In Love of God and Neighbor: New fund brings hope to poor across the diocese

Although the final results of the One Family, Fully Alive in Christ! Campaign won’t be formally announced until September, the faithful across the Diocese of Wichita are already witnessing the first fruits of their generosity.

In May, the first application period opened for the newly established In Love of God and Neighbor Fund grant program. After careful review and recommendation by a committee of lay volunteers, Bishop Carl A. Kemme approved 23 grants to be awarded this month – totaling $103,000 – to parishes and ministries across the diocese.

These inaugural awards are only the beginning. The grant process is ongoing, with the next application window scheduled to open Nov. 1. Parishes and ministries will continue to have the opportunity to apply for support twice a year, and the chancery is committed to distributing at least $100,000 each cycle.

Among the first recipients of the In Love of God and Neighbor Fund are Church of the Blessed Sacrament in Wichita and St. Anthony of Padua in Garden Plain – two communities with unique needs but a shared commitment to the corporal and spiritual works of mercy.

At Blessed Sacrament, the parish’s Society of St. Vincent de Paul has experienced a sharp rise in outreach activity. Since March, the ministry has seen a 70% increase in calls and home visits – highlighting the growing needs of individuals and families in the surrounding community. Blessed Sacrament’s SSVdP works to meet the needs of families in Wichita’s Hilltop neighborhood, where the median income is $24,000. SSVdP members share Christ’s love with those who urgently need the basics of rent and utilities. Faced with a constrained budget and the desire to expand into assisting their sister parish – All Saints’ – neighborhood, Blessed Sacrament’s SSVdP considered cutting its annual Thanksgiving feast – a tradition that offers food and fellowship to those who might otherwise go without during the holiday. 

However, thanks to support from the In Love of God and Neighbor Fund, the parish will continue this tradition while expanding its impact and meeting the fundamental housing needs of those in the surrounding area. With the additional funds, it will be able to support 20 more families in need.

In Garden Plain, St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church has a different, but equally urgent, need. Since 1995, St. Anthony Pro Life Outreach has worked with pregnancy agencies, local hospitals, and substance abuse programs to care for children in difficult circumstances. Some have single mothers; others were taken out of abusive homes. 

Unfortunately, St. Anthony Pro Life Outreach has seen an increase in both needs and prices. Last year alone it served 453 women, providing new cribs, mattresses, car seats, strollers, and pack-and-plays. 

Now that the organization’s proposal has been accepted and its grant awarded, it will be able to purchase bulk items to have immediately available for mothers and children in need. It will be able to help more people in the community without having to turn anyone away.

The In Love of God and Neighbor Fund will continue to yield fruit for years to come. Because this program is operated with the discipline of an endowment, the funds will continue to grow and have a larger part in serving our parishes’ communities. And with continued support, this impact can multiply.

Through the generosity of the One Family, Fully Alive in Christ! Campaign, we are already seeing lives changed and needs met across the diocese. Together, we are providing food, clothing, shelter, and hope to those most in need – through the our local parishes living out the call as missionary disciples.

To learn more about the Fully Alive! Campaign or to make a gift that supports this ongoing work, visit OneFamilyFullyAlive.org.