$35M raised for COVID-19 relief efforts
Archdiocese of Chicago, Catholic Charities ‘step up’
The Archdiocese of Chicago and Catholic Charities have raised $35 million in a COVID-19 relief effort to address a growing need for social services in Cook and Lake counties.
Catholic Charities has raised $15 million since March, and the two organizations together raised an additional $20 million. Funds will be deployed to assist people regardless of their faith, race, ethnicity or gender, according to the archdiocese.
The money is expected to be allocated among both organizations. Catholic Charities will receive 60% of the $20 million in joint relief funds to significantly increase assistance to individuals and families in need, according to the archdiocese. Assistance includes food and housing support, burial aid for victims of COVID-19 and domestic violence support.
The archdiocese will put the remaining 40% into emergency scholarships for Catholic school students and its inmate reentry ministry, among other efforts, according to the archdiocese.
“The global pandemic has caused unspeakable loss and overwhelming financial hardship for so many of our neighbors and cataclysmic disruption of our health and health care systems, our economy, parishes, schools and our daily routines,” Cardinal Blase Cupich, archbishop of Chicago, said in a statement. “In these days of Thanksgiving, I am grateful to the many donors giving witness to the Catholic tradition of Corporal Works of Mercy that calls us to come to the aid of our brothers and sisters in need during this historic crisis.”
Sally Blount, CEO of Catholic Charities, said the effort was launched after the church saw a significant increase in requests for assistance throughout the coronavirus pandemic.
“We’ve been able to step up what we are doing,” Blount said. “In the 2008 recession, demands stayed high for three to four years. We think there’s going to be an increased demand for a good five years and beyond. This isn’t just 2020. We’re talking about structural issues for several years to come.”
Families struggling with housing insecurity may be given aid to cover rent costs for up to three months, for example.
“If we can keep a family in their homes three more months, it can make the difference between having to go to shelters,” she said. “We know that can have a significant impact. There are many people and organizations distributing this money, but there is a lot of need.”
Requests for food assistance have doubled and will likely soon triple, Blount said. In March, April and early May, Catholic Charities saw a 60% increase in requests for food compared with the same time period in 2019, according to the organization.
Funds will also be allocated for domestic violence support, including counseling and short-term housing. Small grants to a number of parishes doing on-theground work will also be dispersed, she added.
Catholic Charities has also seen a significant increase in requests for burial assistance — predominantly from non-Catholics on the West and South sides of Chicago, according to the organization.
“Coming from a place of faith, one of the key acts of mercy is burying the dead,” Blount said. “Often the reason you see families in food pantries and housing assistance is because they will bury their loved ones and have no money left over.”
Blount said Catholic Charities has distributed more than $735,000 in burial grants so far, helping 210 families.
“If you’re a minimum wage worker, even a modest burial can create financial issues; you can imagine what that can do for a family’s income,” she said.
The archdiocese has also used the funds for emergency tuition assistance for families dealing with job loss and other loss of income due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Kathie Donovan, principal at St. Hilary School in West Ridge, said the tuition fund has been especially helpful for students to continue their educations in turbulent times.
“COVID-19 definitely affected our families. Some have lost jobs or have small businesses that are suffering,” she said. “The emergency tuition fund (has) allowed them to continue with the quality Catholic education that they have and allows new families to join our school as well.” Nine students at the school have received tuition funding through the archdiocese.
By early September, more than $1 million in COVID-19 relief scholarships averaging $1,400 per student had been awarded to 726 students in 500 families, according to the archdiocese.
Parish-based ministries and the Kolbe House Jail Ministry have also been given funds for programming and social services.