3 minute read
Living Out The Gospel Through Cathedral Outreach
Throughout the Gospels, Christ makes it clear that an intrinsic part of discipleship is helping those in need. Just as Jesus spent much of His earthly ministry personally comforting the poor and healing the sick, we Catholics are all called to do our part to help our suffering neighbors, seeking out the hidden Christ by administering to those in need — be it financially, emotionally or spiritually. This, says parishioner Carol Lapolla, is precisely what Cathedral Outreach aims to do in providing immediate emergency relief for those in need.
“Specifically, we help the disenfranchised in the community —not just Holy Family parishioners, but all people in the community,” Carol says. “Our most common form of assistance is to pay utility bills and rent to prevent cutoffs and evictions. We always give payment directly to the source, never to a client, so as to ensure we are being good stewards and that the money goes where it is intended. From time to time, we may help people with food as well, if they have specific dietary needs. For example, we helped someone with colon cancer who had specific dietary needs that were difficult to fulfill at a food bank.”
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The ministry is also in the process of forming a partnership with Church of St. Mary’s Outreach Program, which has an active food ministry. This would potentially provide Holy Family parishioners with a more handson outreach experience and allow the two faith communities to pool their resources together — hopefully enabling a greater impact on the larger community.
Carol says that she personally got involved in the ministry about 10 years ago, shortly after her retirement. Looking for a way to become more active in the church, she felt Cathedral Outreach would be a great way to dive in and make a difference. Since then, she says she’s learned so much through the clients she’s been able to help. It’s opened her eyes to the plight of others and helped her to see the world through a new perspective.
“I would say that I’ve learned a lot from the clients that we help,” Carol says. “For example, there was one family that we helped where the male caregiver in the family had a previous prison conviction. While he had served the prison time and been released, I saw what the family went through with him trying to support the family but not being able to get work. I saw him trying to walk up and down the street and get a job anywhere, but the incarceration kept him from getting employed. It actually got him evicted from residencies. As a whole, I think the ministry has made me more accepting of people who find themselves in these predicaments. I now realize that they get there frequently through no fault of their own and it’s very difficult to get out of these situations.”
With all of the cutoffs and evictions currently put on hold as a way of supporting families negatively impacted by COVID-19, the Cathedral Outreach is currently experiencing something of a lull. However, Carol says this can’t last forever and could potentially cause a huge increase in those needing help. “I believe, and the other people I talk to who are doing this type of work agree, that there is going to be a huge upcoming need,” Carol says. “Right now, people aren’t being evicted and there are a lot of pop-up food sources. However, I think eventually those things will dry up and there could potentially be a huge spike in the need for utility bills. When that happens, I really think that we’re going to be overwhelmed with calls.”
Parishioners can help support the ministry as it prepares to meet these inevitable needs in several ways — first, by contributing monetarily, either through the quarterly collections or by sending a check to the parish office. Parishioners may also donate food and toiletry items to the bins located in the back of church. Lastly, you can support the ministry by getting involved as a Cathedral Outreach volunteer.
