three counties of Hartford, New Haven, and Litchfield. The services include adoption, pregnancy counseling, foster care, refugee resettlement, early childhood education, residential services for the developmentally challenged, youth services, family counseling, parent education, services for the elderly, training for employment, and many others.

The annual budget for our Archdiocesan Catholic Charities is $28 million. Much of this comes from government reimbursement for the services provided and from private corporations who recognize the tremendous impact these services have on people and communities.

Of course, the Archdiocese provides annual subsidies in a variety of ways, and the Archbishop’s Annual Appeal has made possible magnificent developments in recent years. Thanks to the Appeal, we have been able to open a new Catholic Charities center at the former St. Donato Church in New Haven and a new center at Sacred Heart Parish, Waterbury. Your help in the Appeal has also made possible the construction of the Institute for the Hispanic Family in Hartford. The Appeal has also been the trigger to bring about Cathedral Green, affordable and supportive housing in the former School of St. Joseph Cathedral, Hartford. Yes, government and private monies have been enormously helpful in these accomplishments, but your generosity in the Appeal has provided the seed money to initiate the projects.

We are aware of a very important service enabled by the Appeal these last two years and currently continuing. It is the Emergency Assistance Fund, through which pastors can recommend people to Catholic Charities for assistance to people suffering from unemployment or illness. Since it started in 2009, more than 500 people from 138 parishes have received vitally important assistance through this program. When you facilitate collaboration between parishes and Catholic Charities, wonderful results are possible.

The members of Catholic Charities’ staff, more than 500 people, bring extraordinary skill and dedication to their work. From their day-to-day involvement, they also cultivate strong expertise regarding policies that are effective and needed as well as those that are not productive. Catholic Charities people, both nationally and locally, are sought out by federal agencies, local governments, and human services organizations for their practical wisdom on these matters, particularly as they affect people most at risk in our society.

I am profoundly grateful to Rose Alma Senatore, the Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Charities, for her extraordinary leadership of Catholic Charities. My esteem goes out also to all our staff members for the work that serves individual people and groups every day. Prayerful appreciation is always in place for all of our people who generously support, by finances, prayer, and volunteer help, the services of Catholic Charities to people of various faith backgrounds, races, and ethnic roots.

May our prayers and reflections on the weekend of Sept. 25-26 remind us of the superb services being rendered and raise our sensitivity to the importance of their continued success.