By Jeff Miller
Special to The Texas Catholic
“It’s God’s providence.”
“It’s a great blessing.”
“I’m so grateful.”
Such phrases conveyed the appreciation of a few of the recipients awarded grants this fall totaling almost $1 million from The Catholic Foundation on Nov. 14 during a ceremony at Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ Vietnamese Church in Carrollton.
One of those recipients was the Society of St. Vincent de Paul conference of Holy Family of Nazareth Church in Irving, which will use the grant to build a permanent home for the parish’s 10-year-old food pantry service.
The new 1,500 square-foot building will provide additional space in addition to permanence, said Bob Greenfield, conference president.
“It’s just amazing how this has all come together,” Greenfield said.
He was urged to apply for a grant by the parish pastor, Father Jacob Dankasa, but had no idea where to begin. Help soon arrived from many directions.
A parishioner who does remodeling, “Butch” Moses, began designing the facility — which will have plumbing, electricity, and HVAC — when he had to step away after his wife died last April. Linda Moses was Holy Family’s director of faith formation and family ministry for more than 30 years.
Steve Gross, a project manager in construction, filled the void left by “Butch” Moses, and only last week, architect Prudence Lidbury, one of the 45 volunteers in the ministry, joined the construction team.
“It’s God’s providence at work here, because every step along the way, he just brought people to us that wanted to help,” Greenfield said.
The facility will be called St. Vincent de Paul Linda Moses Pantry.
Holy Family’s service differs from many others across the diocese in providing home deliveries in addition to scheduled mass pickups at the parish; and demand for the service is growing during challenging financial times.
“Just last week, we had 11 deliveries one day, and we usually have three or four,” said Greenfield, who provided some of those deliveries with wife Jackie. “We’re getting a lot of calls.”
‘A great blessing’
Victor Argueta was surprised by the email announcing that his St. Mary of Carmel Catholic School in west Dallas was awarded a grant to replace much of the outdated flooring in a school that opened in 1944.
“It’s a great blessing,” said Argueta, in his second year as principal at a school with 160 students in pre-K3 through eighth grade. “A little change will make it a little more inviting to my families and to my kids; and my kids feel like they deserve a lot more.”
The types of new flooring will be divided between plastic tiling and carpet tiles. Replacing sections will be easier than installing full carpeting, because individual pieces can be removed.
“For the library, the flooring has been there for a while, more than 10 years,” Argueta said. “In the elementary school, it was changed out five years ago. Carpet didn’t last long.”
This is the school’s second grant from The Catholic Foundation, following one four years ago that funded new furniture.
“The building is old,” Argueta said. “We’re trying to bring new life to it.”
Meeting parish needs
A few miles south in Oak Cliff, Nuestra Señora Del Pilar Catholic Church is receiving a grant whose fruits will be seen at the parish. Funds will be used to turn parish property about a mile to the east into a youth soccer field with lighting and a security camera.
“I’m really grateful they have seen the needs of the youth,” said Father Roshan Fernandes, in his fourth year as pastor. “There are many other needs in the diocese at many different parishes. I’m blessed that they accepted our request.”
Father Fernandes is no stranger to soccer. He played it as a boy in his native India and even while attending Redemptorist Mater Seminary a few miles north of Nuestra Señora before being ordained in 2018.
“With many different programs for the youth, we don’t have a place for them to play or get together,” Father Fernandes said. “It can be a safe haven for them.”
The Catholic Foundation awarded $988,117 in grants to 16 Dallas-area Catholic schools and churches as well as charitable organizations, including:
- Cistercian Preparatory School
- Holy Family of Nazareth Catholic Church
- Mount St. Michael Catholic School
- Nuestra Señora Del Pilar Catholic Church
- Prince of Peace Catholic School
- Santa Clara of Assisi Catholic Church
- St. Elizabeth of Hungary Catholic Church
- St. Francis Montessori School
- St. Joseph’s Residence
- St. Mary of Carmel Catholic School
- St. Mary’s Catholic School
- St. Patrick Catholic Church
- St. Pius X Catholic School
- St. Vincent de Paul conference Holy Family of Nazareth Catholic Church
- St. Vincent de Paul Pharmacy of North Texas
- Tinker Catholic Student Center, University of Texas at Dallas
Cutline for featured image: Grant recipients pose with their plaques following The Catholic Foundation’s 2025 Fall Grant Award ceremony Nov. 14 at Sacred Heart of Jesus Christ Vietnamese Parish in Carrollton. During the ceremony, The Catholic Foundation awarded $988,117 in grants to 16 Dallas-area Catholic schools and churches as well as charitable organizations. (MICHAEL GRESHAM/The Texas Catholic)
