Catholic Social Services (CSS) announced Friday that it will expand in 2027. The organization, which serves families, seniors and persons with disabilities across the 23-county Diocese of Columbus, will widen its outreach through the opening of two new facilities and a mobile ministry-on-wheels.
The announcement was made by S. Kelley Henderson, president and CEO at CSS, during the organization’s 35th annual Breakfast with the Bishop held at the Renaissance Columbus Downtown Hotel.
The day began with Mass celebrated by Bishop Earl Fernandes at Columbus St. Joseph Cathedral followed by breakfast at the nearby hotel.
Henderson shared CSS’ ongoing commitment to serving neighbors in need.
“I’m excited to announce the largest expansion of our ministry in years as we respond to hunger and loneliness throughout Ohio,” he said.
In January, CSS will open a new 25,000 square foot center in Whitehall, located on the east side of Columbus. The opening of its second outreach center follows the success of the Our Lady of Guadalupe Center, which serves the city’s west side.
The eastside center will be led by Lisa Keita, vice president of nutrition services at CSS, and focus on nourishing families of all ages in body, mind and spirit.
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The facility, named the Caritas (meaning “charity” in Latin) Center, will include classrooms, a marketplace, volunteer center, teaching kitchen, senior programs, emergency assistance, Little Blessings program for new mothers and chapel dedicated to Our Lady of Loreto.
Next spring, CSS will open an additional expanded outreach center in Heath at the former St. Leonard Church: the Our Lady of Hope Center.
“Licking County is growing quickly, and we want to respond to the growing needs of not only what’s happening in Licking County but also what’s happening in neighboring counties,” Henderson shared.
“We’ll be expanding mobile meal delivery, senior activities to address loneliness, literacy, job training and a teaching kitchen there, and maybe, God willing, a small micro farm to help people learn how to grow healthy food.”
CSS also plans to expand the St. Francis Center in McArthur, located in the southeastern portion of the diocese in Vinton County. One in six Vinton County residents live below the federal poverty level and the median household income is nearly $16,000 below the Ohio median.
As part of a new initiative to serve the rural community, CSS will launch “St. Francis on Wheels” next summer, expanding the St. Francis Center with mobile food and outreach services.
“St. Francis on Wheels will take mobile deliveries to visit homebound, isolated seniors in rural southern Ohio, summer lunch for kids who are home alone and expand over five counties of help and support through community marketplaces and volunteerism,” Henderson announced.
“This is going to be a church-based model. We’re going to work with our parishes across Ohio to make this happen. And our very first parish has agreed to be a new community market: the St. Francis Market is in Wellston.”
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The mobile ministry will partner with Catholic parishes to bring resources directly to communities and help address physical and spiritual hunger.
Father Thomas Herge, pastor at Divine Mercy parish (Wellston Ss. Peter and Paul, Jackson Holy Trinity and Zaleski St. Sylvester churches), will be the first to welcome the new St. Francis Market to his parish in Wellston.
Breakfast with the Bishop also featured a talk from Father Leo Patalinghug, a priest of Voluntas Dei (Will of God). He is the creator and founder of Plating Grace, founder and chair of The Plating Grace Foundation and host of Savoring our Faith show on EWTN.
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He offered a comedy-style talk on the connection between food and faith.
“I have been around the world enough to know that if you don’t feed people with the intentionality of the Christian ethic, then you could provide food for them in the same way an atheist would,” he said.
“What makes us different than an atheist working at a soup kitchen? The answer is clear: I’m not serving a client; I am serving Jesus Christ. And the biggest difference is that, who is it that is serving Christ? Christ in you.”
Volunteer opportunities are available at CSS, including through the Good Samaritan Society, a resource for service-oriented persons to network, support and grow the work of the organization. To learn more, visit www.ColsCSS.org/Good-Samaritan/ or call 614-857-1236.