By Patrick Downes
Hawaii Catholic Herald
Launched last October in the middle of a pandemic, the new diocesan fundraiser, ‘Ohana in Christ, earned nearly $1 million in its inaugural year, thanks to the big hearts of Hawaii Catholics.
“I am very thankful for your generous response,” writes Bishop Larry Silva in his letter kicking off year two of the appeal.
‘Ohana in Christ will begin its second year in parishes the first weekend of October, Oct. 1-2.
Mass-goers will see colorful posters with bold red on yellow lettering and pictures of parishioners. They will receive the bishop’s letter with a “gift slip” and envelope to take home and mail.
They will also watch a video (or hear an audio message) of Bishop Silva asking parishioners for their support of the work of the diocese.
The approximately 1,800 ‘Ohana in Christ donors who gave directly last year will receive a letter from the bishop in the mail.
An annual diocesan campaign is a financial reality in nearly every diocese in the country. The local version takes on a Hawaiian-style starting with its name. Ohana means family in Hawaiian.
The campaign uses six “donor societies” to tag the amount of a gift. They range from the Catholic Ohana Society for donations of $625 to $1,249, to larger categories named for St. Damien and St. Marianne and Joseph Dutton, to the Stewards of the Gospel Society for contributions of $20,000 or more.
Those joining a donor society will be invited to a special Mass and reception with the bishop and be recognized in the Hawaii Catholic Herald.
The collection supports priests, seminarians, deacon formation, youth and young adult ministry, services to the poor, administrative and financial offices, diocesan communications and more.
In addition to asking for “your continued financial support,” the bishop writes in his letter to parishioners, “I also want to encourage you to seek a renewed understanding and devotion of Jesus’ love and real presence in the Eucharist.”
“As ‘Ohana in Christ we are each called to emulate his sacrificial giving of self and reach out to those in need to further build the Catholic Church in Hawaii,” he says.
For the Ohana campaign, each parish is assigned a target goal of 25% of its current annual assessment, the amount it gives yearly to the diocese to help cover diocesan operations. That brings the goal to $1,125,000, the same as last year.
The diocesan Office of Stewardship and Development is coordinating the appeal.
‘Ohana in Christ took over The Bishop’s Circle, the previous diocesan appeal aimed at individuals rather than parishes. The Bishop’s Circle’s final campaign, 2020-2021, brought in $385,000 from 731 donors, a 22% increase from the previous year.
The first year of ‘Ohana in Christ, 2021-2022, collected $959,790, 85% of its goal.
Supporting the mission
‘Ohana in Christ donations help provide these ministries and services
Priests and deacons
- Professional development
- Recruitment and assignment
- Permanent deacon formation
- Clergy health and wellness
Parishes
- Savings and loan services
- Emergency preparedness
- Staffing and training
- Financial and insurance services
- Stewardship and tech assistance
- Cemetery and real estate services
People
- Evangelization and respect life
- Catholic schools and youth groups
- Young adult faith development
- Adult faith training
- Parish food and shelter programs
- Catholic social ministry agencies
- Hospital ministry and prison ministry
Administration
- Hawaii Catholic Herald
- Diocesan communications
- Cathedral Basilica of Our Lady of Peace
- Chancery and St. Stephen Diocesan Center
- Pope Francis
- U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops
For more information, visit catholichawaii.org.
