National community service storytelling initiative 'People of Hope' comes to Buffalo

Catholic Charities of Buffalo hosts traveling museum to highlight impact of neighbors helping neighbors

Catholic Charities of Buffalo press release 

Catholic Charities of Buffalo is joining Catholic Charities agencies across the U.S. to host People of Hope: Faith-Filled Stories of Neighbors Helping Neighbors, a nationwide storytelling museum designed to amplify the profound impact of Christian services. Catholic Charities will host the People of Hope Museum from 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Saturday, May 9, and from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sunday, May 10, at OLV Human Services Campus, 790 Ridge Road, Lackawanna. This traveling museum is free and open to the public, and will be located in the parking lot at the corner of Baker Alley and South Park Avenue.

The People of Hope Museum is an initiative of Catholic Charities USA, the national membership organization for 168 independent Catholic Charities agencies around the country. Though the services offered by each local agency differ, Catholic Charities agencies are united by a shared commitment to honor the dignity of every person and answer the Gospel call to come to the aid of those most in need. Collectively, last year, the Catholic Charities network of agencies served more than 16 million people regardless of faith, addressing needs ranging from food insecurity and housing to disaster assistance, health care and family support.

“The People of Hope Museum is an opportunity to experience powerful, real-life stories of hope that show how neighbors help neighbors – right here in Western New York and across the country,” said Tony DeSimone, president and CEO, Catholic Charities of Buffalo. “Discover this unique and immersive traveling museum that is truly a reflection of faith in action.”

Housed in a retrofitted tractor-trailer, the People of Hope Museum is an immersive experience that brings to life more than 40 professionally produced video studios featuring staff and volunteers of Catholic Charities across the country sharing their meaningful, memorable encounters with families and individuals in need.

The museum also includes a recording studio where visitors can share their own stories of hope and service. In addition, visitors can experience an interactive poverty simulator, gain a greater understanding of poverty in New York and across the U.S., and listen to recordings of book excerpts about poverty, social isolation, bridge-building and community action.

The setting for the mobile museum is both iconic and fitting. The museum will be parked just a block from Our Lady of Victory Basilica, one of the most remarkable religious landmarks in Western New York. The basilica and the institutions of OLV are almost synonymous with the Venerable Father Nelson Baker, a Buffalo-born priest widely remembered for his humanitarian work. He established several charitable institutions to care for the poor and vulnerable. In 1923, it was Baker who signed the articles of incorporation for Catholic Charities of Buffalo. Baker led these charitable institutions until his death in 1936, and his cause for sainthood is currently under consideration by the Catholic Church; he has been declared Venerable for his life of heroic virtue.

For more than 100 years, Catholic Charities of Buffalo has supported individuals and families, regardless of faith, race, gender or any personal circumstance. As the region’s most comprehensive human services provider, Catholic Charities’ programs and services touch the lives of nearly 1 out of every 10 people in Western New York. These services include counseling, mental health support, food pantries, domestic violence programs, housing assistance, family stabilization, and support for older adults.

The People of Hope Museum launched its tour of the U.S. in March and will travel the U.S. for two-and-a-half years. The initiative is made possible thanks to a 2024 grant of nearly $5 million from Lilly Endowment Inc. through an individual round of its National Storytelling Initiative on Christian Faith and Life.

To learn more about the People of Hope Museum stop in Buffalo, visit ccwny.org/people-of-hope and peopleofhope.us. For details about Catholic Charities of Buffalo’s programs and services, visit ccwny.org.