Catholic Charities of Central Colorado serves anyone in need, without regard to race, creed, or religious affiliation.  It is an extremely ecumenical operation where staff, volunteers, and clients come from all walks of life.  The organization has been part of the Colorado Springs community for over 41 years, and in that time, has adjusted programs and services to meet the needs of the people in our community who need the most help.  Many times, we hear, “Oh, I’m not Catholic,” implying they cannot receive our services, or they don’t want to volunteer with an organization that serves only Catholics.  These comments could not be further from the truth.  Catholic Charities helps ANYONE in need.  All you need to do is come to our door for a meal, and you are welcomed, no questions asked.  In most of the other services, basic information is required, but no one is discriminated against for any reason.

Marian House, the flagship program of Catholic Charities, has recently undergone many physical changes.  A new Marian House complex was just completed, and consists of the Marian House Soup Kitchen and the Hanifen Center at Marian House.  The new soup kitchen, which opened in June 2008, is able to serve 175 people at a time – up from 68 in the old Victorian home that housed this program for 25 years.  It provides staff and volunteers with a commercial grade kitchen, expanded food storage facilities, and larger general and family dining rooms.  The new soup kitchen opened just as the economic crisis was peaking and as a result, the number of meals served to people in need has increased over 40% in just the past 12 months.  In fact, most days, over 600 people receive a hot meal at the Marian House Soup Kitchen.

The Hanifen Center at Marian House houses the poverty reduction programs that help guide clients toward a greater level of self-sufficiency.  Services include: Marian House Community Outreach, which delivers services and goods to people who are not able to access services at our location due issues such as lack of transportation, physical disabilities or child care rated concerns; and Marian House Client Services which provides information and referrals, help with getting IDs and birth certificates, operates a clothing closet and provides case management.  Eventually, Marian House Life Support Center, which provides support for families with children in the form of diapers, baby food, formula, clothing and case management, will move from the Catholic Pastoral Center into the Hanifen Center at Marian House.  All three of the Marian House programs offer rent and utility assistance through programs such as COPE and LEAP.

A major component of the Hanifen Center at Marian House is the special space designed for SET Family Medial Clinics, which provides medical services to Marian House guests.  It is estimated that, as medical services expand in this facility, guests will be able to get medical attention that will prevent emergency room visits.  Space is also available for other social service providers who can offer help to Marian House guests in the form of housing, education, life skills, and employment/income.

While the Marian House programs tend to be the best known in the community, Catholic Charities has several other programs worth noting.  Family Immigration Services (FIS) offers English as a Second Language classes at three locations, during the day and in the evening, throughout Colorado Springs.  Volunteers are recruited and trained several times a year; and speaking a foreign language is not a requirement to become an ESL teacher.  Recently, FIS has taken on two component areas that include a community based immigrant integration project, and a naturalization and family immigration services program that will begin this summer.

One program, which is the basis of many Catholic Charities organizations, is our Life Connections program.  International and domestic adoptions, pregnancy counseling, and parenting education programs such as child birth education classes and infant massage instruction, are offered.  Each year, counselors meet and help guide clients through the sometimes difficult process of deciding to relinquish or parent a child; and families are helped throughout the adoption process from application through child placement.

As with many non-profit organizations, Catholic Charities is dependent on volunteers to help keep our programs moving forward.  The soup kitchen program would simply not be able to operate without the 35 – 40 generous volunteers who prepare, cook, and serve meals every day.  Volunteers regularly accept and sort through the in-kind donations received in many of the programs, then help clients pick out the items they need to survive.  Finally, our ESL classes would not take place without volunteers helping newcomers better integrate into our community through improved language skills.