the catholic community of st. francis of assisi
2026 Bishop’s Annual Appeal
As a diocesan family, we are invited to join together in supporting the ministries, programs, and outreach efforts that bring Christ’s love into our parishes and communities. Your prayers and participation help strengthen Catholic education, support parish vitality, and extend care to those in need.
Please take time to reflect on how you can contribute to this mission of faith and service.
A Reminder to Repair What's Broken
Many of us have busy lives and do not always have a focus beyond our family’s needs and our responsibilities. It isn’t that people don’t care, and especially at St. Francis, where we have had extraordinary community involvement since the parish’s founding, but just sometimes the problems of the world can be too much. Sometimes, we just need to be reminded of how much we have and how blessed we are. These reminders come in many forms, and one was the “Love Forward Together March” in mid-February.
As Casey Slock, the coordinator of the Justice and Peace Ministries at St. Francis and a march participant, says, “The Love Forward Together March was about peace and justice, not grievances. Bishop William J. Barber (Repairers of the Breach founder, former director of the North Carolina Chapter of the NAACP, and long-time Civil Rights leader) emphasized that point, saying the world had plenty of that. We came to Love Forward Together for a future of living wages, ending poverty, voting rights, education, welcoming immigrants, healthcare, enfranchisement for formerly incarcerated, saving our environment, labor rights, and religious values, not religious nationalism.”
L'Arche
Have you heard of L’Arche, French for ‘The Ark’, or heard of the L’Arche ministry we have here at St. Francis? The organization has been in existence since the 1960s and was founded as a community-based alternative for those who were different in their ability to function in society, often living in deplorable conditions. The L’Arche Charter says, “In a divided world, L’Arche wants to be a sign of hope. Its communities, founded on covenant relationships between people of differing intellectual capacity, social origin, religion and/or culture, seek to be signs of unity, faithfulness and reconciliation.”
L’Arche Ministry at St. Francis of Assisi Parish is committed to fostering a sense of community, family, and participation among its members. Through dedicated fundraising and collaboration with professionals and families in the Triangle area, the ministry successfully established a home in Durham. This residence provides a supportive environment for four adults with intellectual disabilities who live alongside two assistants who help with daily life. In addition to offering essential life support, L’Arche also organizes vocational programs and social events that contribute to the well-being and inclusion of its members. The parish actively participates in these efforts, strengthening the bond between the church and the L’Arche community.
