This year’s Justice for All Award dinner, a Sept. 25 benefit for Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Camden, is particularly timely as the agency faces the second crisis in two years in the South Jersey region it serves.
The first was Super Storm Sandy, whose devastating landfall along the coast of New Jersey in October 2012 caused widespread damage to homes and businesses, leaving many individuals and families in a precarious financial situation.
The second is the devastating closing of what will be five of the 12 Atlantic City casinos by November 2014. This second crisis impacts many of the same individuals who have just begun or are continuing to recover from the destruction of Super Storm Sandy.
The closings, which began in January of this year, will by November have left approximately 11,000 people unemployed, nearly all of whom reside in the six counties served by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Camden. The impact beyond the 11,000 people immediately affected will be disastrous as the unemployment crisis ripples through their families, communities, and local businesses.
“The casino closings are a humanitarian crisis, a disaster. We will need all the resources we can garner to respond,” Hickey said.
The direct assistance funds raised by the Justice For All dinner are particularly useful for disaster relief efforts like the one currently being mounted by Catholic Charities in response to the Atlantic City casino closings. (More information about the disaster response can be found at www.CatholicCharitiesCamden.org/casinocrisis).
The annual dinner serves the dual purpose of honoring outstanding volunteerism and raising funds for Catholic Charities programs in the diocese.
“The beauty of this particular fundraiser is that every penny of the money raised goes towards direct assistance for our clients throughout the diocese,” said Kevin Hickey, executive director of Catholic Charities for the Diocese of Camden. “We can help people pay rent, buy clothing for an interview, fill a tank of gas, pay for funeral or adoption expenses – whatever our case managers, counselors, and therapists think their clients need to help them be successful.”
Awards presented at the eleventh annual dinner will honor both individuals and organizations within the diocese who have done exceptional work towards the advancement of social justice and equality within the diocese and beyond.
Honored as individuals this year are three women who have been faithful volunteers with Catholic Charities. Patricia Bivins, Virginia Brannigan, and Kathryn Noble have served at Catholic Charities’ Atlantic City family and community services center for about 30 years each.
“They never take time off. We can depend on them,” said Nancy Hickman, coordinator of the center. “Without their dedication we wouldn’t have a thrift store, we wouldn’t be able to serve the homeless the way we do, we wouldn’t have the Christmas program that we have. They never say no and they never look tired. They inspire me.”
This year’s Organizational ACTION award will be given to Andy Lipenta, State Deputy of the Knights of Columbus for the state of New Jersey, and honors the work of the knights, particularly those in the Diocese of Camden.
This year’s Justice For All award dinner will be held at the Adelphia Grand Ballroom in Deptford N.J. For more information and to register, visit www.CatholicCharitiesCamden.org/jfa .