Partners in Charity to get underway

Most parishes in the diocese are to launch the Partners in Charity Annual Appeal during Lent, the season of almsgiving. Ten parishes started Partners early to accommodate the ongoing Legacy of Hope capital campaign schedule.
The Partners’ patron this year is St. Oscar Romero, the Salvadoran archbishop assassinated while celebrating Mass in 1980. He inspired the 2020 campaign theme of envisioning a world of justice, charity and dignity for all.     
Faith in Action has been a constant theme of Partners in Charity and Archbishop Romero challenged the people of El Salvador to act out of their faith.
Bishop McManus said that at a recent visit with Pope Francis “our Holy Father reminded us that we must be close to those in need, as Christ was close to his people. This call to accompany our brothers and sisters is the heart of our mission as Catholics in the Diocese of Worcester.”
This year many pastors are trying to engage and grow their donor base, according to Michael P. Gillespie, diocesan director of the Office of Stewardship and Development.
“A new approach is to focus on the number of gifts, not necessarily the amount of the gift,” he said, thus welcoming more people to be involved in the campaign.
One of the things Archbishop Romero said was, “Let us do what we can. We can all do something.”
 The official Partners launch is Feb. 24.  
Many parishes plan to conduct the in-pew solicitation on March 14 and 15, and some may choose March 21 and 22 instead, Mr. Gillespie said.
The goals for each parish remain the same as in 2019. The overall goal is $5 million, the same as in the past several years. A few parishes are trying to reach their goals early and end solicitation by the end of May instead of Aug. 31, the end of the fiscal year, he said.
Last year Partners in Charity coincided with the $32 million capital campaign, Legacy of Hope, and will coincide with it again this year.
Since the pledge and collection periods overlap, it is important that people understand the different purpose for each appeal, Mr. Gillespie said.
The one-time, multi-year Legacy of Hope campaign aims to assist in long-term funding of certain diocesan and parish needs. Included are: direct parish support, parish-based charitable outreach, parish-based evangelization, Catholic education, priests’ retirement and custodial care and repairs of the diocesan cathedral. People can make pledges over a four-year period.
Partners in Charity helps support the day-to-day operations of 25 ministries with charitable, educational, and ministerial focuses. (See list below.) The appeal runs in every parish each year, usually beginning in Lent and ending Aug. 31 or sooner.     
The Legacy of Hope campaign has broken up the diocese into four blocks of parishes, each starting their collections at different times. In order to provide a strong start to Legacy of Hope, the nine parishes in Block 1 started the 2019 Partners appeal early, in January, last year. Eight of those parishes surpassed their Partners goal and several reached their Legacy of Hope parish target, Mr. Gillespie said.
“It was encouraging that both campaigns were successful in those parishes,” he said.
This year the 10 parishes in Legacy of Hope’s Block 3 started their 2020 Partners appeal Jan. 27, Mr. Gillespie said. Ideally, they will finish their Partners collection before embarking on Legacy of Hope in March.
All other parishes are about to start their Partners appeal in Lent, Mr. Gillespie said. Block 2 parishes are also finishing up their Legacy of Hope collections, and Block 4 parishes have not started Legacy yet.
A kick-off lunch for Partners parish representatives is scheduled for noon Thursday in the Chancery library.
The gathering is to include an opening prayer and remarks by Bishop McManus, a brief talk by Father Donato Infante III, director of the Office for Vocations, and the showing of this year’s Partners video. That day parish representatives can pick up their Partners materials, including bulletin inserts, pledge envelopes, outdoor banners and past donor lists, Mr. Gillespie said.
Those planning to attend are asked RSVP to Hillary at development@worcesterdiocese.org or 508-929-4366.

The 25 agencies and ministries that receive funding from Partners in Charity are:

CHARITY:  

• Catholic Charities
• McAuley Nazareth Home for Boys
• Pernet Family Health Service
• Priests’ Retirement
• Retired Priests Health
Ministry
• St. John Diocesan
Cemetery System
 
EDUCATION:
• Advanced Studies for Clergy and Laity
• Catholic Schools Office
• Communications
Ministry
• Grant-in-Aid for Schools
• Office of Religious
Education
• Ongoing Priestly
Formation
• Seminarian Education  

MINISTRY:
• African Ministry
• Catholic Campus Ministry
• Hispanic Apostolate
• Minister to Priests
• Office for Divine Worship
• Office of Hispanic/Latino Ministry
• Office of Marriage and Family
• Office of the Diaconate
• Respect Life Office
• St. Paul Cathedral
• Vocations Office and House of Studies
• Youth and Young Adult Ministries