Catholic Charities USA (CCUSA) announced the three awardees of the CCUSA Social Innovation Challenge during a virtual event with staff from across the Catholic Charities ministry.  The awardees will receive a combined $1 million to invest in their respective innovative program.  The CCUSA Innovation Challenge was created to inspire member agencies (and their community partners) within the Catholic Charities network to propose fresh solutions toward alleviating, reducing or eliminating poverty.

The services offered by Catholic Charities are extensive, and range from free or low cost food, housing programs to strengthen families, rent help, and financial help paying for basic needs. The exact types of Catholic Charity programs near you and social services offered will vary by location.

CCUSA’s Innovation Challenge awardees and their respective innovative programs are:

• Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Omaha, Inc. (Small Agency category): “Catholic Charities of Omaha Microbusiness Program: Erasing Poverty through Entrepreneurship in Catholic Charities Communities Across America” – A three-year project that delivers an online microbusiness model to budding entrepreneurs at six Catholic Charities agencies across the U.S. Provides low- to moderate-income adults with business knowledge, resources and capital to become small business owners. 
• Catholic Charities West Virginia, Inc. (Medium Agency category): “Hospital Transition Program” – Together with Wheeling Hospital, Catholic Charities West Virginia identifies and supports high-risk patients after hospital discharge by connecting them with resources including transportation to appointments, home-delivered meals, and housekeeping services.
• Catholic Charities Diocese of Cleveland (Large Agency category): “MAX—The Max Kolbe Program” – Through specialized “peer” support training and certification of Catholic Charities staff, this program is aimed at those recovering from substance abuse disorder and those currently experiencing a substance abuse disorder crisis. MAX provides immediate pairing with a trained “peer” to a client in a crisis moment (ER, prison, court) and as a continuous advocate.

For more information about the CCUSA Innovation Challenge visit: www.ccusainnovates.org.  To find the Catholic Charities nearest to you and see what services and assistance are available, click here.