Diocesan News

Traveling Museum Highlights Good Works of Catholic Charities

March 27, 2026
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“I hope the one thing people come out of the museum with is a feeling of empathy toward those who are suffering,” says Kerry Robinson, president and CEO of Catholic Charities USA, as she examines part of the exhibition. (Photos: Paula Katinas)

UNION SQUARE — The stories of people facing desperate situations and the folks from Catholic Charities who help them have been brought to life in a museum on wheels that debuted in New York on March 26. 

Catholic Charities of New York and Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens co-hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony at the first stop for the People of Hope Museum on its three-year, 21-state tour. 

Sponsored by Catholic Charities USA, the People of Hope Museum is a traveling exhibition housed in a 53-foot tractor-trailer that offers a multimedia experience, including videos of Catholic Charities workers discussing encounters that changed their lives. 

One of the videos features Jamal Carr, a substance abuse counselor at Mercy Gardens, a supportive housing program sponsored by Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. In the video, he talks about helping a woman overcome drug addiction. 

There are other features, including an interactive poverty simulation that gives visitors the chance to step into the shoes of underprivileged people facing tough decisions, touchscreens with data showing the scope of need across the country, and a recording booth where visitors can record their own stories. 

The museum, funded by a $5 million grant from Lilly Endowment Inc., is part of an effort to highlight the role that faith-based organizations, such as Catholic Charities, play in building strong communities. 

“They take care of the people who need it the most,” said Antonio Fernández, CEO of Catholic Charities of New York. 

By the time the tour ends, the People of Hope Museum will have stopped in 150 cities and towns across the U.S.

The museum can play a key role in educating the public about the scope of the work being done — everything from housing to food pantries to substance abuse counseling — said Richard Slizeski, senior vice president of mission for Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens. 

“We do good work all the time,” he said, “but sometimes people aren’t aware of what we’re about, particularly the impact our work has had on people’s lives.” 

The museum is scheduled to be parked in front of 862 Broadway on March 26-27 before traveling to Madison, New Jersey. 

Father Patrick Keating, deputy CEO of Catholic Charities Brooklyn and Queens, said the agency is proud to be a part of the museum.  

“We try to be ambassadors of hope,” he explained. “And so today we highlight many of the people who really are those ambassadors of hope who help people with acts of kindness, but more importantly, give them dignity.”