Over the past few months, a series of natural disasters have struck the United States and surrounding nations, leading to a series of “second collections” at Mass for area Catholics seeking to help.
Help they have.
Franz Hoefferle, finance officer for the Duluth Diocese, says that as of Nov. 16, with collections not even yet complete, those collections have raised more than $296,000 for relief efforts.
Hoeffere said that to put the numbers in context, all the national collections combined typically bring in about $423,000 per year.
“The response to the needs of those affected by these disasters has been tremendous,” he said. “… People in our diocese have big hearts, and the response to these tragedies shows this.”
Hoefferle said the collection for Hurricane Harvey so far has brought in $153,068, the collection for Hurricane Irma has brought in $78,656, the collection for Hurrican Maria has brought in $49,004, and the collection for the earthquake in Mexico has brought in $16,217.
He added that some churches had delayed taking up the collections because of conflicts with other parish activities, so the final numbers likely won’t be known until the end of the year.
— By Deacon Kyle Eller / The Northern Cross
