Spring Chronicle 2023

SPRING 2023

Princess Adelina

As a child who is non-verbal, Adelina has developed a variety of other communication tools that help her through her daily life.

“Adelina is fiercely independent and can do a lot on her own and we wanted to ensure that she continued to feel this way in our care,” said Amelia Gunn, CCC ESL teacher. “When she came into our care, we never wanted to minimize her abilities or make her feel incapable, so we got to work to adapt our program to fit her needs.”

Amelia and the team began researching adaptive technologies and found some exciting options.

“As soon as I explained to Adelina how the application worked, she excitedly began clicking the different photos which would then verbalize the words that went along with the photos. She was thrilled to communicate so effortlessly.”

This technology combined with her usual communication methods gave Adelina more confidence and she experienced less frustration at being misunderstood.

While in CCC’s care, Adelina had a birthday.

“It doesn’t happen often, but it’s always a joy to celebrate the birthday of a child in our care. When we asked what Adelina wanted for her birthday, she said that she wanted to be a princess.”

Determined to give her an unforgettable day, the team began planning a special celebration. On her birthday they surprised her with an Elsa dress, from her favorite Disney movie. Thrilled, she immediately tried it on.

“We styled her hair in the Elsa braid and topped it with a crown and when she came out of her room, she was beaming and twirling,” said Amelia. Later that day the party continued with princess decorations and an Elsa birthday cake and presents.

Several days later, when it was time for Adelina to be reunited with her family, she insisted on wearing her Elsa dress. She wore it through the airport feeling confident, beautiful, and exactly like the special princess that she is.

Support After the Storm Focusing on Forward

Just before the holidays, Allison and her two small children were without a home and living in a hotel.

"Despite her circumstances, Allison has always focused on providing for her family, doing her very best to care for her children,” said Victoria Harris, financial counseling program supervisor. “Allison knew it was okay to ask for help. Asking for help can be hard and she took a chance and reached out.”

Allison had heard about a program called Hotels to Home, a partnership between CCC and Henrico County, that works to reduce long-term hotel stays; she recognized this as an opportunity to improve her situation.

After receiving Allison's phone call, CCC connected with the hotel staff to create a plan. CCC used emergency funds to settle the arrears on Allison's hotel room. With that debt relieved, Allison was able to meet her payments going forward and could focus on creating a long-term stable housing plan for herself and her children.

Savannah was awaiting a bone marrow transplant while receiving cancer treatment at Duke University Medical Center when severe flooding hit her hometown in Southwest Virginia. Mudslides, downed trees, and impassable roads created a state of emergency for her community.

When Savannah and her husband, Logan, returned home from Duke they discovered that their entire downstairs was flooded and they needed to replace all the flooring and baseboards—a major unexpected expense on top of their medical expenses.

CCC's housing and financial counseling program connected with Savannah and Logan and provided them with funds to repair the damage.

Since then, Savannah has completed her treatments and is cancer free!

Commonwealth Catholic Charities is grateful to the Catholic Diocese of Richmond for funds awarded through the Fuel & Hunger grant to assist with responding to emergency food, utilities, and shelter needs of individuals and families throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia.

A Journey Towards Home Hard Work and a Bright Future

Claire Finch, homeless services caseworker, first met Danielle at a wooded encampment in Richmond in September 2021. At that time, Danielle was seven months pregnant and had temporary custody of her two nieces. After losing her income during the pandemic, Danielle’s family had been bouncing between the encampment and short-term hotel stays for several months.

Claire connected Danielle to the emergency COVID-19 shelter that CCC managed. With Danielle’s most urgent need addressed, they could begin to tackle the family’s other needs.

Together, they enrolled Danielle's nieces in school, which in turn connected them to additional services like transportation and counseling. They also began the process of obtaining photo identification and birth certificates and connected Danielle with prenatal care and ongoing behavioral health support.

In December, when Danielle gave birth, she and Claire identified other supports to continue working toward permanent housing.

Antoine, a 20-year-old from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, spent most of his early life in a refugee camp in Tanzania where he and his family had fled for their lives. In 2016, he came to the United States with his mom and six siblings in search of freedom, safety, and education.

After resettling in Newport News, Antoine enrolled in high school. High school was difficult because Antoine understood very little English and had no formal education, but he was a hard worker and soon began to excel in school. Throughout high school, Antoine regularly met with a CCC volunteer tutor who gave him extra support.

After graduation, Antoine continued to work hard and completed the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude Battery exam (ASVAB) and enlisted in the U.S. Army.

Antoine is excited about his future in the military and looks forward to serving his new country.

Shortly before Christmas, Claire visited Danielle who proudly showed her the new apartment.

“She was thrilled to have a bedroom of her own and another bedroom for her baby. I am relieved and grateful that I could work with Danielle and assist her family.”

“Danielle is a great advocate for her family and she remained optimistic throughout the entire process until she was finally approved for an apartment this past fall,” Claire said.

Antoine and his mother shortly after their arrival in the United States.

Roanoke

For many years, CCC’s staff in Roanoke have worked out of several different buildings. While these spaces met the immediate needs of staff and clients, there was little room for expansion or departmental collaboration.

“This new space has so much potential for our staff and clients,” said Jennifer Cunningham, vice president of mission advancement. “We are excited about what this will mean for our work in the Roanoke area.”

The new space at 2131 Valley View Boulevard will open in the spring and have space to accommodate all Roanoke area programs minus St. Francis House Food Pantry. The pantry will eventually move across the street from its current location at 836 Campbell Avenue to 820 Campbell Avenue.

Come celebrate the move to our new building with us at the Open House Wednesday, April 19 from 5-7pm

RSVP at www.cccofva.org/events

Petersburg/Hopewell

In December, CCC’s Petersburg office moved onto the campus of St. James the Greater Catholic Church in Hopewell.

“We are incredibly appreciative to the staff and parishioners at St. James for their hospitality,” said Cunningham. “This space will allow us to continue providing high-quality services to clients in the tri-city area.”

Richmond & Virginia Beach

Moving & Growing Annual Report 2022

CCC has also added two new properties in Richmond and Virginia Beach to serve non-U.S.-born children in our care.

Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

This past year, we took to heart the words of Pope Francis, “Our lives are a gift, and we grow by giving of ourselves: not preserving ourselves but losing ourselves in service.”

Because of your faithful commitment to our mission of providing quality, compassionate human services for the most vulnerable, 2022 was a year of unprecedented and strategic growth for Commonwealth Catholic Charities. Thank you for choosing to give of yourselves by supporting our work through financial contributions, volunteer service and community partnerships. Together, day after day, year after year, century upon century, we will strive to lose ourselves in service to the most vulnerable individuals and families throughout the Diocese of Richmond.

In 2022, our board of directors judiciously governed an accelerated expansion of many of our programs–particularly our refugee and immigration, housing, and shelter services–to ensure we could quickly and flexibly respond to the needs of every individual and family accessing our services. As a result, in 2022, CCC served the highest number of unduplicated individuals in our 100-year history.

To augment this service expansion, we invested in our facilities and in internal capacity-building to ensure our sustainability. One of our most exciting investments this year was the purchase of a multi-acre campus with immense growth potential for our children’s shelter and other programs. New spaces were also secured to expand our services and impact in the Tri-Cities and Tidewater areas. Finally, by investing in our Human Resources function, we have advanced our ability to attract and retain highly qualified nonprofit professionals whose experience and proven dedication will lead the agency into a second century of service.

CCC sustainably expanded services and made critical investments in human resources and infrastructure despite extremely challenging financial markets. In fiscal year 2022 CCC secured $6.5 million in additional revenue, which combined with the agency’s nearly $6 million endowment, funded 91% of the combined expenses of our ministries. As always, our fiscal year 2022 financial audit concluded favorably. It is with complete confidence that we report to you, our stakeholders, that CCC is poised to respond to the evolving needs of the communities we serve and meet the increased demand for quality and compassionate services throughout the Diocese of Richmond.

As we embark on our centennial anniversary, we continue to reflect on the words of The Holy Father. He encourages us to act like Samaritans–to stop, enter the world of the wounded, throw ourselves into another’s suffering and in doing so, create a new future.

Together, let us take this opportunity to reflect on our past, take stock of the needs we witness across our Diocese today, and dare to create something new. We invite you to join us as we commit to a second century delivering quality and compassionate services to the most vulnerable members of our community.

Most Rev. Barry C. Knestout, D.D. Bishop of Richmond

Jason “Jay” Brown Chief Executive Officer

Financials

Fiscal Year (October 1, 2021 - September 30, 2022)

740 Thimble Shoals Blvd., Suite F Newport News, VA 23606

757.247.3600

507 Park Avenue SW Norton, VA 24273 276.679.1195

510 W. Poythress Street, Suite 100, Hopewell, VA 23860 804.733.6207

1601 Rolling Hills Drive Richmond, VA 23229 804.285.5900

809 Oliver Hill Way Richmond, VA 23219 804.648.4177

2131 Valley View Blvd NW Roanoke, VA 24012 540.342.7561

St. Francis House Food Pantry 836 Campbell Avenue, SW Roanoke, VA 24016 540.268.0098

Building a Foundation

For a Second Century of Supporting Virginia Families

Two ways you can support CCC Foundation through our Centennial Endowment Building Campaign:

Give Now to our Endowment

Contribute to our $1 million, three-year goal with a pledge to CCC's foundation. Your three-year pledge ensures that the programs you support will continue. Gifts of appreciated securities and IRA RMD’s may be a way to give a gift and realize a tax benefit.

Give Later through a Planned Gift

Legacy gifts are a way to impact future generations indefinitely. Gift options include bequests through wills or trusts, naming CCC as a beneficiary of a retirement plan or life insurance policy, deferred gift annuities, and more. All planned gifts benefit our endowment.

To discuss supporting CCC’s Centennial Endowment Building Campaign, please contact Jennifer Cunningham at jennifer.cunningham@cccofva.org.