Archbishop Rozanski joined organization's leaders on January trip
During a mission trip to Guatemala, Archbishop Mitchell T. Rozanski saw a glimpse of the universal Church in action through relationships fostered via Cross Catholic Outreach.
The archbishop and several other bishops visited the Diocese of Santa Rosa de Lima in southern Guatemala Jan. 13-15, accompanied by leaders from Cross Catholic Outreach, including CEO Jim Cavnar and president Michele Sagarino. Founded in 2001, the U.S.-based, Vatican-endorsed nonprofit organization provides direct aid, including food, medicine and housing, in more than 90 countries.
The group distributed gifts to young people through the Box of Joy program and packets of nutrient-rich Vitafood given to others in need through Catholic schools, orphanages, hospitals and medical facilities. The archbishop also visited with families who have benefited from other Cross Catholic Outreach programs — including housing, education, disaster relief and clean water — and celebrated Masses.
Cross Catholic Outreach’s programs reached 32 countries last fiscal year. In each country, the organization works closely with local Church leadership to determine the needs of the people and appropriately direct aid.
Archbishop Rozanski has served on the board of directors of Cross Catholic Outreach since arriving in St. Louis in 2020 and was named board chairman in 2024. This was his first time seeing the work of Cross Catholic Outreach in action.
The archbishop met a family living in a remote village during his visit. Their home was constructed from scraps of wood and tin and had a kitchen area with an open flame used for cooking.
“The smoke stays inside the house, and many of the people suffer from lung disease because of that,” he said.
Cross Catholic Outreach is working with that family and others to build new homes with safer features. In fiscal year 2023, the organization provided safe shelter for families in 18 countries, including 159 homes in two dioceses in Guatemala.
“What I find very helpful about Cross Catholic Outreach is that they look at the actual needs that are there and seek to answer those needs to better the lives of the people there,” Archbishop Rozanski said. “Cross Catholic connects supporters in the U.S. and puts them in relationship with those different places of the world, for example, through the Boxes of Joy program. So it’s to make that connection that we truly are a universal faith and we truly seek to better the lives of each other.”
The group also celebrated Masses at the local cathedral and at a parish church.
“What so impressed me was in the midst of material poverty, it was the spiritual wealth that I encountered there — and that’s life changing,” the archbishop said.
To learn more about the work of Cross Catholic Outreach, visit crosscatholic.org.
