Missions
Catholic Relief Services Catholic Home Missions
Mission Cooperative Program Mandeville Twinning Project
OUR NEW ADDRESS IS: 933 South Logan Blvd, Hollidaysburg, PA 16648
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"THE WITNESS OF LOVE, THE SOUL OF THE MISSION, CONCERNS EVERYONE."
-- Pope Benedict XVI
We urge you to donate to the emergency collections for our brothers and sisters in Haiti that are being taken up in your parish or to send in a donation to the Mission Office (address above) which will be forwarded to CRS.
Catholic Relief Services is the official international humanitarian agency of the US Catholic Church. They respond to immediate emergency needs for such necessities as water, food, shelter and medical care, as well as to the long term need to rebuild after widespread destruction, and to the pastoral and reconstruction needs of the Church in Haiti.
Our diocese has responded generously and compassionately and so far we have sent in over $150,000 to the CRS, with another large check to be mailed again within the month.The parishes and schools have been amazing in their response to the call to help the Haitian people.THANK YOU to each and every one who has responded in prayer and sacrificial givin.
FROM CRS:How we ensure your donation will be used wisely:
We are one of the most effiecient organizations in the world. Did you know that 94 percent of the money we spend goes directly to programs that benefit the poor overseas? We work hard to keep our overhead down and consistently work smarter and find better ways of doing things to eliminate redundancies that often plague other organizations. You are always welcome to review our financial statements.
Additionally, we meet all 20 of the strict Charity Standards set by the Better Business Bureau's charity rating arm, the Wise Giving Alliance, and have an "A" rating from the American Unstitute of Philanthropy. Both of these charity watchdog groups use criteria that confrim fiscal efficiency, such as percentage of funds going directly to programs, cost to raise a dollar, treansparency and honoring the donor intent.
We strive for efficiency in all that we do. Under our Guiding Principles, based on Catholic social teaching, we follow the tenet of subsidarity: A higher level of government - or organization- should not perform any function or duty that can be handled more effectively at a lower level by people who are closer to the problem and have a better understanding of the issue. In many of the countries where we work, our local Church partners represent an efficient network already on the ground. Their work allows us to mobilize quickly to distribute food, emergency supplies and information, often within hours of a disaster. Together, we can meet the most critical needs and then help people "build back better" so that their communities will be stronger and better able to contend with future events.
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To learn about all our mission outreach, contact:
Rev. Robert Kelly, Ph. D., Director, e-mail: rjk11@psu.edu
Sr. Patti Rossi, CSJ, Assistant Director, e-mail: srpatti@dioceseaj.org
Phone: (814) 695-5579
Fax: (814) 696-6725
