2/8/2009

Catholic Charities celebrates 50th anniversary in Salina

Life feature 2/8

By GARY DEMUTH

Salina Journal

Catholic Charities not only gave Beatriz Jimenez confidence and direction, the agency just might have saved her life.

Jimenez was 14 when she joined the youth group HIP (Hispanics in Progress) at Catholic Charities of Salina, 425 W. Iron. One of the agency's services is to assist Hispanic youth in Salina by offering community activities and education on the dangers of smoking, drugs and alcohol.

"I learned the importance of community service, and it helped me gain the confidence I needed to take on leadership roles," said Jimenez, now 21 and an elementary education student at Fort Hays State University.

Soon after turning 18, Jimenez was diagnosed with a benign fibroid tumor in her uterus. She had surgery and appeared to be on the way to recovery when a year later, her doctor told her she needed a second surgery.

If she didn't, this time there was a chance she would die.

Jimenez was panicked -- not just because of the prospect of a second surgery, but the additional medical bills.

"My mom was in Mexico waiting for a visa to cross over, and my father had to support my sisters and me," she said. "He couldn't pay for more medical bills."

Catholic Charities donated funds to help pay Jimenez's surgery costs -- $1,500; she also received a loan through Bennington State Bank for the additional $1,000 she needed.

"I was so grateful, I cried," Jimenez said. "They're like family to me, and I'd do anything for them."

A 'family' for many

For decades, Catholic Charities of Salina has become "family" to hundreds of people of all social, economic and religious backgrounds in Salina and throughout northwest Kansas.

This year, the agency celebrates its 50th year of operation in Salina. The Salina agency is one of nearly 1,700 branches of the national Catholic Charities organization, the nation's largest social service network.

For more than 280 years, Catholic Charities has provided food, clothing, counseling, disaster relief, financial assistance, immigration services, adoption placement and youth and senior citizen services for millions of people in need.

"People may be in a crisis, so our counseling and other services help them get back on their feet," said Karen Hauser, chief executive officer of Catholic Charities of Salina.

Hauser's staff consists of counselors, social workers and marriage and family therapists. Catholic Charities also is a Salina Area United Way agency, a licensed child placement agency and is accredited with the Board of Immigration Appeals.

A significant amount of Catholic Charities' services during the past decade have been directed toward Salina's growing Hispanic population, said Maribel Panuco, the Salina agency's Hispanic services coordinator and one of several bilingual staff members.

"When I started here eight years ago, it was mostly immigration services," she said. "Then we added parenting classes, youth programs and emergency assistance for housing, utilities, food and gas. We're one of the first agencies immigrants stop at when they come here."

Not excited, at first

Fifty years ago, when the Rev. Alfred J. Wasinger was asked by Bishop Frederick Freking to start a Catholic Charities branch in the Salina Diocese, Wasinger wasn't that enthusiastic about running a social services agency.

But after visiting a national Catholic Charities meeting in Buffalo N.Y., Wasinger was inspired by the beneficial work being done.

Freking suggested Wasinger ask the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia, who since 1910 had provided social services in the area, to assist in opening a Salina Catholic Charities office.

In 1958, Catholic Charities' first Salina office opened at the former Mowery Clinic building at 425 W. Iron. The building also served as a shelter for abused and neglected children, operated by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Concordia. Several of the sisters also trained to be social workers.

In January 1959, Catholic Charities in Salina was incorporated and Wasinger appointed executive director. In 1964, the agency moved to the former Brungardt home at 137 N. Ninth. After the children's shelter was closed in 1991, Catholic Charities moved back to its present location at 425 W. Iron.

Wasinger, who remained a full-time priest and later became a monsignor, would head the agency for 35 years until his retirement in 1993.

Helping Spanish-speakers

Sister Mary Lou Roberts, a Sister of St. Joseph of Concordia who worked with Wasinger from 1968 to 1993, said Wasinger had a unique ability to assess the needs of the less fortunate and strived to meet their needs through personal and financial assistance.

"He was a low-key man who could fit in with any crowd," said Roberts, who now does social work in Junction City. "He could sit with the poor and the country club crowd and be comfortable with both."

Wasinger was dedicated to helping Salina's Hispanic population and went out of his way to make sure their rights were upheld, Roberts said.

"He had a deep love for the Spanish-speaking people, even though he didn't speak Spanish," she said. "He'd give a lot of his personal time and effort to causes he believed in, and people always were willing to help and donate because of who he was."

To expand educational programs and resource services to the western part of the Salina Diocese, Wasinger opened an outreach office in Hays in 1983. Today, three more outreach offices are in operation in Colby, Manhattan and Concordia, serving a 31-county area.

Wasinger died in 2001.

Since Wasinger's retirement, Catholic Charities in Salina has had only three directors. Sister Beth Stover ran the agency from 1993 to 1998, followed by Dan Johnson from 1998 to 1999. Hauser became director in September 1999.

During the last 10 years, Hauser said, Catholic Charities programs and services have continued to expand and improve.

Help resisting drugs

Hauser cited Catholic Charities' youth programs, including Hispanics in Progress, which focuses on teaching Hispanic youth leadership skills, the dangers of drugs and alcohol, the importance of staying in school, and how to seek opportunities beyond high school.

David Arellano was a member of HIP and volunteer for Catholic Charities as a teen from 2000 to 2004. He credited the youth program for improving his communication and organizational skills, as well as keeping him away from drugs and alcohol.

"It opened a lot of doors for me, and for a lot of Hispanic families," said Arellano, who now works as a customer service representative in Hays. "Without Catholic Charities, I don't know what would have happened to me. To this day, I'll still visit and help out with HIP group activities. I'll volunteer whenever they need me."

Another area of expansion during Hauser's tenure is the agency's counseling services, which includes encouraging at-risk pregnant women to explore adoption alternatives instead of an abortion; assisting Mexican, Asian, European and Canadian immigrants applying for residency status and citizenship; and creating the Salina Area Savings and Education Program, in which low-interest loans of up to $500 are given through a partnership with Bennington State Bank and University United Methodist Church.

The goal is to keep people from turning to high-interest paycheck and vehicle title loans and to build a credit history. The program also offers education on budgeting and finance, Hauser said.

"These are programs that empower people to help themselves," Hauser said.

Advocating for the poor

Several events this year are in the works later this year to celebrate Catholic Charities' 50th anniversary in Salina, Hauser said, including a special Mass, a dinner, dance and auction, and open houses in all five area offices.

But what excites Hauser most is not celebrating 50 years of past success, but setting goals for the next 50, especially when it comes to dealing with the issue of poverty in America.

"We're not just a service organization, but an advocate on behalf of the poor and a force to resolve social issues," she said. "I was elected to the national board last summer, and our goal is to cut poverty in half by 2020. It's a lofty goal, but it can be done."

nReporter Gary Demuth can be reached at 822-1405 or by e-mail at gdemuth@salina.com.

---

Discuss This Story:

---