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October 8, 2019 | The Valley Catholic
COMMUNITY
ADA in Action
By Sue Pershon
This year’s Annual Diocesan Ap-
peal goal is $6.6 million. So far, 19,733
pledges have been received, totaling
$9.1 million. That is an average pledge
of $464 with $2.5 million slated to go
directly back to the parishes in the form
of rebates. These rebates will be used
in the parishes for a variety of special
projects and building Parish Ministry
programs.
This year, Bishop Cantú hosted two
receptions to thank those who con-
tributed $1,500 or more to the Annual
Diocesan Appeal to recognize their
wonderful support of the many Min-
istries of the Diocese. More than 1000
invitations were sent out to the events.
Attendees were treated to wine and
appetizers while visiting with friends.
Bishop Cantú enjoyed meeting parish-
ioners from across the Diocese.
The Department of Stewardship
and Development hosted the Annual
ADA Volunteer Dinner and Awards
Ceremony at St. Elizabeth Parish on
September 13. Bishop Cantú took this
opportunity to thank all of those who
Achievement Award and Director’s Award
Five Wounds Bishop’s Award
Church of the Resurrection Bishop’s Award
Our Lady of Refuge
Capital Award
Our Lady of La Vang Participation Award
St. Anthony Stewardship Award
St. Maria Goretti
worked hard to make the ADA a huge
success for the Diocese and their par-
ish. Bishop Cantú also gave out awards
to those parishes who demonstrated
exceptional leadership during the ap-
peal. Congratulations to the following award winners:
• Achievement Award – Five Wounds
• Capital Award – Our Lady of La Vang
• Stewardship Award – St. Maria
Goretti
• Director’s Award – Five Wounds • Bishop’s Award – Church of the Res-
urrection and Our Lady of Refuge
• Participation Award – St. Anthony
There is still time to support this
year’s ADA. Please visit DSJ.org/ADA
for more information.
Social Ministries Funded by the Annual Diocesan Appeal (ADA)
The Annual Diocesan Appeal (ADA)
funds the Office of Life, Justice, and
Peace (LJP), which under the direction
of Marcus Cabrera, (has launched the
following Diocesan social ministries:)
Stewards of Our Common Home
Actions – City Hall meeting with
Aaron Kinney and Linden Skjeie to
learn about San José environmental
initiatives. These include:
• Climate Smart San José – our
city climate action plan
• Recycle Right, our initiative to
inform the community about
how to recycle properly and
reduce landfill waste/recycling
contamination
• Junk Pickup, the City’s free ser-
vice to remove large unwanted
items
• Meds in the Bin, a pollution
prevention initiative to educate
folks about properly disposing
of unused/expired medicines
Stewards also represented the Dio-
cese of San José at the Los Gatos Cli-
mate Fair on September 22.
Stewards is committed to finding
environmental initiatives across the
diocese on behalf of the interests of our
parishes and schools.
of rolling out more mental health initia-
tives across the diocese.
Mental Health Initiatives
Actions – Veterans Day mental
health 101 class held by the Santa
Clara Behavioral Health Deptartment
at Saint Simon parish from 6:30 – 8:30
p.m. on November 11. Special thanks to
Rose and the parish staff for opening
their doors and to Mego Linh from the
County for providing the training. The
class is open to all who wish to learn
about Mental Health care and illnesses,
especially our veterans!
Applied Suicide Intervention Skills
Training (ASIST) Training: 5+ of our
youth ministers have attended Suicide
First Aid trainings at the Santa Clara
Department of Education. Some of our
early adopters have been Saint Nicholas
& Saint William, Saint Elizabeth, & Sa-
cred Heart (Saratoga).
Mental Health 101 Luncheon – The
Chancery hosted a luncheon with
representatives from NAMI for our
pastors, religious, parish ministers, and
administrators. We are on the threshold
Immigration
Actions – The Vigil for Migrants
at Our Lady of Guadalupe, attended
by 550+ people, provided prayer and
community support from local organi-
zations. We look forward to beginning
a concerted effort to provide resources
for vulnerable communities.
Restorative Justice
Actions – Vigil for Victims of Vio-
lence – in collaboration with the Restor-
ative Justice department of LJP, Bishop
Cantú will preside over a vigil for those
affected by violence on November 21
Our LJP board will be gathering to help
create a wide-reaching and impactful
presence at the Vigil.
Continued efforts for outreach on
behalf of Inside/Out are given to pro-
vide a space for others to share their
testimony, offer support, and provide
solidarity for how violence and addic-
tion have impacted their lives.
Respect Life
Actions – The LJP Commission will
be looking closely for ways to support 40
Days for Life and how all life issues can
be supported. The LJP Commission has
grown to include human trafficking and
the ending of the death penalty.
Grants
Catholic Relief Services (CRS)
Money for CRS Rice Bowl is collect-
ed every Lent. What many people are
unaware of is that 25% of this money
returns to the diocese for parish and
school initiatives related to housing,
hunger, and poverty. The committee
approved over 20 grants this year
across our diocese!
Catholic Campaign for
Human Development (CCHD)
There are many additional CCHD
members, but these are those members
who have taken special attention to
visit organizations which request local
grants from our diocese. The annual
CCHD collection is taken November
11. The Diocese has funded in the past
LUNA, SIREN, Mountain View Day
Worker, and the Learning and Loving
Center. It is a privilege to support these
local organizations which make an
impact in housing, immigration, and
dignified labor.
For more information regarding
ADA please visit, www.dsj.org/ada.