Renovations to extend Catholic Charities’ outreach

The 100th anniversary of Catholic Charities of Omaha provided not only an occasion to celebrate the organization’s Saint Juan Diego Community Center in south Omaha.

The anniversary also was cause to look to the future – with renovation plans to help serve even more people in the next century, said Denise Bartels, Catholic Charities’ executive director.

The charitable organization held a special celebration at the community center on May 29, part of a series of events to mark 100 years of helping people in need.

Archbishop Michael G. McGovern spoke briefly and led attendants in prayer. Bartels highlighted the improvements slated for the south Omaha hub.

Denise Bartels, executive director of Catholic Charities of Omaha, speaks at a 100th anniversary celebration at Saint Juan Diego Community Center, 5211 S. 31st St., Omaha. SUSAN SZALEWSKI

The renovations will include replacement of a 50-year-old heating and cooling system, expanded training classrooms and the transition of its existing food pantry into a 10,000-square foot facility, where people can pick up food and household supplies in a store-like atmosphere.

“When the pantry opened at Juan Diego, it was a closet and a small room,” Bartels said. Now community members will have “the dignity of shopping and selecting their own food in a beautiful grocery-store environment, with fresh and culturally-appropriate foods.”

A loading dock will be added to help bring in donations of food and supplies. Cold storage units will be expanded and have glass front doors. An elevator and additional storage space will help supply Catholic Charities’ mobile food pantries, to serve people throughout the archdiocese’s 23 counties.

“These changes will allow us to serve hundreds of thousands of hungry neighbors for many years to come,” Bartels said.

In 2019, before the COVID-19 pandemic, Catholic Charities provided 200,000 pounds of food through its food programs, she said. In 2025, the organization supplied 3 million pounds of food, diapers and other items to people in need.

“Each person we assist represents a child of God and a story of hope in the midst of a crisis,” Bartels said.

“We at Catholic Charities are committed to being here for the poor and those in crisis. At the Saint Juan Diego Center campus and beyond, we will continue to serve them in Jesus’ Name.”

A project design shows exterior renovations for the St. Juan Diego Campus. CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF OMAHA

A project design shows renovations to the market food pantry at the St. Juan Diego Campus. CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF OMAHA

A project design shows renovations to the community center space for the St. Juan Diego Campus. CATHOLIC CHARITIES OF OMAHA

Archbishop McGovern blesses those in attendance.

Leaders of Catholic Charities of Omaha include, from left, Susan Haddix, Denise Bartels, Archbishop Michael G. McGovern and Father Scott Hastings.

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