PARISH NEEDS
Support of Our Local Parishes | $15,000,000
Though the Catholic Church is truly universal, we most often experience Church in our own local parish. With continued growth in our diocese, raising new funds is crucial for the majority of parishes if they are to fulfill the Church’s mission now and in the years ahead. Each parish will have a financial target that will include their portion of the Bishop’s Annual Appeal for 2006. Once a parish surpasses its Bishop’s Annual Appeal target, 50 percent of all funds raised will be returned to the parish to be used for parish projects.

Restoration of the Cathedral of | St. John the Baptist $3,500,000 
The diocese must continue to preserve its center of Liturgy and Spiritual life – The Cathedral of St. John the Baptist will celebrate its 100 year anniversary in 2007. In order to preserve and enhance the life of this great House of God, the Diocese of Charleston must contribute to the exterior restoration of this historic building. With sufficient funds the work will consist of restoration of the brownstone, restoration of the stained glass windows and construction of a steeple. The cost of this project is estimated at $7,000,000 with the Cathedral Parish taking responsibility to raise half or $3,500,000. Diocesan Conference and Retreat Center | $2,500,000 The Diocese of Charleston is spread over 31,000 square miles throughout the entire state of South Carolina. This presents challenges for diocesan and parish leadership to meet and gather in a centrally located place. This campaign will provide funding for a Diocesan Conference and Retreat Center in the Columbia area that will serve as a central meeting and gathering place for parishes, diocesan ministries, meetings, and retreats. This center will help bridge the physical gap between our parish leaders and diocesan ministries.

EDUCATION 
Catholic Education $3,000,000
Tuition Assistance Endowment | $2,000,000
A primary objective of this campaign will be to establish the South Carolina Catholic Scholarship Fund which will enable more students to attend our Catholic Schools if they so desire. We must be sure our schools are open to lower income families so they too can have a Christ-centered educational experience in the developmental years. Our plan is to have this endowment benefit active families with children in Parochial Elementary and Catholic High Schools throughout the diocese. The diocese currently has NO means of direct financial aid to students attending Catholic Schools. Through other development efforts we will continue to grow this endowment for generations to come.

Land Purchase for Catholic High Schools | $1,000,000 
An additional 1 million dollars will be used for land that will serve three High Schools in the diocese. Two parcels of land in the Hilton Head and Myrtle Beach area have been purchased for potential Catholic High Schools in the future. No timeline or plans have been achieved for these two High Schools. The third property serves Cardinal Newman High School in Columbia for future athletic and extra curricular activities.

BSA 
2006 Bishop’s Annual Appeal $2,000,000 
Each year, the Catholic Church in the Diocese of Charleston provides the funding for a variety of ministries, programs and services to thousands in our diocese through the annual Bishop’s Annual Appeal. Since we will embark on this capital campaign in 2005 and 2006, the 2006 Bishop’s Annual Appeal will be incorporated into our campaign, with its return slated for 2007. Ministries and programs receiving funding from the Bishop’s Annual Appeal

  • Catholic Charities
  • Youth & Education
  • Priest Assistance, Seminarians
  • Ministry & Outreach
  • Vocations, Permanent Deaconate

OUTREACH 
Catholic Charities Endowment | $1,500,000 
Catholic Charities serves the entire state of South Carolina through four regional offices located in the Coastal, Midlands, Pee Dee, and Piedmont Deaneries as well as two Offices of Immigration Services located in Columbia and Mt. Pleasant. Counseling and pastoral services are offered throughout the state. These services include an assisted living facility for the laity and the St. Joseph Residence for retired priests located in Charleston. Catholic Charities serves over 34,000 people per year through its various programs. These clients were served through the efforts of 15 full-time and 18 part-time employees and 1,269 volunteers. This campaign will provide Catholic Charities with a $1,500,000 endowment fund. This fund will be created to ensure that the social service agencies of Catholic Charities can continue serving those with pressing needs. Income from this endowment will be used for additional staffing and also to provide emergency financial assistance to the current needs of the poor within our diocese.

Hispanic Ministry Endowment | $2,000,000 
Recent reports show that South Carolina has one of the top five highest Hispanic populations in the United States. A majority of Hispanics (est. 70%) living in the United States are Catholic. This presents the diocese and our parishes with the responsibility of providing continued ministry and evangelization to our growing Hispanic Population. Through the Our Heritage, Our Hope Campaign a $2,000,000 endowment will be established to help fund improvements to the current Hispanic Ministry programs throughout the diocese. This will largely be initiated through the diocesan Pastoral Plan on Hispanic Ministry.

MINISTRY 
Seminarian Education Endowment | $1,000,000 
For seminarians in Pre-Theology and Major Seminary, our diocese funds the entire cost. There are currently 19 men studying for the priesthood with an average of 3.6 ordinations per year over the past three years. For those in Pre-Theology, or Major Seminary, the annual cost to the diocese is approximately $25,000 per seminarian. Currently, these costs are paid from the annual Bishop’s Annual Appeal, the annual diocesan collection for seminarian support along with interest from the Diocesan Seminarian Endowment. The Diocesan Seminarian Endowment is currently producing approximately $125,000 in income per year. Last year alone the diocese spent over $570,000 to educate our seminarians and run the vocations office. Through the Our Heritage, Our Hope Campaign the people of our diocese will contribute $1,000,000 to the Diocesan Seminarian Endowment.

Priest Retirement Endowment | $1,000,000 
As the primary spiritual leaders of parish communities, our priests deserve support in retirement. The diocese would like to increase the current Priest Retirement Endowment that benefits our retired priests by $1,000,000. Currently, the funding for pensions is insufficient and must be increased if we are to fulfill our obligation to them. The diocese is currently providing monthly pensions to 30 retired priests at approximately $1,750 per month. To prepare for the number of our priests who will be drawing on their pension in the near future, we must make sure we have the funds available so that they can receive proper benefits upon retirement.

Religious Ministry | $500,000 
Since the inception of our diocese, we have been blessed to have numerous religious men and women carrying out their ministry in our state. There are currently 41 religious priests working in South Carolina along with 20 religious brothers and 131 religious sisters. We owe a great debt of gratitude to these religious men and women for their lifetime of service and dedication to the faithful. From the Our Heritage, Our Hope Campaign, $500,000 will be set aside to contribute to the special needs of the orders in our diocese.