Catholic Charities of Colorado Springs » Events

Just a Few Days Left to Help Charities and Enjoy Fondue!

Rochelle — Mon, 26 Jul 2010 16:48:30 +0000

As we approach the end of July, there are just a few days left to enjoy fondue at The Melting Pot and help Catholic Charities as the same time. Each month, the Melting Pot chooses a non-profit agency to receive a portion of their profits for the month. This month, Catholic Charities has been the recipient. A dollar from each ” Big Night Out” and selected wine bottles sold is donated to the agency. Additionally, patrons have the option to donate on their restaurant bill.

Tracy Carlson, co-owner with her husband Steve, says, “With the recession and job losses, people need help more than ever! Catholic Charities is just one of the places where people down on their luck receive help.”

Thank you Steve and Tracy for supporting local agencies help those in our community who need help the most. Now, lets all go out for some fondue!

Poverty Cannot be Eliminated by Charity Alone

Rochelle — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 14:51:00 +0000

An Economy That Serves The People

Mike Callicrate is a patriot. His love for country is evident just in talking to him. It’s not demonstrated with a bumper sticker on his truck or a flag hanging outside his home. Mike’s patriotism is found in his effort to build community by restoring America’s prosperity through fair markets and a just economic practices.

Callicrate is an independent rancher with operations in St. Francis, Kansas. Mike has seen firsthand the devastating impact of corporate consolidation of our agriculture economy, unfair trade laws, and the shipping of manufacturing jobs overseas.

In the pursuit of profit for shareholders and the like, Callicrate believes we’re being short-sighted. This is evidenced in the number of manufacturing jobs in the rust-belt that have disappeared to places overseas. The result: urban/suburban poverty. The advent of industrial agriculture — quickly and cheaply produced food — has killed the small, independent farm. The result: rural poverty.

“The reason we have so many people living in poverty is due to the tremendous concentration of power & wealth in country and globalization has left so many people outside of the economic system,” according to Callicrate. He believes we’ve got to get back to doing things on the most local level much in the way of distribution as suggested by G.K Chesterton. ”We’ve got to have an economic system that serves the people and not the people serving the economic system.”

To see my interview with Mike in its entirety, please check out my YouTube video

Also, if you’d like to learn more about the issues affecting our economy and how you can become involved, check out an organization that Mike is highly involved in, The Coalition for a Prosperous America at http://www.prosperousamerica.org

Rain, Wind, & Shawn Mullins

Rochelle — Fri, 09 Jul 2010 23:56:13 +0000

Although it rained buckets, and the lightening shut down the Freedom Financial Services Freedom from Poverty Community Celebration, it was still considered a success. More people in our community may be aware of a friend, a neighbor, or a co-worker who is struggling with poverty. Our community came together as one, on an overcast day in America the Beautiful park, to celebrate the arrival of the national Cycling for Change team, which included our CEO Jason Christensen, on their journey across America, to bring awareness to the issue of poverty in America. We didn’t get to great them at the park due to the storm, but we got to say hello later at the Marian House, where we all gathered after a long, wet, and windy day in the park. We want to thank Roy Clennan and Freedom Financial Services for being our title sponsor. His faith in us has been amazing.

The metric century bike ride got off in the morning, made it through the St. Francis Medical Center and St. Patrick’s Catholic Church AID stations, had a great lunch stop in Monument, thanks to St. Peter’s Catholic Church and La Casa Fiesta restaurant, and most of the riders made it back to town before the sky opened up. Those who didn’t, were rescued on the course. Thank you to Phil Long Dealerships for the use of their cargo vans, to First Lutheran Church for the use of their 15 passenger van, and all the ride support vehicles – CS West, Bike Pro Mobile- and all the other volunteer support vehicles who converged where needed to pick up riders.

The Bike Rodeo had lots of children come and take part in the safety courses. Thank you to all who participated in this event, particularly the Academy Optimist Club, Metro Rides, Kids on Bikes, Chick-fil-A, and Memorial Hospital. We could not have done it without you. The smiles on the kids faces who received new and used bikes was worth all the hard work. The rain seemed only to add to their enjoyment!

The Freedom from Poverty Community Celebration was just getting started. The band equipment was in place, and the Silent Voices Mime Team had just began to perform when the rain started. Everyone was holding out hope that the storm would just pass over. We had participation from local social service agencies, food and beverage vendors – Ranch Foods Direct, J&S Concessions, The Good Stuff, Pepsi Bottling Company, and Bristol Brewing Company, PPLD, Chick-fil-A, and the USOC in the KIDZONE, and the crowd was just beginning to gather to settle in for the free concert in the park and the arrival of the riders when the lightening began. Then it rained buckets! The music equipment got soaked as did all the performers. The crowd scrambled to secure tents, tables, etc., and made a run for the shelter of the pavilion.

The volunteers, staff, partners, donors, and attendees were great, even through the storm. We stayed to clean up the park, stacked the barriers which were donated by Midwest Barriers and put everything back in place, and wouldn’t you know it, once everything was cleaned up, the sun decided to shine down upon us. Even though we were all wet and tired, we gathered at the Marian House for pizza, Bristol Beer, and listened as Shawn Mullins gave us a private concert. He and his manager Kip Conner, even though tired and wet, came to the Marian House to spend several hours with us, and Shawn played the music that everyone loves.

When one door closes, another one opens. It wasn’t the event we planned, but it turned out to be a great event anyway.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the planning and execution of this event. We could not serve the people in our community who need help the most, without your support. Thank You!

Come Enjoy the Freedom From Poverty Celebration on July 8 in America the Beautiful Park!

Rochelle — Mon, 05 Jul 2010 13:50:48 +0000

The planning and registration is just about finished for the Freedom from Poverty Celebration on Thursday at America the Beautiful Park (ATB) in downtown Colorado Springs. The national Cycling for Change team arrived in Colorado on Sunday afternoon and will be working their way down the front range, attending events in Ft. Collins, Denver, Castle Rock, and then Colorado Springs.

The team, will meet up with the local Freedom from Poverty metric century bike riders on Thursday in Monument. After a brief lunch stop, which will allow the riders to meet some of the local residents and speak with the Tri Lakes Chamber of Commerce at their annual lunch meeting, they will ride to Colorado Springs as a group to attend the Freedom from Poverty Community Celebration. The highlight of the evening with be musical performances by The Jake Loggins Band and Grammy Nominated artist, Shawn Mullins for the free concert in the park. Musical performances begin at 4pm.

The schedule of events includes:

6:30 – 8:00 am Freedom from Poverty rider registration

8:00 am Riders leave ATB park for Monument (stopping at St. Francis Medical Center and the Northgate area for rest stops)

1:00 – 3:00 pm Kids Bike Rodeo at the USOC Sport House south parking lot, adjacent to ATB park

2:00 – 7:00 pm Bristol Beer Garden, KIDZONE, Social Service Fair, food

2:oo pm Family Fun Ride begins. Meet at the ATB Park playground, near the fence

2:00 pm Silent Voices, a mime group from Vista Grande Church performs on stage at ATB Park

3:00 pm National Cycling for Change and local Freedom from Poverty riders arrive at ATB Park

3:15 pm Kids Bike Parade from USOC Sport House parking lot to ATB Park

3:20 pm Brief presentations by riders, and presentation of bikes to deserving children from Kids on Bikes and Metro Rides

4:00 pm The Jake Loggins Band performs

5:45 pm Shawn Mullins performs

It will be a wonderful evening of music, food, fun and charity. Please plan to come out and enjoy the celebration!

Thank you to our sponsors. We could not have put on this event without your support!

Making the Grade

Rochelle — Tue, 29 Jun 2010 00:10:29 +0000

Slow & Steady

An average of 3%. Doesn’t seem like much. Especially if you’re talking chances of rain.

When it’s describing the grade of a road, that’s another matter.

Today’s effort was a 71 mile stretch from Ennis, MT to West Yellowstone, MT. Our challenge came in the form of a consistent 3% grade pushing into a head wind over the first 42 miles of the trip. A steady uphill climb…into wind which culminated into an 8% climb over Reynolds Pass on our way to lunch at Earthquake Lake made for some tired and hungry riders.

As we made that last ascent into our break, KTVM news out of Bozeman was capturing footage of the riders on the climb. Leading the pack and with the camera pointed on me I kept telling myself, “Don’t look tired….Can’t let ‘em see you struggle!”

But isn’t that one of our problems in our present-day culture? Sometimes we’re just too proud to let others see or know that we are facing difficulties.

In our hyper-competitive, keeping-up-with-the-Joneses society even middle-class families are finding themselves on the brink. Poverty isn’t just for low-income people. Loss of job, catastrophic health issues, burdensome debt can all lead to a quick fall into poverty. And if not physical/economic poverty, it can certainly lead to — or be a result of — spiritual poverty.

During my interview with the television reporter I was asked what we had hoped to accomplish with this ride. Of course we want to create public awareness about poverty and to assist local Catholic Charities’ programs in raising monies for their operations. But we also want to change hearts and minds when it comes to understanding and acting on poverty. That includes dealing with our pride and open ourselves up to asking for help. It also means being open to reaching out and helping those in need.

At the end of the day, we are all interdependent. As much as we promote “independence” and “rugged individualism” as an American ideal, we really need each other.

If we’re to tackle poverty in America, we’ve got to be willing to help our brother and our sister. We’ve got to take the shame out of poverty and the shame in asking for help.

Whether we struggle or look tired doesn’t matter. It’s all about making it up the hill.

Biking & Baseball

Rochelle — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 16:49:21 +0000

“Let’s Play Two!”

It’s a favorite saying of Chicago Cub legend, Ernie Banks. ”Mr. Cub” as he’s known, loved the game of baseball so much that he wished he could play a doubleheader everyday of the year.

So imagine this….The C4C Team of riders is given the opportunity to combine two (2) days of riding into one. Sure, we’re adding 25 miles to a 50 mile day. Oh, and those extra 25 miles are almost entirely uphill including an 8% climb over a mountain pass.

We all said, “Let’s do two!”

Our reward: An entire day off because we’re ahead of schedule. A day to do laundry. A day to do routine maintenance on the bike. A day to blog! We all jumped at it!

For C4C Team Rider, Pete Schloss, happiness IS a clean bike!

I suppose my being a Cub fan and my desire to ride 5,000+ miles across the country on a bike says something about my mental status. (e.g. glutton for punishment) But hey, we all have dreams. Just never thought I would bike entirely across the United States before the Cubs would ever win a world series….

As an aside, I believe my Cubs (Once “beloved” now no longer. I had about all I could take after their early departure from the 2008 NLDS with a team loaded to win a World Series.) are 7 games below .500 and sit 7 games out of first place. Cycling has become a great way to pass the summer. And now, I don’t need to concern myself with the mediocre ball club from the Northside.

For those who know me…at least free agency in hockey begins July 1st.

Rider’s Ramblings

There are signs that after a month of riding, the team is getting stronger.

One thing that has helped us is an earlier arrival to our destination points each day. Previously we had been arriving after 4:00 p.m. which leaves just enough time to clean up for 5:00 p.m. Mass. To arrive around 2:00 p.m. is a real blessing. Additionally, having 50-75% of the miles knocked out by lunch has become a real motivator for the team.

A day off for maintenance is also a plus. The bikes we ride — and the amount of miles we are achieving every day — need regular TLC. A poorly functioning bike can make for a very long and tiring ride.

Tomorrow we have a challenging ride into W. Yellowstone followed by an actual “planned” rest day. We better enjoy it while we can because the following day begins a 9 day stretch of consecutive rides

Fondue for Me and You!

Rochelle — Wed, 23 Jun 2010 13:24:51 +0000

The Melting Pot, a local restaurant located in downtown Colorado Springs, has been giving back to the community all year. Each month, they chose a non-profit agency to receive a portion of their profits for the month. This month, Catholic Charities is the recipient. A dollar from each ” Big Night Out” and selected wine bottles sold is donated to the agency. Additionally, patrons have the option to donate on their restaurant bill.

Thank you Steve and Tracy for supporting local agencies help those in our community who need help the most. Now, lets all go out for some fondue!

A Milestone and a Marker

Rochelle — Mon, 21 Jun 2010 18:08:45 +0000

This is Jason Christensen’s blog for June 21. To read more about his adventures on the 5,000 mile, cross-country ride, click on the Cycling for Change blog link at the bottom of this page.
On this day we surpassed the 1,000 mile of our cross-country journey. We commemorated this milestone by visiting St. Mary’s Mission in Stevensville, MT. This is where Fr. Pierre Jean DeSmet, SJ established the first western mission at the request of the Flathead and Nez Perce Indian Tribes who were seeking assistance from the “Black Robes.”

Fr. DeSmet and Fr. Anthony Ravalli — a beloved priest, physician and architect — were instrumental in the early development of what is now the state of Montana.

As we walked through the compound past the chapel and toward the cemetery, it was a reminder of just how harsh the pioneer life was. Many of the deceased had lived to their early 40′s and that was about it. And that’s what we knew of the white settlers. The lot that contained the remains of the Flathead and Nez Perce had their graves marked with a simple, solitary cross.

It was a solemn experience. And while we might be tempted to be proud of our personal and group accomplishment by riding 1,000 miles on our bicycles, that’s not what Cycling For Change is about. Everyday is a reminder of the incredible sacrifices people make and it’s a reminder of the amount of suffering — visible and invisible — that exists.

There are a thousand reasons to be grateful. As has become tradition, every night we pray for those who do not have the food and hospitality that have been afforded us by various parishes throughout this journey. A warm bed. A hot shower. 40 million Americans are out there struggling to have those simple items.

My prayer for this journey is that all Americans will begin to look at the poor and be moved in a solemn way as were so many of us when we came upon that simple, solitary cross….that every encounter will serve as a marker on their hearts. And hopefully, we can begin to see some milestones of fewer Americans living in poverty.

Going To Extremes

Rochelle — Fri, 18 Jun 2010 12:18:40 +0000

This is Jason Christensen’s blog for June 18. To read more about his adventures on the 5,000 mile, cross-country ride, click on the Cycling for Change blog link at the bottom of this page.

We knew ahead of time that there was a tough climb. For the previous 3 days, anyone who asked about our route either gasped or rolled their eyes and wished us luck at our route through Lolo Pass.

The first 12 miles were to be our toughest. Of those 12, the first 8 were about a 3% climb. The final 4 miles were 5-6%. It was cool and damp this morning; however, the climb left most of us drenched with sweat.

As we reached the summit of Lolo Pass, we all gathered in the Forestry Service Center for coffee and hot chocolate. We dried as best we could. It was to be an easy 47 mile descent into Missoula. Yet, while we warmed up inside the Forestry Service facility, the temperature dropped dramatically as a cloud rolled in. It was now raining and a chilly 40 degrees.

Stepping out into the cold air tightened the muscles and made even the most stout riders grimace. A turn outside the lot and we were in Montana and descending at speeds of 25-35 mph.

Never had I experienced a cold like I did during that descent. NEVER. Words like “hypothermia” and “frostbite” ran through my head only because they couldn’t be uttered from my chattering teeth. The temperature warmed up a bit as we emerged from the cloud and rain and steeper grades. It was still overcast and the riders had little interest in stopping for snacks, fluids or even bathroom breaks.

For about 15 miles going into the town of Lolo the highway was flat, relatively dry, and allowed me to run around 20-23 mph….which also allowed me to stop at a gas station for some thinly watered-down broccoli-cheddar soup that was absolutely delicious…an assessment based solely on the soup’s temperature and not its taste or texture.

A dozen more miles and we were into Missoula where we were scheduled to visit the headquarters of Adventure Cycling Association. ACA is a non-profit committed to promoting cycling. They are a resource for cyclists in providing a system of maps for trails and cycle-friendly routes throughout the United States. ACA is also a resource for cycle-friendly lodging facilities where individuals or group riders (such as C4C) can plan their trips.

ACA has a tradition of taking photographs of cyclists making cross country trips and posting them on their wall. Their other tradition: Provide free ice cream to all cross-country riders!

After touring the facility and taking our group shot, most of us weren’t going to pass up on the ACA tradition…no matter how cold we had been!

Riding cross-country? The ice cream is free at Adventure Cycling!

After our visit, we pedaled over to the University of Montana where we settled into one of the residence halls for a welcome night of rest and a non-cycling day to follow.

From the road,

Jason

Grammy Nominee to Play at Freedom From Poverty Celebration

Rochelle — Wed, 09 Jun 2010 15:06:38 +0000

Shawn Mullins, grammy nominee and platinum recording artist, will be headlining the Freedom Financial Services Freedom from Poverty Free Concert in the Park, as part of the Freedom From Poverty Community Celebration. Shawn will be performing beginning at 5:45 pm on July 8.

He will be performing hits such as “Shimmer” and “Lullaby”as well as songs from his new lbum, honeydew, which was released March 11th on Vanguard Records. This album is full of humanity — hobos, railroad workers, traveling salesmen, homeless troubadours, fearful old people, youngsters yearning to escape from a dead-end existence, and several generations of family members, living and dead. The ablum is full of heartache and hope. To read more about Shawn’s honeydew album, go to www.shawnmullins.com/press.html.

Another incredible band, The Jake Loggins Band, will begin at 4 pm, featuring Jake Loggins, a local blues, funk, and rock musicsian. Jake is a native of Colorado Springs and has a large, local following, playing quite a bit at Southside Johnny’s. Jake has been described as an incredible blues guitarist with vocal deliveries that bubble with passion and soul.

The Freedom from Poverty Community Celebration, will not only feature live music from 4 – 7 pm, but will showcase local social service agencies who provide poverty reduction services in our community, feature a KIDZONE for children, offer the crowd a variety of food and beverage selections, including Ranch Food Direct hamburgers, hot dogs & brats, cooked and served by local Knights of Columbus groups, Briston Brewing Company, KEVA Juice, and much more.

The national Cycling for Change team, along with riders from the local Freedom From Poverty Bike Ride, will arrive around 3 pm. Fr. Matt Ruhl and Catholic Charities CEO Jason Christen, will welcome the crowd, provide an update on the ride, and introduce about 30 children from various agencies, who will be receiving new bikes from Metro Rides, in conjunction with Kids On Bikes.

The entire community is invited to attend. Come out and enjoy incredible music, great food & beverages, and entertainment for the entire family, while supporting those in your community who need help the most.