“She brings real management and consulting skills,” he added. “We’ll work together on Charities because there are lots of challenges these days.”
Cardinal O’Malley also spoke highly of Dearing saying, “[she] is an outstanding example of lay persons bringing their skills and talents to the work of the Church for the good of all whom we serve and the wider society,” the cardinal added.
Ms. Dearing arrives at her new post well qualified to lead the non-profit organization that served 200,000 people last year. Prior to being named president of Catholic Charities in Eastern Massachusetts, Dearing was the executive director of the Hauser Center for Nonprofit Organizations at Harvard University.
Working for a non-profit is something that Dearing has always felt called to. "I've been working with nonprofits and made a very conscious choice that that's where I wanted to spend my life," Dearing said. "That was largely due to feeling called to the social mission of the church. I feel a strong sense of calling to take the job, and I think it's because my call to nonprofits in general came from my faith. It came from being influenced by economic justice for all, and it came from a sense that service needs to be a core part of who you are."
Dearing highlighted the issues that she sees as integral to her new job. “To come to the job I’m going to, you have to be passionate about the poor and the issues that affect them, and I anticipate this job will allow me to continue to be passionate about those issues,” Dearing said yesterday. “Catholic Charities is a solid organization, but there is also a growing need for it.”
With 140 programs and a $38 million budget, the agency served 200,000 people of all faiths last year. But its Natick office, for example, has seen an influx of refugees and immigrants. In Brockton, the agency has a waiting list of nearly 2,000 people who want to learn English.