With caution and care, bringing back services stopped by COVID in senior communities
Knowing the risk of severe illness from COVID-19 increases with age, Catholic Charities’ senior communities responded to the pandemic quickly and thoroughly, restricting gatherings and cancelling some of the in-house health services available to residents. But as Maryland rolls out a series of phased re-openings, staff are considering how to bring back some of those [...]
Villa Maria is virtually ready for school
There’s a popular phrase, “If you stay ready, you won’t have to get ready.” That’s pretty much how the administrators and staff of Villa Maria School plan to operate this fall semester. Schools across the country are pondering how or if they will reopen this fall, amid COVID-19. Facilitators for Villa Maria School are [...]
When yard work is a sign of love returning
The Facebook post opened with a megaphone cartoon and the declaration “We have some exciting news!” That’s how Anna’s House announced it was ready to welcome volunteers back to its Bel Air property, months after COVID-19 prevented them from helping onsite. "I’ve been waiting for this moment!" said Jennifer Crosson, volunteer manager for [...]
Is telehealth here to stay?
Three months into the quarantine prompted by COVID-19, Behavioral Health Administrator Karen Haughey asked her team to think about how a sudden pivot to providing counseling and other behavioral health services online and over the phone had affected their work. The responses that Haughey received demonstrated the staff’s creativity and commitment. They will help [...]
Small squares of smiles for a big milestone
How do you celebrate a milestone accomplishment when you can't be together? For the families and friends who wanted to support the 12 men in classes 84 and 85 at Christopher Place Employment Academy, the answer was the same as it has been for so many others. You gather on Zoom. Christopher Place [...]
Advocacy helps avert cuts to projected state funding
Clients and patients who use Medicaid to pay for their care, and the professionals who care for them, will not be impacted now that the threat of a cut to projected reimbursement rates has been put off. Earlier this year, the Maryland General Assembly approved a 4-percent increase in funding for in-state providers of Medicaid [...]
A bond like few could find
When COVID-19 forced Gallagher Services’ residential sites into quarantine, Hugh Downey was spending his working days in the home of four men supported through the program. The group quickly became like a family. Hugh, a direct service professional, had previously served as an employment specialist in the Gallagher day program for adults with [...]
In a future garden, the beauty of trial and error
A seed has been planted. Anna’s House staff, clients and volunteers are marking the beginning of summer by building a community garden, right on the Bel Air property. Anna’s House is known for a broad array of services including emergency shelter, transitional housing for families fleeing domestic violence, community supportive housing and rapid [...]
Catholic Charities faces significant impact from proposed state budget cuts
With the COVID-19 crisis still underway, Catholic Charities' 2021 fiscal-year budget faces a significant challenge in a newly proposed state budget. The budget cut proposal, just introduced, would leave funding for Medicaid provider rates flat as opposed to the 4-percent increase approved by the legislature during the 2020 General Assembly. In January, the budget proposal [...]
Thankful for thoughtfulness
When Landsdowne Worship Center offered a bit of love to Caritas House earlier this month, the congregants thought of everything: gift bags for residents, homecooked meals for every shift of employees, and a distribution process that accounted for COVID-19 safety protocols. “We want to say thank you because it meant so much,” said Tim Scherer, [...]