Our History:
Catholic Charities Diocese of Kalamazoo was formed on June 11, 1975 from two Catholic agencies that had provided social services to people of Southwest Michigan. One agency, St. Agnes Foundling Home, had operated uninterruptedly in Kalamazoo by the Sisters of St. Joseph since 1915. That agency served unmarried mothers and their children, families seeking adoptions and other children in need. It was affiliated with Borgess Medical Center, a major health care provider in the community. The other predecessor agency was Catholic Social Services, a family service agency. The Catholic Diocese of Lansing began Catholic Social Services in 1958 as a community service in Kalamazoo. Its mission was to service families under stress, especially those with marriage and child-parent problems.
Partially as a result of the recommendations of the Kalamazoo Community Planning Council, St. Agnes Foundling Home and Catholic Social Services, both United Way Agencies, merged to form Catholic Family Services. It was believed an agency with a more comprehensive purpose could better serve the people of the area. The sponsorship that Catholic Social Services had with the Diocese of Kalamazoo (formed in 1971) was continued with the formation of the new agency, which later became Catholic Charities Diocese of Kalamazoo in 2012.
Today, Catholic Charities Diocese of Kalamazoo serves people of all faiths within nine counties of Southwestern Michigan. These counties include Allegan, Barry, Berrien, Branch, Calhoun, Cass, Kalamazoo, St. Joseph, and Van Buren.
Catholic Charities is a part of the Diocese of Kalamazoo
www.dioceseofkalamazoo.org
Catholic Charities Diocese of Kalamazoo is a member agency of Catholic Charities USA
www.catholiccharitiesusa.org