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Impact of Giving

Annual Endowment Checks Received by 86 Beneficiaries

Nearly $420,000 in endowment distributions were mailed in May, 2020 to Catholic churches, Catholic schools, and Catholic-run organizations throughout the diocese. For some, these annual distributions are a much-needed help to meet their basic operating budget. For others, however, these annual endowment checks are welcome opportunities to build up an important ministry or offer new ways to bring Christ to the lives of others. Here is an email we just received from St. Ann Cathedral in Great Falls. Their parish endowment is modest, at this point, yet it still provides an annual distribution that makes a big difference: Thank you for the recent endowment distribution check for St. Ann’s Cathedral. Father has directed the funds to be used for purchasing new materials for our Adult Faith Formation groups- RCIA and Adult Bible Study. We had two adults just receive their sacraments thru RCIA, and our newly formed Adult Bible Study has grown to around 15 people on a consistent basis. Thank you, and many blessings on the wonderful work you do!

Annual endowment distribution checks are the fruit of the stewardship of Catholics who make donations to permanent endowments at the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana throughout the year. Every gift builds an endowment, which in turn, increases the size of the endowment distribution check which their favorite parish, school, or ministry receives each year. It is that simple. Every gift you give counts!

We, the board of directors, are so pleased that during these troubling times, we were able to distribute over $400K in distributions to help the Church. This is in addition to being able to award another $50K in grants to various parishes and schools. As we continue to build the Foundation, we hope that you, too, might consider the Foundation in your future donations. Thank you and God Bless! —Tom Mathews, Foundation Board Treasurer

$400,822 distributed to Parishes, Schools, Diocese, and Catholic Organizations

The Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana is pleased to announce annual endowment distributions of 400,822 from its 2018 fiscal year! This amount was distributed among 29 parishes, six Catholic schools, and five Catholic organizations in our diocese, the Foundation itself, and several diocesan ministries including Priest Retirement, Seminarian Education (vocations), Youth Ministry, and the Tribunal Ministry.

Thank you to all of you who donate to permanent endowments for the Church who make these annual distributions possible! Everyone who gives to build these “permanent savings accounts” for our parishes, diocesan ministries, Catholic schools and organizations is making an outstanding investment in the future of the Catholic faith. Their Christian stewardship is the reason these funds exist to help our Church today! We hope that all of you who donate feel very appreciated and warmed by the knowledge that your gifts continue to bless the Church every single year and will continue to do so for future generations.

NOTE: As we gather information regarding how endowment distributions were put to use this year, we will share them on this page, so check back from time to time, please. And thank you again!

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st-marys-art-class

From St. Mary’s Catholic School in Livingston:

St. Mary’s Catholic School received a combined disbursement of $15,000 for use in areas of greatest needs for our students and teachers. We had been faced with the difficult choice of whether to continue to offer art classes because of personnel expenses and cutbacks. But, thanks to the generous support of donors to these endowments and the responsible fiscal management of the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana, we were able to hire a new art teacher and offer art classes to all of our students K-8th grade. Our students love art classes and are grateful to continue to have them.

From St. Raphael Church in Glasgow:

We are so fortunate to have two endowments for our church at the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana — our “Greatest Needs” endowment, and the “Francis and Bernadine Gallagher” Endowment. Together, St. Raphael’s received more than $4,200 for its annual distribution! These funds went a long way in our building improvement project, helping us replace all the lights in our church and parish center. We also applied the funds toward our project of lowering the ceilings to help with heating and air conditioning costs. This meant we didn’t have to ask for that amount from our community, who had already given so much and supplied the bulk of the labor on the project for free. St. Raphael’s is thankful for the donors who support our endowments at the Foundation!

Montana Roadside
Montana Roadside

From St. Raphael Church in Glasgow:

We are so fortunate to have two endowments for our church at the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana — our “Greatest Needs” endowment, and the “Francis and Bernadine Gallagher” Endowment. Together, St. Raphael’s received more than $4,200 for its annual distribution! These funds went a long way in our building improvement project, helping us replace all the lights in our church and parish center. We also applied the funds toward our project of lowering the ceilings to help with heating and air conditioning costs. This meant we didn’t have to ask for that amount from our community, who had already given so much and supplied the bulk of the labor on the project for free. St. Raphael’s is thankful for the donors who support our endowments at the Foundation!

St. Anns Kitchen In Great Falls

From St. Ann’s Kitchen in Great Falls:

The earnings from this endowment have provided meals to many of the hungry in Great Falls. St. Ann’s Kitchen provides meals every Friday to any guest who walks through our doors. We operate with donations from St. Ann’s parishioners, the community at large, and the earnings from this endowment. We provide our guests with a meal of soup, crackers, fruit, vegetables, rolls, dessert, cheese or peanut butter, milk and coffee (and lemonade in the summer). We often serve other things, such as sandwiches or nachos. We even offer a take-out ministry. Thank you very much to the family that started this endowment and all who give to it. You are truly caring for the poor through your generosity.

From Catholic Social Services of Montana:

Our mission is to provide resources and options to people in need: those experiencing an unexpected pregnancy, those struggling with parenting, those having difficulty building a family, and those who have financial needs and don’t know where to turn for help. Our social workers help women experiencing unplanned pregnancies look at their options to meet their children’s needs. If they choose to implement an adoption plan, we walk with them through their grief and help them develop healthy relationships with the adoptive couple they choose from our pool to parent their child. The gift of endowment earnings from the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana has helped us reach families in Montana that need our assistance. We are truly grateful for your support of our ministry.

From Catholic Social Services of Montana:

Our mission is to provide resources and options to people in need: those experiencing an unexpected pregnancy, those struggling with parenting, those having difficulty building a family, and those who have financial needs and don’t know where to turn for help. Our social workers help women experiencing unplanned pregnancies look at their options to meet their children’s needs. If they choose to implement an adoption plan, we walk with them through their grief and help them develop healthy relationships with the adoptive couple they choose from our pool to parent their child. The gift of endowment earnings from the Catholic Foundation of Eastern Montana has helped us reach families in Montana that need our assistance. We are truly grateful for your support of our ministry.

St Vincent DePaul

From St. Vincent de Paul in Billings:

This distribution will be used to fill the empty bellies of a homeless person with breakfast and lunch. Hot coffee, milk and often hot soups on cold days. It will put clean warm clothes on their backs and proper shoes on their feet. It will allow us to employ the unemployable and provide training for better employment in the future. The funds received from our endowment are critical to “helping us help them”. But without question, the most important thing this distribution does is provide hope. Hope to a father who is struggling to provide for his family after a layoff. Hope to a single mom who works full-time but still struggles to provide clothes for her children or beds for them to sleep on. Hope for an addict to get help and break the destructive cycles of their addiction. Thank you for giving St. Vincent de Paul the tools we need to help give the priceless of gift of “hope”.

We hope Catholics across our wonderful diocese will all consider giving charitably in support of the everlasting security offered through endowments for the Church. The State of Montana offers special tax incentives for those who give in certain ways to permanent endowments, as well. For more information, or to make a gift to one or more endowments, please contact the Foundation at [email protected] or (406) 315-1765.

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