Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens Raises $2.3 Million at 2025 Bishop’s Humanitarian Dinner

Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens raised $2.3 million at its annual Bishop’s Humanitarian Dinner on Thursday, September 25th, 2025, at Cipriani Wall Street. Over 1,000 donors attended the Bishop’s Humanitarian Award Dinner to support Catholic Charities’ 160-plus programs and services, and to honor individuals who embody the Catholic Charities mission of helping those most vulnerable.

The funds raised from the dinner benefit Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens’ programs and services, which provide affordable housing, sponsor older adult centers and food pantries, and offer counseling and other support services to individuals with physical and mental challenges.

With the Bishop’s Humanitarian Award, the Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Service Award and the Ubi Caritas Award, Catholic Charities honors individuals, families and businesses who have made an impactful difference in the lives of the Brooklyn and Queens community. Bishop Robert J. Brennan presented the awards, assisted by Rev. Msgr. Alfred LoPinto, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens President and CEO, and Very Reverend Patrick J. Keating, Esq., Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens Deputy CEO.

This year, the Bishop’s Humanitarian Awards were presented to Reverend Monsignor John Bracken and Monadnock Construction. The Bishop’s Humanitarian Award is given to individuals who show personal commitment to the well-being of the residents of our Diocese.

Rev. Msgr. Bracken’s long-time service in Queens began in 1967, when he joined St. Francis de Sales as a newly ordained priest. Rev. Msgr. Bracken also served at St. Teresa, Woodside, from 1977 to 1980, and at Our Lady Help of Christians, Midwood, from 1980 to 1984.

In 1984, Rev. Msgr. Bracken was promoted to Episcopal Vicar for Northern Queens and parts of Brooklyn, where he oversaw 58 parishes in the area. His role as Development Director enabled him to lead a capital campaign that raised nearly $79 million for the parishes throughout the Diocese.

Rev. Msgr. Bracken continued as manager of general finances until 2009, when he was ready to return to parish life as an administrator at St. Mary Star of the Sea-St. Gertrude in Far Rockaway.

During Hurricane Sandy, Rev. Msgr. Bracken tended to Blessed Trinity in Breezy Point, helping parishioners rebuild and comforting those who struggled with the damage and loss to their homes and communities. Rev. Msgr. Bracken returned to St. Francis as an administrator and temporary pastor until 2017.

Currently, Rev. Msgr. Bracken serves as the Director of Patrimony for the Diocese, where he assists pastors in evaluating and obtaining appraisals for stained glass windows and other religious artifacts when churches close. Those items are then sent to churches throughout the U.S. and overseas, to places like Haiti and the Caribbean, to help share cultural and faith artifacts with other parishes.

Founder of Monadnock Construction, Nick Lembo, was born and raised in Brooklyn, New York. He was immersed in the world of construction from an early age. He earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree from Cornell University.

In 1975, he founded Monadnock Construction, a general contracting and construction management firm that has since built more than 30,000 apartments and homes throughout the New York City area. In 1985, Nick co-founded The Hudson Companies, expanding his influence in both affordable and market-rate housing.

Nick launched Capsys Corp. in 1995, located in the Brooklyn Navy Yard, long before modular construction became fashionable. Capsys pioneered a cutting-edge approach to producing high-quality, steel-framed prefabricated buildings, ultimately delivering more than 3 million square feet of modular low- and mid-rise housing and hotels.

Nick established Monadnock Development in 2005, which has since developed more than 11,000 apartments and homes across the region, including affordable and market-rate, for-sale and rental properties.

A past president of the Associated General Contractors of New York State, Nick continues to serve on the boards of several nonprofit organizations.

Today, Monadnock Construction is led by President Greg Bauso, alongside Vice Presidents and partners Alphonse Lembo, Anthony O’Haire, and Aleks Yelizarov. Monadnock Development is guided by President Kirk Goodrich and Chief Operating Officer Frank Dubinsky. Nick Lembo and Peter Hansen remain “Of Counsel” to both companies, offering strategic guidance and continuity rooted in decades of experience.

The Bishop Joseph M. Sullivan Service Award was presented to Deacon John Warren, a partner of Workforce Housing Group. The Bishop Sullivan Service Award is given in memory of the Most Reverend Joseph Sullivan, an ardent advocate for social justice who dedicated more than 50 years to improving the lives of New Yorkers in need. The Service Award is awarded to those who have followed in his footsteps by devoting their lives to the people of Brooklyn and Queens.

Deacon John Warren lives in Floral Park, Queens, with his wife, Lisa, and his daughters, Marie and Grace. Ordained in 2009, he is a permanent deacon in the Diocese of Brooklyn and has been assigned to Our Lady of the Snows, his home parish, since ordination. In addition to serving in the parish, he sits on the Diocesan Diaconal Council and serves as Master of Ceremonies to Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio and Bishop Raymond Chappetto.

Professionally, John is a Founding Partner of Workforce Housing Group and President of MHR Management, Inc. Workforce Housing Group is a development organization formed in 2009 that has focused on both affordable housing preservation and the repositioning of distressed multifamily properties as affordable housing. MHR is a property management firm with expertise in affordable housing programs.

Before forming WFHG, Mr. Warren had a twenty-year career at the New York City Department of Housing Preservation and Development. He served as First Deputy Commissioner of HPD for seven years, acting as Chief Operating Officer of the then 2,700-person, $1 billion annual budget organization, the largest municipal housing agency in the nation.

John is also Chairman of Ascendant Neighborhood Development Corporation, a not-for-profit affordable housing organization based in East Harlem, and Chairman of the Urban Homesteading Assistance Board, a New York-based national not-for-profit that develops and supports cooperative housing. He recently joined the Board of Advisors of Civic Spirit, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to enhancing civic knowledge, responsibility, and belonging in faith-based schools. He has a Bachelor of Arts and a Master of City Planning from the University of Pennsylvania.

The Ubi Caritas Award was presented to the Healy and Hagerty Families for their distinguished, unselfish support of human services as a reminder that true charity is the response of the human heart to God’s love for all people.

The Healey Family Foundation supports the philanthropy of Thomas J. and Meg Healey, their daughter and son-in-law Megan and John Hagerty, their son, Jeremy, and his wife, Megan Healey.

The Healey and Hagerty Family have been longtime supporters of Catholic Charities USA’s Leadership Institute and began supporting Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens events and activities in 2012. Megan Healey joined the Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens Board of Trustees in 2012.

The Healey Family Foundation funds a leadership program through Catholic Charities USA to help enhance the management capabilities of agency senior leaders at Catholic Charities agencies throughout the United States. The virtual course is offered through the University of San Diego and offers a custom curriculum designed with Catholic Charities in mind and closes with an in-person capstone experience. As of 2025, two of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens senior staff members have received training through the leadership program.

Additionally, three Catholic Charities employees, Lorna Johnson, Indira Mangroo, and Gaelle Prussien, were honored with the John J. Farrell Award for 30 years of service.

Attendees enjoyed an elegant evening that included a gourmet dinner, signature cocktails, and live entertainment by comedian, actor, musician, writer and talk show host Joe Piscopo, who delighted the crowd with a tribute to Frank Sinatra, performing several of the legendary singer’s most beloved songs.