By Bishop Edwin Conway

By now, people often manifest their feelings of overload from reviewing, exploring and commemorating the anniversary of the disasters of Sept. 11. It seems every detail from every angle has been exposed and, in a few cases, exploited. Police and fire personnel are paraded before us. Appropriate memorials are being debated. Celebrations and gatherings are peppered with remembrances of the tragedies. While I am aware of our shortcomings in dealing with this overpowering crisis, I believe that there is still one story yet to be told. It is the story of our Church, the story of commitment. It is your story.

Among the many good works of the Church and Catholic Charities is a small national staff of Catholic Charities USA and an oversight committee, termed the Disaster Response Committee. Several decades ago the bishops of the United States asked the national office of Catholic Charities to assume the responsibility for responding to disasters in the Church’s name. Since its inception, I have served on the committee and continue to do so as one of the three bishops representing the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.

Usually the main task of the office and committee has been the distribution of the funds collected from the generous response of Catholics and Catholic parishes to the call from the bishops to support those suffering from large disasters. You may recall events to which you contributed such as Hurricane Andrew, the floods of the lands near the Mississippi, the terrorist bombing of the federal building in Oklahoma City, the heat epidemic in our own city, and many others. Additional tasks assigned to the office are to coordinate the training of local response teams, provide an information service on responding to disasters and offer collaboration with other similar agencies. The office has been highly effective in covering these efforts.

The response of our Catholic people and the work of the office and committee after the horrifying events of Sept. 11 have been true to form. Spontaneously, from all sections of the country, donations began to flow into the national office to support the families and survivors of the attacks. Individual parishes also took personal action by contacting parishes in the New York area. In some dioceses official collections were taken up. The total sum of the donations received in the Washington office by the end of August is $31 million. Of that sum, $22.5 million has already been allocated to agencies to serve the victims and their families. The remaining money in the account is being processed in answer to programmatic requests for aid to our sisters and brothers. These simple numbers do not reflect the outpouring of personally donated hours and days of service and assistance that our people gave to those affected by the tragedies.

We continue to be aware of the boldness and the magnitude of the hurt, destruction, death and devastation that have followed the suicidal attacks. The numbers alone are numbing. Nearly 3,000 people lost their lives. More than 300 of the victims were firefighters. Millions of tons of debris were hauled from the site and hand sifted for personal effects or body parts. Four major airlines are in financial trouble. Tourism continues to be percentage points behind the norm. Security has become a new reality in our lives. We are scrambling to find ways to understand and form meaningful relationships with our Muslim brothers and sisters. We are told that the events of Sept. 11 have unduly affected the Catholic community. A disproportionate number of the victims were Catholic, as were those who reached out to rescue, comfort and serve during those days. Yet it is a micro statistic that has startled me the most. It was relayed by a Catholic Charities social worker in Queens who told me about assisting a parish in the burial of 35 parents. It is hard to imagine the grief, hurt and subsequent comfort that will be part of the life of that parish for future years.

The disaster services of Catholic Charities are not only present for an immediate response but also look to the future. We know that effects of these traumatic catastrophes are present in peoples’ lives for months if not years. I recall visiting the Archdiocese of Oklahoma City five years after the bombing of the federal building to help the staff ascertain the best way to assist their people who were continuing to suffer depression, unemployment and the effects of grieving. This long-term approach, rather than a simple “help and flight” presence continues to make me proud of the Catholic Charities and the Catholic Church in our efforts to be present to individuals, families and communities in their most painful hours. The workers are true and thoughtful representatives of your Christian generosity. Their work in this specialized area, of course, is in addition to their ongoing work and everyday tasks.

The experts tell us that we as Americans will most certainly experience another terrorist attack. The reality they tell us is not if but when it will happen. At a recent meeting concern was expressed over our ability to respond to the next crisis. One Catholic Charities director said it well, “Don’t worry, we were there on the 10th of September and we were there on the 12th of September; we will be there when we are needed. That’s what it means to be Church.”

We appreciate the millions of Catholic donors who responded to the terrorist attacks. We support and encourage the workers who have continued the Church’s mission of Charity so well. A full copy of the report of the Disaster Response Committee is available at www.catholiccharitiesinfo.com. At that site you can also learn how to continue to share your generosity.