Part 5: How-To Engage Your Parishioners, Parents, Students, and Donors in Uncertain Times
Parishes, schools, and nonprofit ministries: Bravo ! Over the past two months, you have connected with your supporters in incredible ways.

As in-person Masses resume and the school year comes to a close, this will be our final constituent engagement e-blast. However, the Catholic Community Foundation is still here to support you any way that we can. Please visit our Staff page and connect with us.
Parishes
Here are three more ways to engage your church community from home:

  1. Reconnect community. As reopening begins, your parishioners will be eager to worship (safely) together. St. Catherine of Siena reconnected with different segments of its community during Mother's Day weekend Masses. The church hosted five indoor Masses, one for first communions and the others for elderly parishioners, and three outdoor Masses, which welcomed approximately 1,200 people. What a way to meet the varied needs of this church community!
  2. Communicate clearly. Though your parishioners will be thrilled to get back to Mass, we're not in the clear with COVID-19 quite yet. It's imperative that you communicate what opening Masses looks like for your parish. Check out this great video message from Fr. Pat Williams of St. Pius X, and take a look at St. Anthony of Padua's website, which has thorough details and guidelines available on the homepage.
  3. Look ahead. Despite the pandemic, life moves forward. St. Ann Church and National Shrine welcomed the parish's transitional deacon in this congratulatory post. As parishioners come back to Mass this summer, they'll look forward to meeting Deacon Michael Lamy.

Lagniappe : Revive Parishes partnered with fundraising and mission expert Cande de Leon to create this brand new, FREE 90-minute course on advancing your parish out of the current crisis. If your parish is using ParishSOFT Giving for online gifts, click here to watch the Mass sign-up tutorial on using the Forms application.

Questions? Contact Director of Stewardship and Parish Services Susie Veters at sveters@ccfnola.org for parish outreach information. Contact ParishSOFT and Data Coordinator Ryan Adams at radams@ccfnola.org for help with the set up and support of ParishSOFT Giving in your parish.
Schools
Here are three more ways to engage your school communities:

  1. Take a computer break. St. Dominic School invited its community to grab a Sharpie and sign a giant banner honoring the class of 2020. Holy Name of Jesus held its annual Gator Run, encouraging participants to take part at their own pace, indoors or outdoors. What fun ways to get from behind the computer and show support for our school communities!
  2. Celebrate. There have been so many examples of how schools recognized graduates (Mount Carmel Academy), athletes (Cabrini High School), and outstanding students (St. Charles Borromeo). St. Michael Special School recognized not only students but also the families who made distance learning possible.
  3. Finish on a high note. Both Immaculate Conception School and Visitation of Our Lady School put together video highlights of the 2019-2020 school year. St. Charles Catholic High School invited students to submit photos of themselves on campus from earlier in the year, even offering prizes!

Lagniappe: Registration for NCEA Virtual's June 3 workshop, "Mental Health and Social-Emotional Learning," is now live. Click here to check out this and other spring workshops.
Nonprofit Ministries
Here are three more ways to engage your constituent communities:

  1. Make the best decision for your organization and community. As our state begins to reopen, organizations must make important decisions about what that looks like for them. Whatever your decision, the key to maintaining trust is open, transparent communication. St. Joseph Abbey posted this update on its Facebook page, letting supporters know why it won't reopen just yet and stating that the Abbey looks forward to welcoming everyone back to its grounds when it is safe.
  2. Set reopening guidelines. If you are set to reopen, be clear in your expectations so that everyone is on the same page. The Archdiocese of New Orleans Retreat Center has a thorough plan for its reopening, which is easily found on the front page of its website. The plan even outlines each projected phase.
  3. Spread joy. The little things matter. Project Lazarus board members donated lunch from Louisiana Pizza Kitchen to residents, not only providing a tasty treat but also lifting spirits. What a nice way to get the board involved and show the Project Lazarus community that they are loved. Click here for pictures.

Lagniappe: Looking ahead, new questions are forming on how best to proceed in the short term as well as in a post-COVID 19 landscape. Download " Reimagining Your Fundraising: Navigating the Challenges Presented by COVID-19 " presented by CCS Fundraising , and check out the full list of CCS Fundraising's webinars here .
Know someone who would benefit from communications like this?
Please feel free to share this resource or email Callie Kamath
at ckamath@ccfnola.org to be added to the email list.