Catholic Charities effort focuses on winter utility aid

Staff report

YOUNGSTOWN

Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Youngstown is conducting a special parish and community collection for winter utility aid for families in need.

The “Keep the Kids Warm” campaign will take place between the Feast of the Holy Family, Dec. 30, and the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord, Jan. 13, 2013.

All the funds raised through this effort are returned to the counties in which they were collected to provide direct assistance to families in need.

“Keep the Kids Warm” specifically aims to assist those “working poor” families who do not qualify for government assistance and those families who have no resources after government subsidized programs like HEAP (Home Energy Assistance Program) and PIPP (Percentage of Income Payment Plan) have lapsed.

Last year, Catholic Charities raised nearly half of the funds for “Keep the Kids Warm” from individual contributions, which helped 6,000 people keep their utilities connected during the cold winter.

Catholic Charities serves all qualifying people in need regardless of their religion.

Donations to support “Keep the Kids Warm” can be sent to Catholic Charities, Keep the Kids Warm, P.O. Box 614, Youngstown, Ohio 44501. Donations also may be made online at www.ccdoy.org.

For information, contact Brian Corbin, executive director of Catholic Charities Services, at 330-744-8451, ext. 320.