February 25, 2021 - Cardinal Announces 2021 Catholic Appeal

In the year of the Pandemic Teamwork has been Essential
Annual Fund Supports Mission Critical Programs, Parishes, Schools & Ministries

Braintree, MA -- The 2021 Catholic Appeal will be announced in parishes of the Archdiocese of Boston during the weekend of February 27/28, 2021. Commitment weekend takes place the following weekend of March 6/7, 2021. The Catholic Appeal is the annual fund that supports more than 51 central ministries that enrich parish life, Catholic schools, and the lives of those who turn to the Church for assistance.

Cardinal Seán P. O’Malley said, “There are many challenges in today’s world and the Church is often the only support network for individuals and families. The Catholic Appeal helps to fund the work of our parishes, schools, and ministries – bringing hope to those most in need. During the ongoing pandemic, the work of our teams throughout the Archdiocese is especially important as we continue to safely provide services at our parishes and schools in support of the mission of the Church."
 

Patricia Kelleher Bartram, Interim Secretary for Institutional Advancement, said, “At the beginning of the pandemic Cardinal Seán called on us to take care of each other. That is how we live our faith together. This year in particular has seen such heartache and suffering, and yet we have seen the goodness of so many who have stepped forward to support the many programs, parishes, and schools that have brought normalcy and comfort in a year of great chaos and pain.”

The Catholic Appeal funds nearly 50% of the Archdiocese of Boston's budget. The remainder is funded by other philanthropic sources and fees for various services, programs, and resources.

Teamwork is the theme of this year’s Appeal

Each year, the Catholic Appeal provides the funds needed to support our parishes, schools, and central ministries. This year, COVID-19 challenged every corner of our society to respond to this deadly threat that has claimed more than 15,000 lives in the Commonwealth and more than 500,000 nationally. The Archdiocese needed to respond quickly to the crisis.

Working as a team, with God’s grace guiding us, the efforts of the Archdiocese included:

• Establishing a Pandemic Response team, involving all the key ministries and administrative offices of the Archdiocese to provide support and guidance to parishes, schools, and ministries.
• Quickly adapting to assist our school administrators and teachers in providing virtual instruction to our students in March 2020 and safely reopening our Catholic Schools with in-person classes in September 2020. In addition, we developed a formidable plan to address issues related to cases where employees or students have tested positive for COVID.
• Creating a Re-opening Work Group in Spring 2020 to help parishes adjust to the pandemic. By livestreaming Masses and implementing virtual programs, our parishes were able to continue to serve their parishioners and most are now open for in-person Masses.
• In the Spring of 2020, Cardinal Seán appointed a team of priests designated with providing the Sacrament of the Sick for patients in COVID hospital wards and comforting families and healthcare workers. More than 1,100 pastoral visits have been made to COVID patients without a single priest having been infected.

As a result of this teamwork, our parishes, schools, ministries, and Archdiocese are serving more needs than ever. We could not do this without the generous help of so many.

How to participate
Due to the pandemic, we will not distribute in-pew envelopes for this year’s Catholic Appeal but we will be sending appeal requests by mail and email. Individuals may also donate online at bostoncatholicappeal.org.

To learn more about the benefits of giving by direct debit, donor advised funds, stock, or IRA contribution, visit the secure website bostoncatholicappeal.org.

The Appeal is managed by Boston Catholic Development Service, an Archdiocesan ministry with a mission of seeking philanthropic support for the mission of the Church. For more information, please visit bostoncatholicappeal.org.