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Senior Nutrition Menu February 2012

December 25, 2011
Robbed in a home invasion, local chefs persevere in preparing Christmas dinner for St. Margaret’s Shelter families.
Christmas Dinner will be prepared by Carrie Davis and Tim Hartman, two local chefs who offered their services to Catholic Charities’ St. Margaret’s homeless shelter, which houses 18 women and their children.
Davis and Hartman returned to Spokane on December 22nd, after a vacation to find that their home had been robbed and all of their valuable possessions had been stolen. Friends and family members rallied and Carrie contacted St. Margaret’s to suggest that regardless of their situation they still planned on buying the food product, preparing, serving and sharing Christmas dinner with the 13 women and 30 children who rsvp’d for the event. Dinner will be served at 4:00 in the dining room at the shelter.
The graciousness and resilience of the Davis-Hartman family is evident and Catholic Charities is humbled by the blessings that will be shared with the vulnerable women and children at St. Margaret’s, who are recipients of today’s Christmas dinner.
Catholic Charities continues to see tremendous struggles for the poor. They struggle to find work, stability for their children, and simply a way to survive. The homeless population continues to grow and individuals are relying on the services provided at Catholic Charities, and as well on the generosity of our community and individuals like Carrie, Tim, their children, family members and friends who are dedicated to reaching out to those in need among us, regardless of the current turmoil in their lives.
Catholic Charities Spokane served over 70,000 individuals last year through our 11 programs in 13 counties of Eastern Washington using Respect, Compassion, Collaboration and Justice in meeting the social service needs of the most vulnerable in our midst. For more information: Call 358-4250.

Contact Info: Rob McCann, Executive Director, Catholic Charities Spokane, 979-4251
Ann Marie Byrd, Director of Development, Catholic Charities Spokane, 251-4572

November 17, 2011

 CONTACT:   Chief Craig Cornelius, Spokane Fire Department, 509.435.7020
  Rob McCann, Executive Director, Catholic Charities Spokane, 509.358.4257
  Monique Kolonko, Associate Director, Housing, Catholic Charities   Spokane, 509.459.6187

 Spokane Fire Department to use future Valor Haven project for Training

The Spokane Fire Department will be conducting fire rescue training at the Warehouse site at 108 S. State Street during the week of November 21, 2011. The former underutilized storage warehouse will be torn down in order to prepare for Catholic Charities Spokane’s Valor Haven, GAU Housing project. This new housing complex will be located directly next door to the House of Charity, Catholic Charities Homeless Shelter for men.  

Deputy Chief Hannah of the Spokane Fire Department shared that this type of fire rescue training provides the rare opportunity for Spokane City Firefighters to experience a real life-like situation where the building they are entering is completely strange to them. The firefighters are then reliant on using safe and successful training methods in their response. This type of training also provides an opportunity to focus on skills that need refining.

The Valor Haven project was one of only two projects in the entire State of Washington to be selected for an award from the Housing Trust Fund in 2010.  The award is a $2.5 million grant and is for the construction of a high quality, 50 unit housing complex for chronically homeless and extremely low income individuals on GAU (General Assistance Unemployable).  This project will provide permanent housing to one of the most vulnerable and underserved populations in our community.  

This award from the Housing Trust Fund along with Tax Credits will allow this multi million project to be built at no cost to the agency and requires no fundraising of any kind from donors, parishes, private or public sources.  Building low-income housing without any fundraising from parishes or parishioners is how Catholic Charities has built all of their nearly 900 units of housing.  Valor Haven’s slated opening is early 2013.

A Candlelight Vigil will be held tonight from 5:30-7:00 p.m. at the House of Charity at 32 W. Pacific Ave. The Vigil will be held to raise awareness of the effects of poverty and homelessness in our community. The candlelight vigil will include supporters, staff, board members, volunteers, and clients of Catholic Charities. The vigil will include a short program, and a walk around the block followed by refreshments in the day room at the House of Charity.

The vigil hopes to shine light on the issues of poverty and homelessness in our community and to celebrate the work that Catholic Charities Spokane has been doing for over 99 years to support the poor in our midst. This vigil will also mark the official beginning of the annual 2011 Catholic Charities Christmas Collection.

We continue to see tremendous struggles for the poor. They struggle to find work, stability for their children, and simply a way to survive. Many social service agencies have lost large amounts of public funding and private donations have declined as well. The homeless population continues to grow and these individuals rely on the services provided at Catholic Charities.

Each December, in a one-month period at Christmas time, Catholic Charities attempts to raise the bulk of the private donations it will need to operate its programs for the next year. The Christmas Collection funds the agency as it provides monies to support Catholic Charities’ 11 programs in the 13 counties of Eastern Washington. Catholic Charities served over 70,000 individuals last year.

Catholic Charities Spokane has decided to postpone a proposed $10 million Centennial Campaign due to the economy and feedback garnered from a Centennial Feasibility Study sent to supporters, volunteers and community members earlier this year. The Campaign celebrating the agency’s 100th year of operations in eastern Washington was Endowment based and would have benefited the 11 programs of Catholic Charities Spokane for future years where funding might fall short.

“At Catholic Charities, we pride ourselves on being compassionate, patient, understanding and respectful of our clients. It is clear to us that we need to be compassionate, patient, understanding and respectful of our donors as well. These are extremely difficult economic times for all of us, including our wonderful Catholic Charities donors,” shared Rob McCann, Executive Director of Catholic Charities.

Catholic Charities Spokane plans to celebrate the Centennial year with additional public events while running a public awareness campaign to share the tremendous and positive impact we make in the lives of the most vulnerable in the communities of eastern Washington.

As state and federal funding continues to diminish Catholic Charities along with so many other non-profits is faced with the extraordinary task of sharing our valuable work with the public. We must continue to raise awareness of the fact that the suffering of those living in poverty, homelessness, or fear and the anguish of those struggling with mental illness will not simply go away when funding does. It is our duty to fight for those who are unable to stand up for themselves. It is our moral obligation to provide for those in need.

Catholic Charities Spokane’s House of Charity would like to extend an invitation for you to attend our 26th Annual Bishop’s Poor Man’s Meal, tomorrow, October 9th, from 11a.m.-2:00 p.m., at the House of Charity, 32 W. Pacific Ave, Spokane. The Poor Man’s Meal benefits the Sleeping Program which provides sleeping accommodations for 108 men nightly.

This Open House event format, will include a simple lunch of soup, rolls, and dessert, all made in the House of Charity kitchen. Tours of the facility will be given throughout the afternoon, and a short program will begin about 12:15 p.m. with Bishop Blase Cupich, Bishop of the Spokane Diocese, offering the blessing. The Silver Tray award will also be presented to long-time stewards of the shelter.

The House of Charity provides a variety of services to our community’s homeless and low-income population, including meals, a medical clinic, laundry and mail facilities, sleeping accommodations for 108 men nightly, and mental health and case management.

Catholic Charities Spokane’s Childbirth and Parenting Assistance (CAPA) program would like to invite you to our second annual fundraiser, “Linking families for Life,” on Saturday, October 8th, from 5:00pm – 8:00pm, at the Lincoln Center, 1316 N. Lincoln Street, Spokane. Tickets are $50.00 per person.

The evening will include a small, silent art auction, dinner, a presentation by Alan Basham, M.A., Eastern Washington professor and personal testimonials from a CAPA mentor and CAPA mom.

CAPA has served the Spokane community since 1985. CAPA provides counseling, mentors, classes, support groups, diapers and baby supplies to low income parents and pregnant women with children ages 3 and under. In 2010, CAPA served over 6,000 families and currently, more families than ever are seeking their services.

To make reservations for the Linking families for Life event please call 358-4254 or email jlee@ccspokane.org. Or for more information on how you can help support this program, please call 455-4986.