Dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,
This weekend, parishes will take up the collection for Opportunities for Life (OFL). This collection is held in all four Kentucky dioceses in the week of the anniversary of Roe vs. Wade (January 22), as part of the Kentucky bishops’ unified message advocating for a pro-life culture in our Commonwealth.
In the Archdiocese of Louisville, funds from this collection provide resources to pregnant women and new families in crisis, including material assistance and grant support for programming at Catholic Charities and other pregnancy resource centers.
In past years, this collection supported a 24-hour hotline, which provided support and information to callers dealing with challenges. In the past, operating a hotline was a wise, efficient and accessible way to offer support to a woman who found herself dealing with an untimely pregnancy. In recent years, changes in technology have altered the ways in which people choose to communicate and seek out information and so after careful consideration, the bishops of the state decided to end the operation of the lifeline. Instead, the dioceses in Kentucky conduct a statewide January collection in support of Opportunities for Life, and each diocese adopted its own plan to use OFL funds to best serve the needs of pregnant women in crisis, in light of specific needs and other supports available within that community.
In the 24 counties of the Archdiocese of Louisville, the Opportunities for Life collection established a “Lifeline Fund,” which provides direct support to mothers who are facing crisis situations. The grant has assisted women facing homelessness, abusive family situations, problems with utility bills, and other difficult situations. Grants are administered through the Catholic Charities Family Support and Referral Center.
Last year’s collection also funded grants to six organizations that support pregnant women and their children and that seek to build a culture of life. These grants assisted The Golden Arrow Center for Mothers and Children, Lifehouse Maternity Home, Little Way Pregnancy Resource Center, Louisville Moms Helping Moms, Billboards for Life, and A Loving Choice Pregnancy Crisis Center. For more information about the Lifeline Fund and the grants, click here.
As you consider your gift, please pray that those experiencing an untimely pregnancy will have the courage to seek help and affirm life and that our culture strengthens its resolve to support both unborn children and their parents.
Sincerely yours in our Lord,
Most Reverend Joseph E. Kurtz, D.D.
Archbishop of Louisville
