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	Diocese Hopes for $28m in Capital Campaign By Stephanie Innes Arizona Daily Star October 14, 2007 http://www.azstarnet.com/metro/206209 Two years after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson is launching a capital campaign, asking donors for $28 million. Among other things, the money will go toward buying land for parishes and schools in areas where the population is growing, including Pinal County and Yuma, Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas said Friday. The diocese includes some 350,000 Catholics in 74 parishes. Kicanas said a feasibility study, combined with support and encouragement he's heard from parishioners and clergy, indicate it's a good time for the diocese to embark on a capital campaign, which will be the first in its history and could last up to two years. The campaign, titled "Our Faith, Our Hope, Our Future," is in a behind-the-scenes phase and isn't expected to be launched publicly until January, Kicanas said. Four parishes are already participating in a pilot program to gauge the campaign's potential success: Our Lady of the Valley in Green Valley, St. Ambrose in Tucson's Midtown, St. Frances Cabrini on Tucson's North Side and St. Rose of Lima in Safford. In a letter Kicanas sent to lay leaders Oct. 3, he listed seven areas that will be funded with the capital campaign, including strengthening Catholic schools and religious-education programs and strengthening parishes. Twenty percent of all contributions will remain with parishes. Once a parish reaches its fundraising goal it will get 50 percent of all contributions. Since the bankruptcy reorganization, the diocese's parishes have become separate corporations. On Friday, Kicanas said he'd be able to outline more specifics of the campaign closer to its launch date. According to the letter he sent, the capital campaign would also replace the need for an annual Catholic Appeal. Last year's appeal raised an all-time high of $4 million. The diocese is looking to buy land not long after selling off 83 pieces of property. That land was sold in 2005 at the height of the real estate boom in order to finance a settlement pool for victims of sexual abuse by diocese clerics. The $22 million settlement pool was part of the diocese's bankruptcy reorganization, and selling the properties raised $5.28 million. Kicanas said the diocese was fortunate to sell that property when it could get maximum prices for the settlement pool. He stressed that the diocese did not have a lot of property, even before the sale. He said it had lost several parcels of real estate as a result of debts that soared in the late 1980s, following the diocese's failed venture with running a television station. Population growth in the Casa Grande and Yuma areas is fueling a need for church expansion, Kicanas said, pinpointing areas where the diocese is looking at real estate. The diocese is opening a new parish in the community of Maricopa in Pinal County and hopes to alleviate crowding at St. Jude Thaddeus Catholic Church in San Luis outside Yuma. The diocese filed for bankruptcy protection in 2004 in the face of potentially expensive lawsuits over sexual abuse by clergy. At that time, it listed $16.6 million in assets and said it owed $20.7 million to creditors. The diocese's latest financial audit lists current assets at $11.4 million and liabilities at $11.2 million. "From my experience in talking with donors about major sacrificial gifts, I've been really encouraged," Kicanas said. "It's a humbling thing to see how eager people are to assist in the work of the church, and they are doing it in a very sacrificial way — not only giving their daily bread but really making a significant effort to help the campaign." AT A GLANCE: The Roman Catholic Diocese of Tucson's $28 million capital campaign goals: • Buy new land for parishes and schools. • Help retired priests. • Strengthen Catholic schools and religious-education programs. • Renovate the interior of St. Augustine Cathedral. • Enhance the work of Catholic Community Services. • Strengthen parishes. • Fund the annual Catholic Appeal for 2008. Source: Oct. 3 letter sent by Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas to diocesan lay leaders Contact reporter Stephanie Innes at 573-4134 or at sinnes@azstarnet.com.
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