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	Donations to Local Diocese Rise By Stephanie Innes Arizona Daily Star [Tucson AZ] July 7, 2007 http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/190771.php Donations to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson continue to climb ¡ª a combination of parishioner loyalty and a new federal law that makes charitable giving easier for some, church leaders say. When the diocese's 2007 Annual Catholic Appeal ended Sunday, $4 million had been pledged ¡ª an 11 percent increase over the amount raised in 2006 and the highest amount of pledges the campaign has earned in its 45-year history. The appeal began in February. The local diocese emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection less than two years ago after several difficult years that began in 2002 with the surfacing of a scandal involving priests sexually abusing children, primarily in the 1960s, '70s and '80s. About 17,500 donors in a diocese of 350,000 gave to this year's campaign. The average gift went from $211 in 2006 to $230, appeal director Thomas Q. Smith said. The appeal funds 26 Catholic charities and ministries, including a seminarian-education fund, a lay-ministry training and formation program, the diocese's Marriage Tribunal and Catholic schools administrative offices, as well as the St. Elizabeth of Hungary Clinic, which gives medical care to people without health insurance. Smith attributes this year's increase to a combination of factors, including the 2006 Pension Protection Act, which allows holders of Individual Retirement Accounts who are older than 70 to make direct tax-free distributions from their accounts to charity. Smith said the appeal this year received an unusual number of gifts above $10,000, which he attributes to the new federal law. Also, the diocese added three ministries as beneficiaries to this year's appeal ¡ª its detention ministry to people in local jails and prisons; a pastoral care ministry to 27 local nursing homes; and the Jordan Ministry Team, a Catholic education program. Smith said diocesan Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas' passion for the appeal also helped. "He talks a lot about serving the underprivileged ¡ª he calls it reaching out to the smallest and weakest, and the annual Catholic appeal is really focused on funding underfunded ministries," Smith said. "He makes so many visits and really gets out into the diocese. When folks see him and hear him talking, they tend to respond, and they are reaching out for donations more than they have before." A positive parish leadership also helps. Smith noted that St. George's Catholic Church in Apache Junction raised $129,666 in pledges this year. But three years ago under a different leader the parish raised less than half that amount, he said. Retirees Roland and Georgene Sorenson say they gave significantly more than the average donation to the campaign this year. They also contribute regularly to their parish, Our Lady of the Valley in Green Valley. "Our church and our faith is a big part of our lives," said Georgene Sorenson, who is 60. "We've only been here eight years but I've always given to the appeal. Since my husband converted to Catholicism a few years ago we are even more generous. Costs increase each year, so if we can increase what we give, we do." The diocese is careful to point out the appeal is administered by a separately incorporated arm ¡ª the Charities and Ministries Fund Inc., meaning the money will go directly into specific programs and not legal settlements. But that reassurance has not been enough for local Catholic Florence Stewart, who became discouraged with the diocese during the sexual-abuse scandal and says she still doesn't believe diocesan leaders are being completely forthcoming. Stewart, a retiree in her 70s who attends St. Pius X on the East Side, was surprised the appeal had raised so much money this year. "I prefer to give to other charities," she said. "The last time I gave to the appeal was three years ago. I absolutely will not give until they get their act together." James Dwyer, spokesman for the Roman Catholic Diocese of Phoenix, stressed that it's not only Catholics who benefit from diocesan appeals. The Phoenix diocese, which is larger and wealthier than Tucson's, this year raised $10.3 million in its annual appeal ¡ª also a record. Catholic charities help underprivileged and underinsured Arizonans regardless of their faith background, he said. "Catholics in Arizona are doing their best to help their fellow men and women, and that's what it's all about," Dwyer said. "Catholics often get a lot of negative attention but the whole Catholic Church has done far more good than almost any private organization I can think of." Seattle-based consultant Joseph C. Harris, who analyzes Catholic Church finances, says Catholic donations have continued to go up across the country, in spite of the national scandal over clergy abusing children that erupted in 2002. Plate collections from the nation's 66 million Catholics rose from $6.3 billion in 2004 to $6.6 billion in 2005. "Catholic giving has been going up consistently by 3 or 4 percent since 2000. If you were expecting the scandal to cause contributions to go down, it hasn't happened," Harris said. "Catholics continue to give at a very predictable rate." Between the 2005 and 2006 fiscal years, plate collections in the local diocese's 74 parishes went from $19.8 million to $22.04 million. Results for the 2007 fiscal year will be available in October, diocese spokesman Fred Allison said. Contact reporter Stephanie Innes at 573-4134 or sinnes@azstarnet.com
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