"To be Catholic and to be American should not mean having to choose one over the other," said Father Robert Zilliox in a Mass that began the two week period known as the Fortnight for Freedom.

With about four weeks remaining before the close of the 2016 Appeal in support of Catholic Charities of Buffalo, the annual campaign has raised $10,550,794.76 in cash and pledges, representing almost 96 percent of its $11 million goal.

Catholic Charities of Buffalo, along with sponsor LPCiminelli, announced an evening of music featuring the classical crossover-operatic pop trio Forte Tenors at Kleinhans Music Hall on Thursday, June 30, at 7 p.m. All proceeds will benefit Catholic Charities' 2016 Appeal, which concludes the same day.

Bishop Richard J. Malone talks about how Catholic Charities emulates the works of mercy and how we can help in this week's "Consider This."

At Little Portion Friary in Buffalo, a team of 100-plus volunteers lives the mission of the Catholic Church to provide food for the hungry, clothing for the naked, and shelter for the homeless.

Students of Niagara Catholic Jr./Sr. High School went out into their neighborhood to spend a day carrying out the Corporal Works of Mercy. They fed the hungry at soup kitchens, visited the sick at senior centers, and gave alms to the poor at community missions.

As older adults in Western New York continue to age, Catholic Charities of Buffalo is an available resource offering a range of services to keep individuals healthy, engaged and independent.

Buffalo's Society of St. Vincent de Paul will expand its services to women and their children, if any, in transition with a new program called St. Vincent's Door. This program will help those women in transition that come to the society through its local conferences or its collaborative partners and other social service agencies throughout Western New York.

Catholic Charities of Buffalo reported the 2016 Appeal has surpassed $10 million in cash and pledges. As a result, volunteers and campaign leadership must raise close to $1 million over the next seven weeks in order to reach this year's $11 million goal by June 30.

A prominent national figure in the battle against poverty paid a visit to Catholic Charities headquarters on Delaware Avenue Friday. Ralph McCloud is the Director of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development, an anti-poverty program supported by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Catholic Charities of Buffalo has been awarded a $192,245 grant from the United States Department of Housing and Urban Development to support its Rapid Re-Housing efforts, which aim to help individuals or families who are homeless secure and retain permanent housing through rental assistance and support services.

It was a wintry day last March 12, with snow was piled high. The parking lot was icy as moving vans and cars approached the new building on Lafayette Avenue in Buffalo. The building stood impressive but silent as 27 Sisters of St. Mary of Namur approached.

BUFFALO - Catholic Charities of Buffalo today reported the 2016 Appeal has surpassed $9 million in cash and pledges. As a result, volunteers and campaign leadership must raise close to $2 million between now and June 30 in order to reach this year's $11 million goal.

BUFFALO - Bishop Richard J. Malone provided his report on the progress of the annual Catholic Charities of Buffalo Appeal today, revealing $8,028,684.29 has been raised to date, as Catholic Charities officials marked the close of Appeal Week 2016.

Deacon Don Weigel, a Global Fellow with Catholic Relief Services and associate public policy coordinator for Catholic Charities of Buffalo, made a trip in January to Greece and Serbia to help Syrian refugees.

Bishop Richard Malone talks about the great work of Catholic Charities in a special episode of "Consider This."

Catholic Charities of Buffalo's 92nd annual Appeal has raised $6,554,783.57 following the opening weekend of Sunday of Appeal Week 2016, representing 59 percent of the $11 million goal.

On Feb. 18, Bishop Richard J. Malone formally announced Upon This Rock, a five-year, $100 million capital campaign that will fund the Diocese of Buffalo's mission in three specific areas. These three pillars, which the campaign calls "those we serve," "those who serve" and "how we serve," involve investing money into the future of diocesan parishes, caring for retired priests, and supporting efforts of Catholic Charities and Catholic education, all with the goal of ensuring a solid future for the diocese.

As the Year of Mercy continues, the Response to Love Center on Buffalo's East Side is continuing its commitment to serve the poor and help those in need in the example of Jesus Christ. The non-profit organization, located in the former St. Adalbert Parish school building, began in 1985 and has continued its mission of helping economically disadvantaged people with food, clothing, a sense of community and spiritual assistance, with the help of a dedicated group of volunteers.

Bishop Richard J. Malone and Father Ryszard Biernat recently delivered meals to some of the area's homebound through Meals on Wheels for WNY.

The New York State Council of Catholic Charities Directors will hold its annual convening in Albany on Monday and Tuesday, February 8-9. More than 70 representatives from Catholic Charities agencies across the state will participate in an evening reception Monday night, followed by a day of advocacy with lawmakers on Tuesday on issues related to the state budget negotiations.

Buffalo Mass Mob, the popular social media-driven campaign that draws crowds to Buffalo's oldest churches every few months, is set to descend upon St. Luke's Mission of Mercy Sunday afternoon.

On Jan. 6, Catholic Charities of Buffalo announced the goal, patron and motto of Appeal 2016. The most comprehensive human service provider in Western New York is seeking $11 million to meet their ambitious plans for the upcoming year. This is an increase of $100,000 from last year's goal.

WASHINGTON, DC (CNA/EWTN News) - Religious sisters should not be forced to choose between caring for the poor and obeying their conscience, the Little Sisters of the Poor told the Supreme Court in a recent legal brief, adding that this is what the government is demanding of them through the HHS mandate.

For a third consecutive time, Catholic Charities of Buffalo has been reaccredited by the Council on Accreditation, an international, independent, non-profit accrediting organization of community-based social and behavioral health care services. The human service provider was first given the four-year accreditation by COA in 2007, then again in 2011.

In the span of just over two weeks last month, the ISIS terror network claimed responsibility for downing a Russian passenger jet, carrying out a suicide bombing in Baghdad, deadly explosions in Beirut, and multiple, coordinated attacks in Paris, killing hundreds and wounding hosts of others.

This Christmas season, the Ladies of Charity, a volunteer branch of Catholic Charities, is trying to ensure all children, regardless of their family's financial situation, will be able to have a merrier and warmer Christmas. The Ladies of Charity are participating in the Western New York Holiday Partnership, providing Christmas gifts and cold weather accessories for low-income children and teens.

Dec. 1 is Giving Tuesday, a worldwide effort designed to encourage people to donate charitably after several days of shopping and sales from Black Friday to Cyber Monday.

Bishop Richard J. Malone will lead a group representing more than 95 parishes from across the Diocese of Buffalo in a prayer service and reflection at the start of the social justice convocation at Christ the King Seminary on Saturday.

BUFFALO - Catholic Charities of Buffalo is partnering with the National Council on Aging (NCOA) to help older adults in Erie County improve their financial outlook by connecting seniors to credit and debt counseling, employment, housing and other money management tools.

The Sisters of Social Service looked at their past and faced their future during their annual fundraising dinner on Oct. 22. One guest speaker reviewed the history of the sisters and another spoke about the challenges the order must deal with as it moves forward.

World Mission Sunday, organized by the Propagation of the Faith, is a day set aside for Catholics worldwide to recommit themselves to the Church's missionary activity through prayer and sacrifice.

WASHINGTON, DC (CNA/EWTN News) - Pope Francis' visit to homeless men and women in Washington, D.C., was "life-changing," said the head of Catholic Charities in the nation's capital.

A few weeks ago, the second reading at Mass contained these lines from the letter to the Ephesians: "All bitterness, fury, anger, shouting, and reviling must be removed from you, along with all malice. And be kind to one another, compassionate, forgiving one another as God has forgiven you in Christ."

Five Sisters of St. Mary of Namur from the diocese attended a conference on human trafficking which took place at the Catholic University of America in Washington, D.C., on July 9 and 10. The conference titled, "Answering Pope Francis' Call: An American Catholic Response to Modern-Day Slavery," was sponsored by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Charities USA.

ROME, ITALY (CNA/EWTN News) - With many European families already opening their homes to refugees, the current head of the Jesuit's refugee agency says Pope Francis' appeal for parishes to open their doors offers a practical way of combating what is otherwise an overwhelming crisis.

This fall, a new and luxurious independent living faculty, owned and operated by the Brothers of Mercy in Clarence, will be available for seniors as an alternative to home ownership. Montabaur Heights, the brothers' newest apartment complex, is nearing completion, with plans to open in November.

A group of dreamers, women religious from various congregations in Western New York, had a vision of helping those in need.

It was seeing people dying of starvation in garbage pails during a trip to São Paulo, Brazil that put a face on hunger for Sister Helen Buscarino. "It broke my heart to see the extreme poverty," she says.

BUFFALO - Catholic Charities of Buffalo officials and volunteer leaders reported today the 2015 Appeal exceeded its $10.9 million goal, with cash and pledges received as of June 30, the final day of the Appeal and the organization's fiscal year, totaling $11,152,026.31.