CCUSA urges Congress to help people of Puerto Rico

Sister Donna Markham, OP, PhD wrote a letter to Congress urging members to find a workable solution that prioritizes the needs of people affected by the ongoing financial and humanitarian crisis in Puerto Rico. A solution should promote budget transparency, reduce child poverty and ensure strong provisions to restructure the debt in a manner that is timely, comprehensive and orderly.

The ongoing crisis in Puerto Rico has seen the demands for services and programs at Caritas de Puerto Rico expand five-fold in the last five years. In 2015 alone, Caritas de Puerto Rico served over 78,000 people, all of whom were living under the poverty line and nearly a third of whom were vulnerable children. The demand for food, led to Caritas de Puerto Rico operating 77 soup kitchens and serving 56,649 meals to families in need. Everything was achieved with the dedicated support of only 13 employees, 20 part-time staff, and 510 faithful volunteers. Read the full letters: House and Senate.