BELLEVILLE - Caritas Family Solutions will celebrate its 78th anniversary on July 31 with Caritas Day, an annual day of fundraising and awareness honoring the thousands of lives the nonprofit touches each year across Southern Illinois. To mark the milestone, Caritas will launch a 24-hour matching gift campaign from July 31 to August 1, with supporters matching $4 for every $1 donated. The goal is to raise $100,000 to directly benefit the children, families, and adults they serve.
Get The Latest News!
Don't miss our top stories and need-to-know news everyday in your inbox.
“At Caritas, we believe every life deserves love and that drives everything we do,” said Gary Huelsmann, CEO of Caritas Family Solutions. “From foster care and counseling to senior housing and disability support, our programs are designed to meet people where they are and walk alongside them toward a more stable, fulfilling life. Caritas Day is a powerful reminder of what we can accomplish when we come together as a community with every donation directly supporting the over 5,200 children, families, and individuals we serve.”
Caritas Board Secretary Ann Effinger Meuleman is serving as a Caritas Day Board Captain, channeling her energy into rallying support and inspiring others to give back. She is continuing a family legacy of giving that began with her mother, who helped launch the agency’s beloved Secret Santa program, which provides Christmas gifts to hundreds of foster children each year. As children, Ann and her siblings volunteered with that program, and today, she encourages her 16 nieces and nephews, ranging from recent college graduates to young parents, to carry on the giving tradition in their grandmother’s honor.
“My family’s roots with Caritas go back decades and I’m proud to carry that legacy forward and bring the next generation into the tradition of giving,” Meuleman said. “What moves me most is the heart behind Caritas’s work. The staff and leadership teams pour so much of themselves into helping others, and you can feel how deeply they care. It’s not just a job to them. It is a true passion and dedication to help create healthy relationships, loving homes and strong communities.”
Supporting more than 1,700 children in foster care, Caritas remains the region’s largest private provider of foster care services. In addition to foster care, the agency offers a wide range of programs to meet community needs, including pregnancy care for women experiencing homelessness, emergency shelter, adoption, counseling, family stabilization, and supportive housing for adults with disabilities.
“Even small donations can have a powerful impact across communities,” said Caritas Chief Program Officer Hope Carbonaro. “For example, a $21 donation can provide a safe, supportive home for a low-income senior for a day. Similarly, $27 can provide food, clothing, and educational supplies for a youth in our therapeutic treatment center. On Caritas Day, your gift, no matter the size, helps transform lives and provide support and hope to those who need it most.”
To learn more and donate on July 31, visit https://www.charidy.com/caritas. The matching campaign will take place for 24 hours between 2 p.m. on July 31 and 2 p.m. on August 1.
