Living the Word of God

Outreach and Evangelization

The Catholic Mass and other Sacraments are the most important reasons we are here, as the model representative of Christ's church in action, led in Omaha by the Archbishop. The Cathedral parish has been the anchor of the community, active in social justice concerns: serving those in need; maintaining the neighborhood during suburban exodus; providing a gathering place for city-wide prayer vigils; ecumenical sharing and neighborhood associations; these are all part of the work we do as Saint Cecilia Cathedral parish.

We are working in the context of real-life situations, and each person’s story is unique. Ours is a ministry of ‘communication’ and we are trying to talk and walk with them and understand what they are going through.
—  Kevin Vaughan, St. Vincent de Paul Society

Saint Vincent de Paul Society

Food Pantry and Utility Assistance

When you ring the doorbell at the Cathedral Administration Office in the mornings each week, it is a guarantee that you will be met with a friendly face and welcome. On the day of this visit, Kevin Vaughan answered the door, and he led me to the office where in facing desks, he and Tim Peffer, (president of the parish’s Saint Vincent de Paul Society conference), share friendship with each other and offer it to all who come to the door. Though jovial conversation and laughter abounds, they share a serious and fervent mission of hospitality and care for neighbors in need. They are the face of Christ, distributing the donations of food and financial assistance on behalf of the Cathedral. Tim and Kevin are joined in their efforts by Joe Zaborowski, Ron Rubin, Nancy Gonzales, and Joe Wilcox.

Hunger is not a one-time issue. Many who come to the door have situations where something traumatic has happened in their life to cause serious and lasting problems over a long time. Some are clearly in immediate need of food. Some have physical needs – rent, utilities, job issues, medical situations. While we do not have the resources to address everything, the beauty of a large network of SVDP conferences throughout the city means that we can work together. There are 31 conferences, and they have different and complementary resources. When something very large is needed, resources can be gathered from multiple sources. The Knights of Columbus play a very special part in the ministry of the Food Pantry, with home deliveries of food to families in need on the weekends.

Catholic Daughters of the Americas

Charitable Projects

Catholic Daughters of the Americas strives to embrace the principle of faith working through love in the promotion of justice, equality, and the advancement of human rights and human dignity for all. The integration of spirituality and service is the foundation of the Catholic Daughters. CDA helps women develop their spirituality and provides avenues of service to live out that spirituality. The CDA gives members a unique opportunity to share their faith with other Catholic women. Helping others through charitable acts in the spirit of Jesus Christ is the heart of our organization.

Our Catholic Daughters court members work on several charitable projects for our parish, school, and community. One recent project was to sponsor a Holy Water project for Easter. The group purchased bottles, filled them with water, tied cards explaining the significance of holy water to them. They had Fr. Grewe bless the water which they distributed to attendees of our Easter Sunday Masses. Everyone was so grateful to receive them.

Knights of Columbus

Charitable Efforts

The mission of the Knights of Columbus is "Together, we’re empowering Catholic men to live their faith at home, in their parish, at work and in their community." Charity is at the heart of their work and our faith — and it always has been. For the Knights of Columbus, charity means supporting a virtually boundless variety of projects.

Our Knights council has recently teamed up with our St. Vincent de Paul Society to help fund the utility assistance program as well as to deliver food pantries to the homebound of our care area.

Members of the Knights council serve meals at the Sienna Francis House each month as part of their outreach program. They also host Red Cross blood drives on campus throughout the year.

They also participate in the annual Tootsie Roll Drive. When you see Knights in yellow vests that read “Helping People with Intellectual Disabilities,” you should smile. When these Knights are holding their bright cans and collecting donations around town, they are helping to recognize the dignity of every person. For every donation, each donor is offered a piece of candy by the Knight present, most commonly a Tootsie Roll. Because of these little gifts of appreciation, the “Campaign for People with Intellectual Disabilities” has frequently referred to as the “Tootsie Roll Drive.” It is a popular and successful fundraisers conducted by Knights of Columbus councils.