Story - March 11, 2019 - Community leaders in the city of Daytona Beach and Volusia County have struggled for well over a decade to determine how best to serve the many homeless individuals so visible and needing assistance. After nearly three years of intense advocacy by F.A.I.T.H. (Fighting Against Injustice Towards Harmony) and other community organizations concerned about this issue…

Prayer & Reflection - December 4, 2023 - As we begin our Advent journey, we’re invited to release and refresh ourselves from the many wounds we carry, both personally and professionally. We need to make fresh room in our hearts for the presence of the baby Jesus, who comes as a vulnerable child, and the human and divine healer and new light of…

Story - June 1, 2021 - After the 2016 flood, Denise Brown donated time and money to the recovery effort. Five years later — on the heels of a storm that doused the capital region in 14 inches of rain, flooding her out of house and home — the 39-year-old Jefferson Terrace resident is the one who needs help. And on…

Prayer & Reflection - December 3, 2023 - Happy New Year and welcome to Advent! This is my favorite liturgical season — filled with amazing, courageous people, wonderful stories of discovery and dedication, and beloved musical themes. Speaking of music, today’s first reading, while calling us to repentance, contains concepts and images that have proven to be hymn writers’ inspiration: “No ear has…

Story - October 21, 2019 - There are three stages of starvation. Stage 1 is losing significant weight. Stage 2, losing height. The last stage is losing head circumference. Once you pass stage three, there is death. But… It’s amazing what love and a family can do… In 2018, adoptive couple Billy and Laura Marshall identified a little boy with Down…

Story - February 23, 2021 - The Burton family from Lake Charles, Louisiana, were on the way home from a New Mexico skiing vacation when the worst winter storm in recent Texas history brought the state to a perpetual halt. They kept track of the worst-hit regions and avoided Amarillo and Austin. Then Feb. 17, as many Texans huddled in their…

Story - March 27, 2020 - Catholic hospitals, parish schools and charitable agencies are among the entities hoping to receive partial relief under a massive $2.2 trillion emergency aid package unanimously approved by the Senate in response to the crippling new coronavirus. They are just not sure when the aid will begin to flow, however. “At this point everyone is trying…

Story - July 14, 2020 - Nearly every bishop responding to a survey said the coronavirus pandemic has seriously affected the celebration of the sacraments and rites and sacramental preparation programs in their dioceses. Confirmations, first Communions, the Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults and other sacramental preparation were the ministries most often cited by the bishops as being affected, according…

Story - August 26, 2015 - In the midst of responding to Superstorm Sandy, Catholic Charities of Long Island, New York, found that three groups of people were the most vulnerable to disasters: seniors, immigrants and people with disabilities. They needed more help recovering and they needed to be better prepared. So even as the agency responded to help folks recover…

Story - February 19, 2021 - At the Gateway International Bridge that links Brownsville, Texas, to Matamoros, Mexico, a group of volunteers and Catholic sisters pull portable carts with diapers, tents, food and supplies. They cross the border into Mexico on foot, a small caravan of about 10-20 people. Their destination is the migrant camp on the other side, where asylum-seekers…

Story - July 8, 2020 - Alan had been retired for almost 20 years and never slowed down. He was always healthy and independent, wrote and mailed checks to pay his bills, drove to the store to buy whatever he needed, and took regular walks for exercise (and to get out of his house). Since retiring, he never had to worry…

Prayer & Reflection - December 10, 2022 - As we continue on our Advent journey, we seem to be racing toward Christmas and the gifts of newborn hope, joy and optimism that await us through the holy celebration of the Nativity of our Lord Jesus — in just two weeks! Christmas is also a sobering reminder that our Savior and King of the…