Archbishop Gregory Aymond and the Advisory Board of ACCESS Pregnancy and Referral Centers invite you to a lively jazz brunch and exciting silent auction.

ACCESS Jazz Brunch*
Sunday, June 3, 2012
11 am until 2 pm
Audubon Tea Room, Audubon Park

St. Catherine of Siena will receive the Outstanding Pro-Life Parish Award. Music by New Orleans Banjos + 2. Please note that Mass will not be celebrated this year.

Individual Tickets: $60.00

Tickets are not available online. Please mail your check to ACCESS, 3019 N. Arnoult Rd. Metairie, LA 70002 or call (504) 885-1141 to purchase with a credit card.

All proceeds benefit ACCCESS Pregnancy & Referral Centers, a pro-life program of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans. Last year more than 1,300 abortion-vulnerable women turned to ACCESS for comprehensive pregnancy support including pregnancy testing, ultrasound services, Medicaid enrollment, material support and much more.

Head over to Cafe Hope, an affiliated ministry of Catholic Charities, for lunch any day between now and April 10, 2012. Simply tell your cashier “I’m In!” to receive a pair of tickets to the April 11 New Orleans Hornets game where the bees will take on the Sacramento Kings. We’ll give away two pairs of tickets each day for the first two people to tell our cashier, “I’m In!”

Thank you to the New Orleans Hornets for supporting Cafe Hope.

Cafe Hope is located at 1101 Barataria Blvd, Marrero, LA 70072, just ten minutes from the New Orleans Central Business District.

Check out the Cafe Hope menu >

The women of St. Elizabeth’s Guild have raised money for the children’s programs of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans for decades through their annual volunteer activist luncheon and various other activities.

Today, about 35 women from the guild toured Catholic Charities programs they fundraise for: St. John the Baptist Head Start Center and Cafe Hope.

In addition to interacting with the children at St. John, the guild members and their guests got to see firsthand what their money went to, including tricycles and helmets for playtime.

At Cafe Hope, the ladies met several of the apprentices who serve as chefs and waiters during lunchtime, and enjoyed a delicious meal featuring fresh Louisiana ingredients. They were also able to learn about the latest initiative taken on by Cathoilc Charities, the Isaiah 43 program.

To view more photos from today’s tour, please visit the Catholic Charities Facebook page >

If you are interested in learning more about St. Elizabeth’s Guild, please contact Michelle Hebert.

The 2011 Archbishop’s Community Appeal (ACA) raised $1,762,136, exceeding its goal of $1.75M to fund the work of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans. David Andignac led this year’s campaign as chairman. Thanks to David and to all of the volunteer fundraisers and donors who help Catholic Charities help the poor and vulnerable across the archdiocese.

Learn more about the ACA >

Flickr image by gocyclones

The Lenten season offers us once again an opportunity to reflect upon the very heart of Christian life: charity. This is a favourable time to renew our journey of faith, both as individuals and as a community, with the help of the word of God and the Sacraments.

This year I would like to propose a few thoughts in the light of a brief biblical passage drawn from the Letter to the Hebrews: ‘Let us be concerned for each other, to stir a response in love and good works.’

(1) Let us be concerned for each other: responsibility towards our brothers and sisters.
This first aspect is an invitation to be ‘concerned.’ The verb which introduces our exhortation tells us to look at others, first of all at Jesus, to be concerned for one another, and not to remain isolated and indifferent to the fate of our brothers and sisters.

Read the rest of this entry »

It has been widely reported in the media recently that Catholic Charities USA, of which Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans is a member agency, is in support of President Obama’s “accommodation” to the HHS mandate that requires religious institutions to provide insurance coverage for contraception and sterilization.

Catholic Charities USA posted this statement on its website to clear up misinformation:

“1.  We have not endorsed the accommodation to the HHS mandate that was announced by the Administration last Friday.

2. We unequivocally share the goal of the US Catholic bishops to uphold religious liberty and will continue to work with the USCCB towards that goal.

Any representation to the contrary is false.”

Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans shares the goal expressed by the USCCB and CCUSA of ensuring religious liberty. In addition, the Louisiana Conference of Catholic Bishops recently issued a letter to Louisiana Catholics about this issue. Please read it here >

This weekend at Masses in the Archdiocese of New Orleans, the annual second collection to benefit Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans will be taken.

This collection raises crucial undesignated dollars for Catholic Charities to respond to the needs of the poor and vulnerable in our community. Last year’s collection enabled Catholic Charities to help 101,000 people across the archdiocese.

If you plan to attend Mass this weekend, please give generously at second collection time.If you are not Catholic or are unable to attend Mass, you can give by clicking the “Donate Today” button on the right sidebar of the website.

Cafe Hope’s Bright Futures Festival
March 3
12 noon – 7.pm.
1101 Barataria Blvd., Marrero, LA 70072
Featuring: Music, a BBQ Cookoff, Children’s Activities and more!

Cafe Hope, an affiliated ministry of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans, will hold its second annual Bright Futures Fest on Saturday, March 3. From 12 noon until 7 p.m., treat yourself to a beer and the music of The Danny Alexander Blues Band, Mike Liuzza & Cafe Au Lait and Lost Bayou Ramblers while eating BBQ and letting your kids enjoy activities specially designed for them.

For more information, visit Cafe Hope online >

The Archbishop’s Community Appeal is in the final weeks of its 2011 campaign. To date, volunteer fundraisers have helped to bring in $1,621,683 or 92% of our $1.75 million goal.

Help us reach the finish line by the end of January: Donate Now! We only have $128,317 to go, so every gift helps get us closer to the goal. All proceeds of the Archbishop’s Community Appeal support the work of Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of New Orleans.

Learn more about the ACA >

Tonight, in remembrance of the second anniversary of the massive Haitian earthquake that devastated the country, Catholic Charities and the Archdiocese of New Orleans will celebrate mass at St. Katharine Drexel Parish.

Beginning at 7 p.m., the mass will be offered in memory of lives lost, the rebuilding effort, and for the success of the Archdiocese of New Orleans’ parish “twinning” project with parishes in Haiti. All are welcome to participate in this mass.

For more information on the Church’s ongoing recovery efforts in Haiti, please visit www.crs.org.

At 10 a.m. this morning, the winning ticket for the Catholic Charities BCS National Championship was drawn. One lucky raffle participant will be joining hoardes of LSU and Alabama fans at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome this Monday evening.

Winning Ticket
0196
Greg Bouyelas

Thank you to everyone who participated in the raffle, which raised $20,070 for the maternity and adoption programs of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans.

Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans is raffling off a pair of tickets to the
BCS National Championship Game.

1LSU vs. 2Alabama
January 9, 2012
Mercedes-Benz Superdome

Raffle tickets are $10 each. There will be a maximum of 3,000 tickets sold.

Call (504) 885-1141 or click here to buy tickets online.

Once your payment is processed, a Catholic Charities staff member will send you your ticket number.
Only Louisiana residents may participate.

The ticket drawing is Thursday, Jan. 5th.
The winner will be contacted directly and the winning number will be posted at www.ccano.org.

These tickets were given by a generous donor to the Archbishop’s Community Appeal (ACA), and the raffle proceeds will benefit the work of Catholic Charities.

Catholic Charities’ English as a Second Language (ESL) classes and Citizenship classes serve hundreds of students who want to learn English each year as well as those who are preparing to take the U.S. Citizenship Test. Class registration dates, class sites and class times for the Spring semester are now available.

ESL/Citizenship classes (English) >  |  ESL/Citizenship classes (En Español) >

Renowned New Orleans chef John Besh is cooking up a feast on December 9 to support Cafe Hope and The John Besh Foundation. The event is from 7:30 p.m. – 10:30 p.m. at Cafe Hope, 1101 Barataria Blvd. in Marrero.

Tickets start at $150/person and include food from six Besh restaurants, alternative beverages, music and an autographed copy of Chef Besh’s new book, My Family Table.

Patron level tickets are $250/person and include a special patron party at 6:30 p.m. with Chef Besh.

Buy your tickets online today!

Cafe Hope is still looking for sponsors for the event! Download a list of sponsorship levels here. Sponsorship is available for all levels for purchase either online or by calling Erica at (504) 310-6865.

Cafe Hope is an affiliated ministry of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New Orleans.

   Presented by the LA Restaurant Association, Greater New Orleans Chapter

This weekend, church parishes in the Archdiocese of New Orleans and across the country will hold collections to support the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD).

CCHD is the domestic anti-poverty program of the U.S. Catholic Bishops and works to break the cycle of poverty by helping low-income people participate in decisions that affect their lives, families and communities. Please give generously to help end poverty in our country.

Learn more about CCHD >  |  Listen to a local PSA about how CCHD helps the New Orleans Community >
Read about groups funded by CCHD in the Archdiocese of New Orleans >