Subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe Awards $4.7 Million in Grants

WASHINGTON—The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops' (USCCB) Subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe approved $4.7 million for funding for 164 projects. Projects approved include scholarships, the rebuilding of churches and schools, programs for youth, and outreach to the poor and will be implemented in 23 countries. Grant proposals were evaluated and approved at the Subcommittee's meeting on June 12 in Huntington Beach, California.

The Subcommittee granted funds to a maternity house in the Diocese of Murska Sobota in Slovenia. The grant will support the continued building upgrades needed to house 10 mothers and provide professional support and help. This project will offer stable housing for vulnerable mothers and their children along with access to social workers.

Also funded was a Catholic television initiative, Novosibirisk-based KANA TV Studio in Russia. The grant will support new broadcast projects as well as additional professional development and educational courses for employees. The studio plans to produce a new version of their video-magazine, materials for the Jubilee of Mercy, and courses on Christian communication for catechists, reporters and freelancers, expanding the reach of the Church's evangelization efforts.

"The funding granted by the Subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe for over 20 years has been an important way for us in the United States to support our brothers and sisters in this region," said Archbishop Blase J. Cupich, chairman of the Subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe. "Through the contributions of Catholics across the United States, our brothers and sisters in Central and Eastern Europe have been able to breathe new life into their Churches once repressed by communism."

Grants are funded by the annual Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe. The national date for this collection is Ash Wednesday, although dioceses may take it up on different days. The Subcommittee on Aid to the Church in Central and Eastern Europe oversees the collection and an annual grant program as part of the USCCB Committee on National Collections. More information about the collection and who it supports can be found at www.usccb.org/ccee.
---
Keywords: Central and Eastern Europe, Collection for the Church in Central and Eastern Europe, grants, stewardship, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Archbishop Blase J. Cupich
# # #
MEDIA CONTACT:
Norma Montenegro Flynn
O: 202-541-3202