Pandemic Shutdowns Force Catholic Group to Revamp Fundraising Plan

ANTIGONISH - As the Nova Scotia government considers stricter measures to deal with a sudden spike in COVID-19 cases, the local wing of a national faith-based organization dedicated to social justice and human rights around the world has found a way to re-organize its major fundraisers within the current social-distancing restrictions.

The Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP) has traditionally used Mass services in the spring and fall to solicit donations towards its humanitarian efforts since the organization was launched in 1967. However, Roman Catholic dioceses across the province shut down their churches in April, scuttling the Share Lent campaign that CCODP has traditionally run in the pre-Easter period and seriously hobbling the network's abilities to carry out its social justice measures across the globe. 

In mid-July, Catholic churches across Nova Scotia held limited re-openings, but also reduced the number of Mass services held on a given weekend and only permitted a fraction of the normal attendees for a given weekend service to attend. With this in mind, the CCODP's Diocese of Antigonish wing put additional efforts on its Fall Action fundraising campaign, according to Terry O'Toole, a longtime CCODP organizer who is also a volunteer with the Antigonish Diocesan Council. 

"When churches closed for awhile, that really kept the message from getting through," O'Toole told TELILE 24/7 host-producer Adam Cooke. "It's had a huge effect [on fundraising] that way."

With this in mind, O'Toole is hopeful that the renewed focus on November fundraising will assist CCODP efforts on such programs as social-justice initiatives in Brazil and Guatemala, as well as on-the-ground efforts in downtrodden African countries.