Thirteen programs in nine communities throughout the Springfield diocese received grants totaling $20,000, as part of the local distribution of funds collected in the national Catholic Campaign for Human Development.

The annual collection, held in this diocese the Sunday before Thanksgiving, was established by the United States Council of Catholic Bishops as an effort to combat poverty. Of the money collected in each diocese, one‑fourth stays in the local diocese, to help programs tackle local concerns and issues.

Bishop George J. Lucas joined Sister Jane Boos, SSND, director of the diocesan Office for Social Concerns, to present the local awards at the CCHD annual awards luncheon, held June 7 at the Catholic Pastoral Center in Springfield.

Brian Stevens, area representative in the national CCHD office in Washington, D.C., was the guest speaker at the luncheon. During his stay in the diocese, Stevens visited several of the groups that received local awards, listening to their concerns and asking questions as to what they thought might be done on the national level to address those issues and concerns.

The local grants went to programs in Highland, Collinsville, Charleston, Decatur, Mattoon, Beardstown, Vandalia, Pike County, and Springfield.

Grant recipients are:

• Highland Area Christian Service Ministry, Stand by Me Program, which is designed to teach and support people needing assistance from governmental agencies. Eunice Hediger is the project director.

• Bridging the Gap Outreach, Inc., Get Real Get Fit program in the Collinsville area, will provide information on nutrition, exercise and the need to live a healthy lifestyle to at-risk youth and their families. Thelma Sidney is the project director.

• Faith Fellowship Neighborhood Group, Faith Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Decatur, is working to drive drug dealers and other criminals out of their neighborhoods. The Rev. Wayne Dunning is the program director.

• Coalition for People in Need, Inc., in Charleston will assist clients with job retraining and transportation. This need was identified by area ministers in response to local factory closings. Jenny Chase is project director.

• Mattoon Area PADS (Public Action to Deliver Shelter) will provide emergency shelter and job-skills training to people living at the shelter, directed by John Heldman.

• New Life Car Care, in Mattoon, is an outreach ministry to assist poor and low-income people with automotive maintenance and repair, thus enabling them to have reliable transportation to their place of employment. Dan Craw founded the not‑for‑profit organization.

• Beardstown Immigrant Families United is a community organizing group whose purpose is to develop an organization where those affected by discrimination and poverty are empowered to not only seek change, but to work together to change unjust conditions in their community and places of employment. Shelly Heideman is the project director.

• Our Place Youth Center in Vandalia is a recreational center where youth, ages 8 to 17, can go to socialize, learn and connect with the community. Its Learning Link offers afternoon tutoring programs for second- and third-graders, which are led by high school students. Its Food for Thought program is a hands‑on nutrition‑oriented program, where participants learn to make healthier food choices. Phyllis Rames is director of the Learning Link.

• Camp Care-A-Lot is a haven for children for whom simply playing in the neighborhood may be unsafe. Children from poor and low-income families participate in educational sessions on self-esteem, conflict resolution/anger management, as well as fun activities. Guest speakers share careers and motivate children to stay in school and set goals for themselves. This year there will be a Camp Care‑A‑Lot in the Pittsfield and Griggsville area in Pike County. Eydee Schultz is executive director and Alyssa West is the camp director.

• MERCY Communities, Inc., Springfield, a transitional living program for mothers and their children, is introducing a new treatment program based on the natural patterns of healthy interaction between the parent and infant, which is useful with children who have unmet emotional, social and learning needs. Mary Stone is the executive director.

• The Summer Program for Low-Income Students at St. Patrick Catholic School in Springfield allows at-risk students to attend a five-week summer session of academics and enrichment activities. Cora Benson, St. Patrick executive director, is the program director.

• Elizabeth Ann Seton Program (EAS) in Springfield, which assists at-risk women and children, is offering an incentive program to encourage attendance at monthly EAS educational meetings, as well as at local programs offered by other agencies. Carolyn Werner is project director and Sheila Page is executive director.

• Start Smart Back to School and Health Fair in Springfield is a program of the Illinois Coalition for Community Services (ICCS). This program promotes the importance of family participation in children's health and education by providing state-required physicals and immunizations, school supplies, and access to local community organizations and agencies in a fair-like atmosphere. Doris Greer is project director.