The Annual Bishop's Appeal Make a Pledge Bishop's Appeal Video   The Bishop's Appeal funds the work of the diocese beyond the parishes themselves. Our contributions to the Bishop's Appeal provide us with an opportunity to participate in the ministry and mission of the diocese -- a community of faith that extends beyond the boundaries of any one parish. Contributions to the Bishop's Appeal go toward: • Education -- Training of candidates for the diocesan priesthood, Catholic schools, religious education, RCIA, endowment fund for high schools, and funding to support Catholic school teachers' salaries. • Family and Pastoral Assistance -- Retirement assistance to diocesan priests and religious, diocesan offices such as Marriage Tribunal, Liturgy/Music, Vocations, and and Hispanic Ministry. • Evangelization -- Spiritual development programs, Campus Young Adult Ministry, weekly television Mass and radio program. • Charities -- Catholic Charities, specialized programs for people in need, crisis pregnancies, and agencies serving those with special physical psychological needs. Education Training of candidates for the diocesan priesthood, Catholic schools, religious education, RCIA, endowment fund for high schools, and funding to support Catholic school teachers' salaries Family & Pastoral Assistance Retirement assistance to diocesan priests and religious, diocesan offices such as Marriage Tribunal, Liturgy/Music, Vocations, and Hispanic Ministry Evangelization Spiritual development programs, Campus, Young Adult and Youth ministries, weekly television Mass and radio program Charities Catholic Charities, specialized programs for people in need, crisis pregnancies, agencies serving those with serious physical psychological needs. An average of 9 social service charities receive assistance from the Bishop's Appeal annually. These agencies serve those 'least among us' -- the hungry, thirsty, homeless and those in need of counseling. The Annual Appeal helps fulfill the following goals placed before us by Bishop John D'Arcy in his recent pastoral letter detailing goals for the Great Jubilee:   Evangelization through which we try to bring every person closer to Christ.   A more intense outreach to our young people   Programs of prayer and dialogue with our brothers and sisters of other faiths   An increased effort to help the poor and those in need For the last several years, all four of these personal initiatives have been alive in our diocese. They grow every year because of the generosity provided by our donors to the Annual Bishop's Appeal.  What Our Gifts Can Accomplish The needs of our diocese may seem so large that you might not think your contribution has a real impact. However, when you examine the cost to provide diocesan ministries on an individual level, you can see that every gift produces real and meaningful results, such as these examples (based on a 10 month commitment --numbers are approximate and take into account a down payment). PER WEEK PER MONTH TOTAL GIFT   $337 $1,350 $15,000 Sponsors one seminarian for an entire year $225 $900 $10,000 Pays living expenses for a retired priest for 6 months $112 $450 $5,000 Sponsors 3 television Masses to the homebound $56 $225 $2,500 Provides emergency shelter for a family of 4 for 1 month $27 $108 $1,200 Purchases textbooks and resources for 3 religious education classrooms of 25 students $11 $45 $500 Provides 12 hours of crisis pregnancy counseling $2 $9 $100 Provides diocesan subsidy for 4 youths to attend a high school parish retreat