August means many things but for many it is the “unofficial” end of summer as the school year begins. Catholic Charities has been busy over the summer supporting newly arrived refugees and homeless families that enter our Self-Sufficiency program. Traditionally, we support the children of our families by providing a backpack stuffed with much needed school supplies. Every parent and grandparent knows how expensive all these supplies can be. From calculators to binders, these items quickly add up! Our families are on a very tight and limited budget, Catholic Charities finds that by providing these needed school supplies, families can focus on paying their other bills and then experience the blessing of sending their children off to school ready to learn with confidence and pride. We would like to thank St. Jude Thaddeus Parish, Our Lady of Annunciation Parish and the Church of Latter Day Saints (LDS) in Los Lunas for their kindness and generosity. Fr. Tien-Tri Nguyen, Pastor at St. Jude Thaddeus, went out of his way to coordinate the delivery of 70 backpacks directly to Catholic Charities. Their parish youth group, coordinated by Lori Ortiz, helped to collect and sort the needed school items. Our Lady of Annunciation Parish had the Catholic Charities truck on site over the weekend. Parishioners brought school items to Mass over the weekend and loaded up the truck for a special delivery. After receiving a call to support newly arrived refugees, we were contacted by the LDS Church in Los Lunas who wanted to support the back to school drive. With our wish list in hand, the LDS women’s group set out to find the needed items. Last Friday, boxes of school supplies were delivered just in time for our back pack extravaganza. Our gratitude continues with our amazing volunteers and St. Pius students who helped us to sort, organize and create a special backpack for each child. To learn more about the back to school drive and how to support families in our community, please contact Kathy Freeze, Faith and Community Liaison, at [email protected] or at 505-724-4698. |
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