They've got room

Room at the Inn recognized 17 area congregations recently for their anniversaries as night sites for the shelter. Nearly 60 congregations from 15 denominations serve as night sites for homeless women and children. Room at the Inn operates with a day shelter in Bridgeton. Every evening, volunteers from Room at the Inn's partners transport clients to a night site congregation, where they provide an evening meal, companionship and a safe place to sleep. In the morning, they provide breakfast and transportation back to the shelter. Congregations honored on Feb. 23 included St. Monica Parish in Creve Coeur, 25 years; St. Peter Parish in Kirkwood, 20 years; Holy Name of Jesus Parish in Bellefontaine Neighbors, 15 years; and Christ the King Parish in University City and St. Joseph Parish in Manchester, 10 years.

Now starring ...

Feed My People has earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator, America's largest independent charity evaluator, for its strong financial health and commitment to accountability and transparency. This is the first time that Feed My People — which serves the poor and hungry through food pantries, low-cost thrift stores and more than 25 additional support programs — has earned the distinction. Last year, Catholic Charities of St. Louis attained the four-star rating. Since 2002, using objective analysis, Charity Navigator has awarded only the most fiscally responsible organizations a four-star rating. Feed My People's rating and other information about charitable giving are available free of charge on www.charitynavigator.org. Among agencies in Missouri receiving four-star ratings are some with Catholic ties such as Boys Hope Girls Hope National Office in Bridgeton, the Vitae Foundation in Jefferson City and Our Lady's Inn, Our Little Haven, Covenant House Missouri and Guardian Angel Settlement Association, all in St. Louis.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Evening of Trust

Taizé St. Louis will host an Evening of Trust from 7 to 9 p.m. Tuesday, March 14, at Hope United Church of Christ, Jamieson Avenue and Eichelberger Street in the St. Louis Hills neighborhood of south St. Louis. The evening is a preparation for the Pilgrimage of Trust on Memorial Day weekend which will bring together people of various backgrounds and focus on common prayer in the style of the ecumenical Taizé community in France. For information, visit www.pilgrimageoftruststl.com.

Living Rosary

Our Lady of Guadalupe for Life will host another Living Rosary for Life at 2:30 p.m. Sunday, March 19, at Assumption Church, 4725 Mattis Road in south St. Louis County. The group will honor St. Joseph and all that he did to protect life. Our Lady of Guadalupe for Life is a nonprofit group that sponsors pro-life billboards along St. Louis area highways.

"Welcoming the Stranger" and citizenship

The Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet will finish their series, "Welcoming the Stranger" with a look at "On the Road to Citizenship," at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 21, at the motherhouse, 6400 Minnesota Ave. in south St. Louis. Blake Hamilton and Suk Sapkota of the International Institute's employment services will speak. Hamilton will discuss the refugee resettlement process and how it works. Sapkota will share his experience with the resettlement process. The CSJ Justice Office sponsors the series. For information, contact [email protected]. To register, email [email protected] or call (314) 481-8800.

"You Can't Take It With You"

The Catholic Youth Apostolate's Father William Scheid Players will perform the comedy "You Can't Take It With You" at 7:30 p.m. Friday and Saturday, March 24 and 25, and 2 p.m. Sunday, March 26 at Incarnate Word Academy, 2788 Normandy Drive in Normandy. The group's 38th season will feature six priests from the Archdiocese of St. Louis: Msgr. John Borcic, Father Terry Borgerding, Father John Brennell, Msgr. Norb Ernst, Father Ryan Weber and Father Bill Wigand. They'll be joined by adult performers from the archdiocese. Tickets are $12 in advance for reserve seating, $15 at the door. For more information or to access a ticket order form, visit www.archstl.org/catholicyouth, call Mary Tichy at (314) 608-9851 or email [email protected].