Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens cohosts traveling museum with Catholic Charities of New York to highlight impact of neighbors helping neighbors
Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens and Catholic Charities New York co-hosted the grand opening of People of Hope: Faith-Filled Stories of Neighbors Helping Neighbors, a nationwide storytelling museum designed to amplify the profound impact of Christian service. On Thursday, March 26th, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens and other representatives from Catholic Charities agencies across the nation came together to unveil the museum for its two-day stay in Union Square.
The People of Hope Museum is an initiative of Catholic Charities USA, the national membership organization for 168 independent Catholic Charities agencies around the country. Collectively, last year, the Catholic Charities network of agencies served more than 16 million people regardless of faith, addressing needs ranging from food insecurity and housing to disaster assistance, health care, and family support.
Housed in a retrofitted tractor-trailer, the People of Hope Museum is an immersive experience that brings to life more than 40 professionally produced video stories featuring staff and volunteers of Catholic Charities agencies across the country sharing their meaningful, memorable encounters with families and individuals in need.
The museum also includes a recording studio where visitors can share their own stories of hope and service. In addition, visitors can experience an interactive poverty simulator, gain a greater understanding of poverty in New York and across the United States, and listen to recordings of book excerpts about poverty, social isolation, bridgebuilding, and community action.
Stationed in Union Square on Thursday, March 26th and Friday, March 27th, the People of Hope Museum welcomed over 250 New Yorkers to learn about the impact Catholic Charities staff and volunteers have in our communities.
“This museum shows the uniqueness of New York City, by way of two Catholic Charities organizations, two of the oldest in the nation, working hand in hand, really helping our sisters and brothers. That’s what this museum is all about,” said Very Reverend Patrick J. Keating, Esq., Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens.
Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens had the honor of participating in the museum with the addition of a video testimonial from Jamar Carr, who has served as a Substance Abuse counselor at Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens Mercy Gardens SRO since May of 2023. Jamar’s deep commitment to those in recovery and his own journey make him a powerful witness to the mission of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. He stands for all the dedicated staff and volunteers at Catholic Charities who bring hope to those most in need.
For over 127 years, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens has supported individuals and families with guidance, resources, and compassionate care during difficult times. Each year, the organization serves more than 300,000 people through 160 programs addressing urgent needs such as emergency assistance, affordable housing, mental health services, homelessness prevention, and support for older adults, families, and youth. In the past year alone, it distributed 4.5 million meals through a network of 60 parish-based food pantries and pop-up events.
Catholic Charities of New York serves over 400,000 New Yorkers annually through its programs, which focus on protecting and nurturing children, supporting the unhoused, integrating immigrants, and assisting those in need. Last year, Catholic Charities provided more than 10 million meals to those in need at its soup kitchens, community pantries, pop-up pantries, and through home-delivered meals to older adults and the disabled.
This spirit of accompaniment is reflected in the work of Catholic Charities agencies nationwide, which include 168 independent agencies and 3,900 service locations across the United States and five territories. Though the services offered by each local agency differ, Catholic Charities agencies are united by a shared commitment to honor the dignity of every person and answer the Gospel call to come to the aid of those most in need.
The People of Hope Museum launched its tour of the United States in March and will travel the U.S. for two-and-a-half years. The initiative is made possible thanks to a 2024 grant of nearly $5 million from Lilly Endowment Inc. through an invitational round of its National Storytelling Initiative on Christian Faith and Life.
To learn more about the People of Hope Museum, visit www.peopleofhope.us.
To explore volunteer opportunities or learn more about Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens programs, visit ccbq.org.
To explore volunteer opportunities or learn more about Catholic Charities New York programs, visit catholiccharitiesny.org.
Photo Caption: From the left: J. Antonio Fernández, CEO of Catholic Charities Archdiocese of New York; Jamar Carr, a substance abuse counselor at Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens; CCUSA President and CEO Kerry Alys Robinson; and Very Rev. Patrick J. Keating, deputy CEO of Catholic Charities Brooklyn & Queens. (Photo by Matthew Adam)
About Catholic Charities of Brooklyn and Queens
For 127 years, Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens has provided essential social services to the boroughs’ diverse communities. Operating more than 160 programs, the organization helps children, families, older adults, and individuals facing mental health challenges. Since 1975, it has developed over 4,000 affordable housing units, making it one of the nation’s largest faith-based affordable housing providers. Each year, Catholic Charities delivers millions of meals through food pantries, pop-up distributions, older adult centers, and home-delivery services for the homebound. The organization serves hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers each year through emergency assistance, mental health support, affordable housing, family services, and early childhood education. For more information, visit www.ccbq.org.
About CCUSA
Founded in 1910, CCUSA is a national membership organization that supports and represents 168 Catholic Charities agencies across the United States. Collectively, the Catholic Charities network each year serves more than 16 million vulnerable people, regardless of their faith or background, through food and nutrition programs, affordable housing, disaster relief and a variety of other humanitarian services.
About Catholic Charities of New York
Catholic Charities is a federation of approximately 82 agencies and programs located throughout the 10 counties of the Archdiocese of New York, helping to solve the problems of New Yorkers in need – non-Catholics and Catholics alike – with services that protect and nurture children, strengthen families and resolve crises, assist the hungry and homeless, support the physically and emotionally challenged, and integrate immigrants and refugees.
As Catholic Charities enters our Second Century of service, they continue to provide basic human services that are efficient, effective, and accountable – and to being a valued partner in building the fabric of a caring New York with stabilizing housing for lower-income New Yorkers, building new affordable housing for families and those with special needs, providing nutritious supplemental food, supporting those with mental illnesses, integrating immigrants and refugees, and responding to community emergencies and disasters.
Follow us on X, Instagram, and Facebook and LinkedIn. For more information on how to donate or volunteer, please visit our website at catholiccharitiesny.org.
Media Coverage:
Traveling Museum Highlights Good Works of Catholic Charities, The Tablet
How a museum in a tractor trailer seeks to heal our divisiveness, National Catholic Reporter
Catholic Charities USA’s People of Hope Museum Opening Ceremony Held in Manhattan, The Good News Room