“Let us love not with words but with deeds.” –Pope Francis

April is National Volunteer Month and Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas relies heavily on our volunteers to help us carry out our mission of providing help, hope and hospitality to the most vulnerable among us. We are truly blessed with over 7,000 volunteers who live their faith through our ministries.  Just as Jesus freely gives His love and mercy to each one of us, our volunteers embody this teaching every single day through their generous service.

The volunteers at Catholic Charities represent a much-needed movement in our country to recognize the poor and vulnerable in our communities and to serve them physically, emotionally and spiritually. They serve in a variety of meaningful ways. They assist in our food pantries, sort donations at our TurnStyles Thrift stores, teach English and financial education courses, mentor refugee youth, drive our Resource Bus to our rural communities and so much more. The versatility of their skills and talents is second only to the vast breadth and depth of our 30+ programs here at Catholic Charities.

Recently, we asked our volunteers to share something they learned or that they wished more people knew about volunteering at Catholic Charities. Marianne, who volunteers at one of our Family Support Centers said, “I have learned to see people as Jesus, no matter what they look like or how much difficulty we have in communicating.”

Another volunteer, Beth, who assists with our Refugee program said, “Besides the good feeling of using your time to serve others and making new friends, volunteering opens you up to a stronger connection to your community, and a wider understanding of and appreciation for the difficulties some members of our community are experiencing. Their needs can compel you to want to do more.”

Catholic Charities offers the opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus Christ in your community. The experience can be humbling and rewarding.  “Teaching English to adults is my newest dream job,” said Kathleen, who volunteers with our Refugee program. “This program has given me education and opportunity to do what I am passionate about.”

Thanks be to God for those who share their talents with Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas! If you have not had an experience with Catholic Charities, I personally invite you to learn more about the critical work that we do and how you can engage with us.  Each month, we offer a bus tour that gives an overview of our programs and visits some of our sites including our Hope Distribution Center and Shalom House. To sign up, visit: https://catholiccharitiesks.org/bus-tours/ In addition, core, student and group volunteer opportunities are listed on our website: https://catholiccharitiesks.org/volunteer/.