Catholic Woman's League continues charitable support

IC photo by Marie Mischel

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Juan Diego Catholic High School Ambassadors react to the teddy bear that was donated as one of the raffle prizes for the Catholic Woman’s League annul benefit luncheon. The bear was part of a donation from Mary Lowe and CWL President Rosalie Mira

SALT LAKE CITY — Two long-standing but vastly different Salt Lake charities were chosen as beneficiaries of this year’s Catholic Woman’s League annual benefit luncheon.

Catholic Community Service’s Saint Vincent de Paul Dining Room, which serves an average of 200,000 meals annually, and the Andrew S. Rowan Reading Room for the Blind, which provides reading and entertainment for the legally blind and severely sighted, received this year’s CWL grants.

The St. Vincent de Paul Dining Room started in 1967 with the Daughters of Charity handing out sandwiches to transients, said Jose Lazero, CCS director of basic needs services. The dining room now serves lunch six days a week, and “a majority of those meals, as back in 1967, goes to individuals who are struggling with homelessness,” he said.

However, they are seeing an increase in patronage by young families with small children, he said, and for all their patrons they want to offer hope as well as help through their programs and services. “We want our homeless friends and those struggling young families to know that someone cares regardless of their situation,” he said. “We want to maintain or create that hope for them and, with your generosity and support here today, we will continue to provide that assistance and offer that hope to those who have nowhere else to turn.”

The Andrew S. Rowan Reading Room for the Blind, known familiarly as Club Vision, is even older than the dining room. It was started in 1908, by the wife of an Army officer stationed at Ft. Douglas. Her brother was blind and she got a group of women together to read to him. The organization has expanded and now includes readers, entertainment and lunch, said Christine Allred, president. They typically meet Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays in the Murray Elks Club.

“For some of our patrons this is their main meal of the day,” Allred said. While the program is open to all ages, most tend to be elderly, she added. “The older people, sometimes they’re confined to their homes. They don’t get the chance to get out. This provides them with a social opportunity to talk over with others with the same problems.”

One of Club Vision’s most popular programs is their holiday celebrations, such as the one at Halloween when many of the patrons come in costume, Allred said.“Some of the ladies are in their 80s and 90s, and if you’ve not seen a 90-year-old flapper dressed in a red sequined dress and a red feather boa and a tiara, then you just haven’t appreciated Halloween.”

Club Vision is supported by donations from organization and individuals; it doesn’t receive government funding, she said. It’s run almost exclusively by volunteers, with 94 percent of the money spent on patron services, she said.

The dining hall and Club Vision were chosen from among 14 applications for grants, said Linda Burt, chairwoman of CWL’s luncheon committee. To be eligible for a grant, the applicant must be a registered 501(3)c, she explained. Applications are accepted at the first of the year; the CWL board then selects which two to support.

The benefit luncheon included a fashion show with clothing provided by Traci Harward and The Wight House.

CWL was founded by Bishop Glass and is both a spiritual and philanthropic organization. In addition to attending First Friday Masses as a group, its members attend state legislative meetings to keep apprised of governmental matters and volunteer at places such as the Veterans Affairs Hospital.

“Wherever we can be of benefit to the community, that’s where you’ll find us,” said Burt, who has been a CWL member for about eight years.

The statewide organization has open enrollment for Catholic women in the diocese.