Catholic Charities

Catholic Charities is a multifaceted organization dedicated to supporting vulnerable communities across the United States. It provides more than 38,000 permanent housing units for families, seniors, veterans, and others, along with temporary and emergency housing. The organization offers healthy food options through various channels, including food banks, pantries, schools, daycare centers, summer lunch programs, group dining settings, and community farms. Integrated health services such as counseling, mental health care, addiction recovery, case management, and caregiver support are also available. As the official domestic relief agency of the U.S. Catholic Church, Catholic Charities provides immediate humanitarian support and long-term aid for disaster relief. It runs social enterprise and workforce development programs to improve workplace potential and alleviate poverty, and provides immigration services to vulnerable people on the move. The organization addresses clients’ economic, social, cultural, personal, and spiritual needs from conception to natural death, and engages with parishes to support their efforts in caring for the poor and vulnerable. Catholic Charities supports a national network of agencies committed to helping those on the margins, regardless of faith, and coordinates disaster response, providing relief funds for natural and human-made disasters. It offers case management and housing plans for single, childless, self-identified women 25 and older who are homeless, and collaborates with local health systems to offer medical support, data exchange, on-site behavioral health services, and emergency assistance. Pilot programs like Nurse Disrupted and Hope Chatbot connect those in need with service providers in innovative ways. The organization also engages in advocacy to promote policies that uplift vulnerable communities and bolster the common good, and offers professional development opportunities such as the O’Grady Leadership Institutes and a Certificate in Nonprofit Executive Management. Catholic Charities disburses disaster funds and grants to agencies to aid their crisis responses, including financial and in-kind donations, and provides mobile response centers equipped with essentials for disaster relief. It engages in parish social ministry by promoting the Catholic social mission and facilitating networking between parish-based social ministry staff and community partners.