Now in its 55th year, the annual appeal of The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington has a new name, but the same mission. The archdiocese’s 2024 Annual Catholic Services Appeal seeks the generous support of local Catholics in a drive that provides key funding for more than 70 ministries and programs.
Donations made to the Annual Catholic Services Appeal will again provide a lifeline for the archdiocese’s religious, educational and charitable outreach that make a difference in the lives of thousands of people every day throughout Washington, D.C., and five surrounding Maryland counties.
Cardinal Wilton Gregory said the appeal’s new name reflects “our purpose in coming together as a community of faith in service to others.”
As the 2024 Annual Catholic Services Appeal was being launched, the cardinal noted, “We celebrate the blessings of the past year, especially the faithful giving so generously in trying times. Through their support, our archdiocesan ministries are experiencing a renewal of mission and resolve to better serve the many needs of a post-pandemic world.”
Joseph Gillmer, the archdiocese’s Executive Director of Development, expressed thanks for the witness of faith of local Catholics, their perseverance and generosity during the challenges of recent years.
This past year, the appeal received commitments of about $11 million, and this year, the drive hopes to raise $12 million.
“It’s so critically important to give,” Gillmer said. “It’s this work of the Church, these ministries that give us the ability to be there for our brothers and sisters in the community. It’s one of the things that makes the Catholic faith so extraordinary. We are here for each other.”
Gillmer said the theme of this year’s appeal, “United in Purpose,” reflects how the support of local Catholics for the appeal brings help and hope to others throughout the community. “We’re together in our faith, and we’re together in our purpose of making a difference in the lives of people… It’s us uniting in solidarity for each other,” he said.
The Announcement Weekend for the Annual Catholic Services Appeal will be held during Masses on Saturday Jan. 27 and Sunday Jan. 28. That will kick off Giving Week, where the appeal’s website at appeal.adw.org will feature stories every day about the ministries supported by the drive.
Then the appeal’s Commitment Weekend will be on Feb. 3 and 4, when Catholics will be invited to make a pledge, either during an in-pew effort at their parish church or online. Follow-up weekend will be Feb. 10 and 11.
The brochure for the 2024 Annual Catholic Services Appeal highlighted the impact that local Catholics can have by donating to the appeal. Of this year’s goal, $5.2 million is earmarked for vocations, seminarian education and for clergy and religious support, including for the 75 men in priestly formation for the archdiocese.
Father Carter Griffin, the rector of the archdiocese’s Saint John Paul II Seminary, expressed gratitude to local Catholics for their support of the appeal.
“The Annual Catholic Services Appeal provides the resources we need to run an excellent formation program for the future priests of the Archdiocese of Washington. Your donations and your prayers underpin everything we do at St. John Paul II Seminary, the Missionary Seminary Redemptoris Mater, and the other formation programs that our seminarians attend. The young men in formation know that they are being supported, and will be supported, by their future parishioners as they prepare to serve you as holy, generous, faithful priests,” Father Griffin said.
This year’s appeal also hopes to provide $1.575 million toward the outreach provided by Catholic schools and by religious education programs in the archdiocese. About 26,000 youth are enrolled in 90 Catholic schools, and more than 15,000 students participate in K-8 parish religious education programs.
The appeal also supports parishes in their RCIA programs, as they prepare people to receive the sacraments of initiation and be received into full communion with the Catholic Church.
“This is a vital ministry for the Church, as the Church exists to evangelize and bring the love of Christ to a world desperately in need of Him. We can see the fruits of this ministry when we welcome over 1,000 individuals into the Church each Easter,” said Sara Blauvelt, the archdiocese’s Secretary for Catechesis.
Blauvelt also noted, “Ongoing faith formation for adults is another aspect of the ministry. As we grow and mature in life, so too should our faith grow and mature. Adult faith formation equips adults at every stage of life to respond to both the challenges and blessings of life through the lens of faith.”
The 2024 appeal also hopes to provide $1.4 million to parish, family and life ministries.
Kathryn Yanik, the archdiocese’s Director of Life Issues, pointed out that, “The Annual Catholic Services Appeal supports our life-affirming ministries of the Archdiocese, including the Pro-Life Grant Program, Project Rachel Ministries, the Catholic Civil Dialogue Initiative, and End-of-Life Care. Annual Appeal gifts allow us to support our parishes through a variety of pastoral and educational programs. Through these contributions, we can continue to support families in need and advocate for the most vulnerable among us.”
Also encouraging support for the appeal was Sally Daniel, the director of the archdiocese’s Office of Family Life, who said, “The Annual Appeal is vitally important to the ministries in the Office of Family Life. Through the generosity of the people of the archdiocese, the Office of Family Life has been able to celebrate the annual Wedding Anniversary Mass, prepare couples for marriage in our marriage preparation classes, host quarterly NFP Introductory classes, host a yearly retreat for grieving parents, help parishes with marriage enrichment resources, and offer workshops on grandparenting, mental health and other areas of family life.”
The 2024 appeal has $1.2 million earmarked for chaplains for campus ministries, hospitals and prisons. Another $1.5 million is earmarked for the archdiocese’s social justice and outreach ministries, and $1.125 million is slotted to support communications and digital evangelization efforts.
Father Conrad Murphy, the chaplain at the Catholic Student Center at the University of Maryland, noted, “The appeal does enable us to have a very tangible presence on campus, allowing us to walk with our students in their faith, and to help them to walk with their peers. And we see the fruits of that one-on-one ministry in students coming back to Mass or Bible study or the sacraments because they were invited by someone who was invited by someone, who was invited by a campus minister or the chaplain.”
And Father Robert Boxie III, the Catholic chaplain at Howard University, emphasized that the Annual Catholic Services Appeal “is vital for our ministry to exist and to thrive. I’m always moved by the generosity of donors and faithful Catholics who support campus ministry in general and our students at Howard University in particular, a community and demographic that historically has been underserved. We are making a difference on campus in the lives of these young people, helping to form them to be the leaders that the Church and our society need right now. We cannot ever invest too much in our young people, especially those who want to remain in the Church. The annual appeal allows us to do this important work.”
(For more information and to support the 2024 Annual Catholic Services Appeal, go to appeal.adw.org . Also, see the advertisement on page 28.)
