Legacy of Hope to resume

BY RAYMOND L. DELISLE | DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS

Legacy of Hope, the multi-year capital campaign which has been underway in the Diocese of Worcester since early 2019, was suspended in March due to the pandemic. Many wondered when, or if, it would resume.
In June, conversations about what to do began in earnest between Bishop McManus with his finance committee and Guidance in Giving Inc., the campaign consultants.
“We all agreed that we did not want to impose something on pastors and parishes if they were not ready,” Bishop McManus said. “So the directors asked pastors if any of them were ready to conduct their campaigns this fall, assuming they could do it within the safety guidelines in place in our state.”
While some admittedly were not ready to consider fundraising and were still trying to determine how to resume a full Sunday Mass schedule, others enthusiastically said yes. Fifteen parishes are preparing to run the campaign this fall. The remaining 40 parishes will conduct campaigns in the spring of 2021, according to diocesan fundraisers.
“There are pastors out there who are ready to go,” said Jose DeJesus, vice president at Guidance in Giving and campaign manager for Worcester. “They were already conducting full weekend Mass schedules and they know that the sooner they begin, the sooner their parish would start benefitting from their parish share.”
Legacy of Hope is being conducted in four blocks of parishes which last for roughly six months each. Blocks one and two (totaling 45 parishes) conducted their campaigns in 2019 and have already begun receiving semi-annual checks for the 40 percent share that goes back to the parish as pledges are redeemed. As of early September, a total of $2,377,161 has been returned to the parishes. To date, parishioners in blocks one and two have raised nearly $18 million benefiting six key areas for the Diocese of Worcester and the individual parishes.
In the video that was produced in 2018 for the campaign, Father Robert A. Grattaroti, pastor of St. Joseph Parish in Charlton, made the point that evangelization, which is at the heart of the church’s mission, relies on communications.
“What we also know is that communications is also at the heart of stewardship,” said Michael P. Gillespie, director of the Office of Stewardship and Development in the diocese. “Fundraising, whether it is offertory in a parish, the annual Partners in Charity appeal, or the longer-range capital campaign, is all about the relationship that the Church has with the parishioners, who are also donors. Understanding what we are grateful for relies on meaningful communications.”
“How we conduct the campaign will feel a bit different than it did in 2019,” shared Mr. DeJesus. In a world where everything has gone virtual, so has fundraising.
“Receptions were the foundation of our 2019 parish campaign. Now they are being adapted to not only meet safety guidelines, but also involve people remotely, or virtually, in order to meet them where they want to be,” Mr. DeJesus said.
Other than a presentation at Mass, small gatherings are going to be key, whether online, in–person, or even one-on-one on the phone.
“We need to have a conversation with a donor to be able to address their questions and concerns,” according to Michael Messano, who oversees lead gifts for the campaign.
“We have been witnessing tremendous generosity in this diocese in the parishes which have already conducted campaigns. Once they understand the need, and how their support will make a difference, they respond.
“Even during this pandemic, pledges made in 2019 are being paid at nearly 100% redemption rate. We always explain to donors that a pledge is really a best-intention promise and not a contract,” Mr. Messano explained. “We want people to know that these parishioners are putting extra effort in fulfilling those pledges, knowing that this will make a difference in the future of the diocese.”
“I believe that Legacy of Hope’s success so far, as well as having achieved nearly 90 percent of the annual Partners in Charity goal this year, in a COVID pandemic environment, are miraculous success stories that we must share! They are a tribute to the faithfulness and generosity of the Catholics who call Worcester County their home,” said Mr. DeJesus.
“The lessons learned this fall will certainly assist the parishes in 2021,” said Michael Cusack, CEO of Guidance in Giving, who has been working closely with the team he assigned to the Diocese of Worcester. “If I had to sum up in one word what it will be like, I think the word is ‘personal.’ That is what participating in this campaign should always be, a personal commitment to support establishing a Legacy of Hope for the Diocese of Worcester.”