How well will we treat our needy?

At Catholic Charities, we are overwhelmed by requests from so many families because they are hungry, unemployed, or even living out of their cars. A destitute family of five came to Catholic Charities yesterday. Desperate for work, they drove to Chicago seeking temporary labor, and upon arrival found these jobs were empty promises.

They had nothing, and their young children had not eaten anything substantial in two days. We fed them and found a shelter where they could spend the night and plan their next steps with a caseworker. These are extraordinarily difficult times for the poor in Illinois and we seek to bring their plight to the public so all fellow Illinoisans may understand their pain and suffering.

Catholic Charities is deeply committed to serving as many people in need as we can, even if the state chooses to cut back programs they no longer feel are valuable, like help for teen mothers and their babies, or services for frail elderly persons in their homes.

It is said that a society is judged by how well it treats its most vulnerable citizens, and Catholic Charities is one of many social service agencies that successfully partners with the state when it needs our expertise to care for seniors and children. So we pray that any budget decisions may be made with the needs of our less fortunate neighbors in mind. We look forward to a time when these dark days will end.

Meanwhile, we will continue to keep our doors open to the most vulnerable among us who have nowhere else to turn, using whatever resources we can find, so that they may not slip into the deepest pockets of poverty and never make it out. This has been our mission for more than 90 years and we will not abandon it.

Rev. Michael M. Boland

President

Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Chicago