(BASED ON PRESS RELEASE)— The Diocese of Samoa Pago Pago has been awarded $20,000 in emergency funding from the Catholic Church Extension Society, the Chicago-based organization announced today. The grant will help local faith communities following a deadly earthquake and tsunami that ravaged the small Pacific islands earlier this month.
The diocese has worked tirelessly to aid the local population in the wake of the tragedy. Many islanders have lost their homes and are temporarily living in the Diocesan Center and the John Paul II Youth Center, Bishop Quinn Weitzel of the Diocese of Samoa said. The grant from Catholic Extension will help the diocese keep operating and contribute to the islands’ rebuilding effort.
“We pride ourselves on acting quickly when there are urgent pastoral needs in a diocese, but we also are committed for the long haul,” said Joseph Boland, Grants Director for Catholic Extension. “We will continue to be a powerful source of assistance for ongoing needs in the Diocese of Samoa, such as rebuilding churches, restoring interrupted programs and services, and funding operations. There will be great needs in the months and years ahead, and Catholic Extension will help meet them.”
Bishop Weitzel said the diocese lost five churches. More tragically, several children from local communities were among the dead.
“We are using the funds Catholic Extension sent us and you can be sure there will be many prayers of gratitude for them.” Bishop Weitzel said.
The grant to the Diocese of Samoa is one of more than 800 the Catholic Church Extension Society will award this year to faith communities across the U.S. and its territories. Last year the organization invested $18 million in America’s 84 “mission dioceses,” or geographic regions comprising the poorest, most underserved and isolated areas in the U.S.
It was able to do so through contributions from 47,000 individual donors who share Catholic Extension’s commitment to strengthening communities, and nurturing and sustaining the Catholic faith throughout the country.
(Source: AmericanCatholic.org)
