Parish Renewal & Vibrancy from Ignite! Capital Campaign

December 20, 2024

by Jennifer Willems, Contributing Writer

Dreams come in all shapes and sizes, and the Ignite! Capital Campaign is helping the parishes and ministries of the Diocese of Des Moines name them, plan for them, and bring them to life.

About 9 percent of the $37 million raised during the three-year campaign was devoted to Parish Mission Renewal and Vibrancy, with $70,000 in “micro investments” awarded in the first year alone. Campaign literature says it was 8 percent of the $45 million goal.

“The Diocese can do some big things, but where most people are going to feel God’s grace, love and mercy is going to be in their parish community or their Catholic school or at a retreat center,” according to John Gaffney, diocesan director of Evangelization and Mission. “What we wanted to do, at the very core, is say, ‘What’s holding you back from being able to do that? And what happens if the money is not what holds you back?’”

Dreams Fulfilled

The Parish Mission Renewal Endowment Fund will ultimately have $5.75 million-with $3.25 million from the Ignite! campaign and $2.5 million from the Excellence in Education Capital Campaign, which was conducted by retired Bishop Joseph Charron, C.PP.S.

Drawing 3.75 percent of the principal would provide a little more than $200,000 each year to help parishes dream about how to spread the Gospel to an even greater extent once the Parish Missional Renewal Endowment Fund is fully funded, Gaffney said.

The first round of grants included $10,000 for Corpus Christi Parish in Council Bluffs, which enabled the parish to purchase 25 handheld translators. Father Luis Mejia, the pastor, said this has made Corpus Christi one community with two languages, Spanish and English. The devices operate through the sound system and can be used with headphones to provide a translation of the homily and Mass parts from one language into the other. It is also beneficial for parishioners with hearing difficulties.

“People feel more engaged in the liturgy,” said Father Mejia. “It’s not just that ‘I have to go to Mass because it is my Sunday obligation,’ but ‘I leave church with something in my heart.’”

For the Good of All

Some funds are being used for projects that are good for the whole Diocese, said Gaffney. One example is a workshop that informed parish leaders, staff and volunteers about the new Order of Christian Initiation of Adults.

In addition, the St. Thomas More Center in Panora received a little more than $6,500 to host a Family Camp last Oct. 18-20. This “micro investment” also enabled the center to offer confirmation retreats, featuring NET Ministries, this past September and plans to have one May 9-10, 2025, said Jason Anderson, the center’s executive director.

“The financial support of the Diocese allows us to be able to try something, to be able to do something new,” Anderson said. “That means a lot.”