“Never tire of working for a more just world, marked by greater solidarity!” (Pope Francis)
These words from Pope Francis are on the 2014 collection poster for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development or CCHD. Every November, the U.S. bishops ask to contribute to this appeal. But where do the funds go?
Locally, some CCHD funds have gone to HOPE Services Hawaii, the diocesan agency that works with vulnerable people on the Big Island. HOPE has organized the formerly incarcerated and homeless along with parish volunteers young and old to help renovate affordable housing for the poor. HOPE has also been going door-to-door in Pahoa connecting kupuna to community resources to help them survive the consequences of natural disasters.
CCHD just funded the Pu‘a Foundation, which often stands alone outside the gates of the Women’s Correctional Community Center in Oahu to receive persons released with only a trash bag of belongings and bring them to private homes where landlords provide a room, and the possibility of job training and employment to help them build new lives.
For more than 46.5 million Americans, there is a thin line between a home and eviction, between health and hunger, between work and unemployment, between stability and anxiety. This line is the Poverty Line. The Catholic Campaign for Human Development is dedicated to breaking the cycle of poverty by funding community programs working to overcome it.
Bishop Larry Silva’s letter [on page 2] calls all in the diocese to give generously to the annual November CCHD collection. Please read his letter with a compassionate heart, answering Pope Francis’ call to “build a more just world” by helping CCHD provide those in poverty with the support they need to make lasting changes in order to survive and thrive.
Mahalo,
Your friends at the Office for Social Ministry
