Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, Inc.

A Quarterly Newsletter from Catholic Charities - May 2002

Joyful Givers Circle

For those of you who would like to make a monthly pledge to Catholic Charities, we offer our Joyful Givers Circle. You will be forwarded three pre-addressed envelopes four times a year, which you may use to make monthly contributions to Catholic Charities. By making monthly donations you can lessen the burden of a larger, annual gift. And, more importantly, you can show your long-term support of Catholic Charities and the services we provide to the community. If you are interested, please call 213-251-3494 or 213-251-3498 for more information about the Joyful Givers Circle.

Catholic Charities’ Community Services Centers Continue
to Provide Emergency Aid in the Aftermath of 9/11.

For the communities located in Our Lady of the Angels Region-Western Area, the effects of the 9/11 terrorist attacks continue to be felt. The Region serves Inglewood, the Crenshaw District, Koreatown, West Los Angeles, Malibu and South to Century Freeway.

The economy was already beginning to slow, and even low paying jobs were becoming scarce at the time of the attacks. Many people who worked in the hospitality industry and at the airport lost their jobs. Eventually they stopped collecting unemployment insurance because they had previously worked at minimum wage jobs or had not been employed for very long.

Since December of 2001, requests for emergency services at St. Margaret’s Center in Lennox increased 20%. During a recent three-month period, more than 1,930 different families came to ask for food. Hundreds of others came in need of clothing, rental and utility assistance and help with finding jobs and housing.

One Sunday, for only the second time in the history of its weekend program, St. Robert’s Center in Venice ran out of food. “Robert” and “Jan” came to the Center with their four children that Sunday to request food. “Robert”, an electrician by trade, lost his job in September and has not found regular employment since then. The family lived in an apartment in Hollywood and owned a motor home. They lost the apartment and are now living in the motor home. The Case Managers at St. Robert’s Center are now helping “Robert” find a job and the family, a place to live.

The programs offered at St. Margaret’s and St. Robert’s are representative of the type of emergency assistance available at the agency’s Community Services Centers. In Los Angeles, Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, 28 community centers offer case management, emergency food, clothing, after school care, and immigration services. For a complete listing of programs and services offered by Catholic Charities of Los Angeles, or for more information, please log to our Web Site at www.CatholicCharitiesLA.org.