By Michelle Bauman
Atlanta, Ga., (EWTN News/CNA): At the recent
spring meeting of the U.S. bishops, Dr. Carolyn Y. Woo,
president and CEO of Catholic Relief Services, highlighted the
work that the charitable agency is doing around the world on
behalf of the Church.
“We serve wherever there is a need,” she told the U.S. bishops,
who were gathered at their spring general assembly in Atlanta,
Ga., June 13-15.
Woo’s
address marked the first time that she had spoken to the
bishops’ conference since becoming the head of the charitable
organization on Jan. 1, 2012.
In her presentation, Woo explained that Catholic
Relief Services strives to serve the “common good” with
“uncommon excellence.”
She told the bishops that the organization is “always
innovating” and “always improving to make sure that our work is
good.”
Founded in 1943,
Catholic Relief Services is the official international
humanitarian agency of the Catholic community in the U.S. It
reaches more than 100 million people in over 100 countries,
providing both disaster relief and long-term development aid.
The agency works closely with
local institutions to serve all those in need, regardless of
their religion, race or nationality. It serves a broad range of
needs, responding to emergencies, promoting education and
health, fighting disease, and supporting peace and justice in
societies throughout the world.
In addition, it engages Catholics in the U.S. to
live in solidarity with those who are impoverished and suffering
across the globe.
The
organization is governed by a board of directors that consists
of clergy – primarily bishops – as well as religious and
Catholic laity.
Woo
explained that Catholic social teaching is the “foundation” of
the agency’s mission as it works to uphold the dignity of all
human life, foster justice and serve those in need.
The agency serves those in the poorest nations,
she noted, adding that “when a country becomes rich, we leave.”
In addition to working with a variety of
partners, particularly Catholic organizations, Catholic Relief
Services is working to expand its “involvement with universities
and corporations,” she reported.
As an example of the group’s work, Woo pointed to
efforts in Haiti to “build back better” after the January 12,
2010 earthquake that killed some 300,000 people in the country
and caused billions of dollars of damage.
Catholic Relief Services is working to build
secure and sustainable structures, create a “teaching hospital”
in Port-au-Prince and help local educational groups develop a
vision for the future of Catholic education in the country, she
said.
It is also
teaching farmers how to add value to their crops and continuing
the work of community recovery, offering shelter, safety, clean
water and other necessities for families returning to their
neighborhoods.
Woo also
outlined ways in which the bishops can help Catholics Relief
Services in its mission.
She encouraged the bishops to link to the
organization on their own diocesan websites and to help
integrate Catholic social teaching into formation programs.
In addition, she welcomed the bishops to travel
overseas with Catholic Relief Services, to see the work that the
agency is doing around the world.
Woo also addressed the bishops’ concerns about
certain federal contract proposals last summer that would have
required the distribution of contraceptives. About 70 percent of
Catholic Relief Services’ funding comes from U.S. government,
and about 80 percent comes through a competitive process.
Woo said that the agency worked with the
government, and as of February, the problematic language had
been “eliminated.”
She
assured the bishops that the organization is still “monitoring
this issue very closely” to ensure that future proposals do not
“embed that language.”
