Dear colleague in ministry,

Last week’s finals event for the Catholic Charities USA Innovation Challenge featured two programs with significant parish engagement components. You may learn more about them through these short videos:

The Parish Engagement Program (PEP) of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County

The PREPARES program of Catholic Charities Eastern Washington

These programs will be profiled in depth during two upcoming webinars, which we hope you’ll be able to join:

Parish Engagement Program of Santa Clara: Innovation Challenge Finalist

This webinar will profile the Parish Engagement Program (PEP) of Catholic Charities of Santa Clara County, which is a finalist in the CCUSA Innovation Challenge. PEP is a parish community-based program that lifts the inherent dignity of those in need through trauma-informed peer-to-peer service navigation centered in an evening "farmers market" offering fresh and nutritious food, social service programs, and a hot meal. This model produces immediate, rapid, and sustainable progress for participants, establishing greater stability and self-reliance, and leading to increased interdependence, civic engagement, and participation in the parish and wider community. Date: October 07, 2020, at 3 PM ET. Register here.

PREPARES - CCUSA Innovation Challenge finalist

Join this webinar to learn about PREPARES, a Catholic Charities USA Innovation Challenge finalist which presently engages over 500 volunteers from 159 parishes who have served 12,000 families. This parish-based program engages a network of parish volunteers, professional staff, and aligned programs to accompany pregnant and parenting women, men, and families with children under five who live in poverty and lack a healthy support network. PREPARES successfully alleviates poverty, increases health care access, and protects children at risk of abuse and neglect. Created by the bishops of Washington state in 2013, funding from the USCCB and CCHD enabled three state Catholic Charities agencies to begin implementation, including Catholic Charities Eastern Washington as featured in this webinar. Date: October 14, 2020, at 3 PM  ET. Register here.

Please share these opportunities with your ministry networks.