Big changes are coming...

Over the years, Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma has grown from operating a relatively humble food program into the largest distributor of food to individuals in need in the entire state of Oklahoma. That growth has come because of the incredible commitment of our volunteers, donors, and staff. 

Before COVID-19, we were serving about 75-100 families a day in Tulsa through our Emergency Assistance Program. Now we’re up to 250-500 families a day. That growth has taken over our Tulsa warehouse. We are seeing incredible need and we believe that this need is not going away anytime soon. If anything, this need will continue to grow.  We are planning for this new reality and want to seize the opportunity to equip Catholic Charities to serve in the best way possible! Our vision is to be more holistic with our food distribution process. We have received special funding to purchase and install new semi-size freezers and refrigerators, allowing us to accommodate vastly larger quantities of fruits, vegetables, meats, and other frozen products. These new coolers will take up a good portion of our warehouse. With this newfound capacity, we also plan to transform our clothing center into a grocery store, allowing our clients the opportunity to select the items they prefer and allowing them more dignity in the process. These changes will allow us to serve a much greater number of people for years to come.  In order to continue to be a clothing resource for our neighbors in need, we hope to partner with another Tulsa nonprofit to provide clothing vouchers for our clients; however, we are still in the beginning stages and will know more as we progress. We do plan to continue our long-term collaboration with Yale Cleaners with the Coats for Kids program and the Sisters of St. Joseph Diaper Drive at Monte Cassino. We are still in the early planning phases, but we wanted to keep you informed so that as our plan develops, you can be a part of that team and can be assured that we will continue to be Christ’s merciful love to those who suffer.