Our Daily Bread in 2016: Preparing to do more
On March 2, 2016, while on a mission to Rome, Catholic Charities Executive Director Bill McCarthy attended a meeting at the Vatican. He recounts his meeting with Pope Francis, “I presented the Holy Father with the Our Daily Bread apron with his name and a cross embroidered on it. I also gave him an information sheet [...]
Our Daily Bread in 1990: Reducing Poverty
Fr. Tom Bondarenko at a temporary ODB location in 1990 From the beginning, volunteers served the meals to guests. “We have always provided more than a meal; we served people with dignity, and that was equally as important as the food we provided. We never served cafeteria style. Sr. Josanna insisted that our guests be [...]
Our Daily Bread in 1981: Feeding the Hungry
The first meal service at Our Daily Bread, June 1, 1981 “When we started ODB in a little storefront on the corner of Park Avenue and Franklin Street, we never dreamed it would become as big and comprehensive a program as it is today,” Greg Conderacci said. ODB began by feeding the hungry “a good, [...]
Our Daily Bread in 1979: Making plans to help
Sister Josanna Abromaitis, SSND The origins of Our Daily Bread lie in the National Shrine of the Basilica of the Blessed Virgin Mary, where the nuns and volunteers would distribute food to those who knocked on the kitchen door of the rectory. In 1979, the rector, Msgr. Paul Love, thought to himself that there must [...]
My Sister’s Place Women’s Center Job Fair
Over 55 ladies from various Catholic Charities programs came to My Sister’s Place Women’s Center for its very first Job Fair. On Wednesday, June 29th seven companies participated in the first My Sister’s Place Women’s Center (MSPWC) Job Fair. The companies that participated were Apple One, Catholic Charities, Catholic Relief Services, Union Memorial Hospital, DHR [...]
Job Readiness program gives participants a competitive edge
“We’ve condensed three weeks of training into an intensive one-week program,” Trainer and Curriculum Coordinator Michael Jones tells Job Readiness participants on the first day of class. To receive a certificate of completion from the Our Daily Bread Employment Center program, no absences are allowed and late arrivals won’t gain entry. These and other more [...]
Building Community at Our Lady of Fatima I & II
Catholic Charities Senior Housing Services Manager, Edris Segree, is working hard to build a sense of community within the Our Lady of Fatima I and II complex in East Baltimore. The Fatima I building opened in November of 2009 and Fatima II opened in February, 2011. Ms. Segree says, “Feeling like part of a community is very important to our residents’ physical, mental, [...]
Sharing Joy, and Music, at Gallagher Services
“When my wife and I first got married, we started looking for a place to serve, and that led us to Catholic Charities,” said Jeff Weber, a long-time volunteer at Gallagher Services for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities. That was almost 15 years ago, and Jeff is still a fixture at Gallagher’s Sunday worship service. Though [...]
Serve As He Has Served Us
As a youth minister, it’s always challenging to pass on the idea of service to teenagers. Many teenagers want to serve, but don’t know what to do. Others have the idea that service means shoveling your grandmother’s walk, or helping mom bring in the groceries. And those activities “serve” someone, but it’s not the only [...]
Scott Grimshaw Helps Sarah’s House Guests Learn to Shine
Volunteer Scott Grimshaw has been donating his time and talent to Sarah’s House for the past 17 years. Having previously worked with the Prince Georges County Intervention Suicide Hotline, Scott came to our program with a strong interest in reaching out to those in need. He helped to create a parenting skills group called SHINE—Sarah’s [...]