Work on strategic planning nears completion

How blessed I have been this year to join the amazing team of caring professionals at Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Omaha as their chief executive! I was recently welcomed to this great city by a very committed board of directors, an incredible staff, outstanding volunteers, collaborative community partners and generous contributors. I am so glad to be here in Omaha, and am profoundly honored and humbled to have the opportunity to work with you to advance the mission of this organization.

You may be aware that Catholic Charities initiated a transition of program services during the past year, which was finalized in July. Some of the programs with which you may have been most familiar are no longer under our auspices, while many of the community’s most beloved Catholic Charities programs are still serving more than 75,000 friends and neighbors every year.

These active programs include our Domestic Violence Shelter, which offers safety for hundreds of women and children every year, while empowering women to become self-sufficient. We also host a vibrant Adoption program, which works with adoptive and birth parents to help make the dream of having a family come true. Our Mentoring Moms staff matches mothers with volunteer mentors, who provide pregnancy guidance and parenting support. We host Immigration Legal Assistance to provide legal immigration services that unify immigrant families from all over the world in a safe, welcoming and confidential environment.

We are also honored to work with some of our most valuable citizens through our Senior Services program, which addresses the physical, emotional, financial, social and spiritual needs of older adults. Our Microbusiness program helps entrepreneurs launch their own businesses and enables current small business owners to achieve independence. We feed thousands of families every year through three food pantries. We help families become self-sufficient and achieve greater participation in their neighborhoods with our Family Strengthening program. Finally, we address the mental health and substance use issues facing our community through our Counseling Services.

Recently, we initiated a strategic planning process with our board of directors and some of our

community partners. This will continue through early October, and will enable us to effectively and collaboratively create a vision for the future of Catholic Charities. We are excited to join our colleagues and collectively consider new programs with which to serve our clients, as well as methods to improve our existing programs on which so many depend.

From all of us here at Catholic Charities, thank you for your continued support of our mission and the work we do every day to serve those who need us. Please know that our connection to you is vitally important to us, and that we highly value you as a community partner.

You’ll hear from me again very soon, following the completion of our strategic plan. In the interim, please know that you’re welcome to contact me anytime at greggw@ccomaha.org.

Gregg Wilson is executive director of Catholic Charities in the Archdiocese of Omaha.