Contact: Ray Delisle
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Partners in Charity Announces Chaircouple and Goal
Mr. & Mrs. John B. Anderson to lead appeal for $5 Million
January 20, 2011, WORCESTER, MA – Most Rev. Robert J. McManus, Bishop of Worcester, announced today that Mr. & Mrs. John B. Anderson will be the co-chairs for the 2011 Annual Partners in Charity Appeal. The Andersons are members of Blessed Sacrament Parish in Worcester.
Bishop McManus also announced that this year’s goal for the appeal will be $5 Million. He will be asking parishioners to join him in seeking the assistance of Blessed John Henry Newman as this year’s patron for the appeal.
“The Andersons are a wonderful couple and have long been associated with important parish, civic, educational and charitable endeavors in the City of Worcester and beyond,” according to Bishop McManus. “I am most appreciative for the willingness of John and Mary Lou to step forward and take a leadership role in guiding this vital appeal to another success this year.”
Msgr. Thomas Sullivan, Development Director for the diocese, is looking forward to working with the Andersons. “I have known John Anderson since my undergraduate days at Holy Cross and Mary Lou just a couple of years after that,” noted Msgr. Sullivan. “They are great friends of both the Church and our community and have served them well. It will be a pleasure to work with John and Mary Lou as they guide us to another successful appeal.”
Partners in Charity touches upon so many varied areas according to Msgr. Sullivan. “It assists the poor and those at Mercy Centre through Catholic Charities and it helps thousands of young people receive an education in Catholic schools. It provides care for retired priests and supports our efforts to offer relief in Haiti. It provides tuition monies for all our candidates for the priesthood and works to strengthen our ministries to Hispanics and Africans throughout the Diocese. And, it embraces so much more.”
The Annual Partners in Charity Appeal funds 29 essential charitable, educational and pastoral ministries. Msgr. Sullivan noted that all of the costs of sustaining these most basic efforts are on the rise. He underscored that just to stay even with all that is expected of these agencies and ministries, the parishes in the Diocese of Worcester must continue to exceed their goals. “Our Diocese just wouldn’t be able to function without this annual appeal and without the generosity of our parishioners.”
Bishop McManus added, “Partners in Charity sheds light on the importance of community building. It strengthens our diocesan response to the significant needs of others and does so by impacting different aspects of the lives of others. In many ways the Andersons symbolize the importance of engaging the community."
Despite the continuing challenges for the economy, Msgr. Sullivan is still positive about this year’s appeal. “Some are surprised by the fact that church-related charitable donations continue to increase and that’s because committed Christians recognize this as a time to help others,” according to Msgr. Sullivan. “I pray that our patron, Blessed John Henry Newman, a friend of the poor and a friend of education, will guide us in our efforts.
About the Andersons
John B. Anderson, associate professor emeritus of history at the College of the Holy Cross, served as a Worcester City Councilor for eleven terms from his election in 1976 to retirement in 1998. He also served as Mayor of Worcester in 1986.
He studied at local schools, received his undergraduate degree from Holy Cross and went to graduate school at the University of Notre Dame.
A native of Our Lady of the Rosary Parish, he was mayor during the beginning of negotiations to establish Worcester’s 'sister city' relationship with Pushkin, a town just outside St. Petersburg in northwestern Russia. Through the program, activities between Worcester and Pushkin have included youth programs, cultural exchanges, business education, and humanitarian projects.
Mary Lou (O'Brien) Anderson was born and brought up in “The Island” and “Vernon Hill” sections of Worcester. She studied at Anna Maria College and Assumption College and received her doctorate in education from UMass-Amherst. She taught English in the Worcester Public Schools, later became Dean of Graduate and Continuing Education at Assumption College, and then served as Dean of the College and Graduate Studies at Assumption, retiring last year.
Mrs. Anderson has served as Vice Chair of the Worcester City Manager’s Advisory Commission on Women. Her uncle, James D. O'Brien, was Mayor of Worcester for six years in the 1950s and 60s.
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