WICHITA, Kan. – Catholic Charities Executive Director Janet Valente Pape announced her plans for retirement to her staff in August at a brief gathering of directors. She shared that she will retire effective May 1, 2010.

Planning for her retirement, Pape engaged The Most Reverend Michael Jackels, Bishop of Wichita and the Catholic Charities Board of Directors earlier this year. The Board of Directors has formed a search committee to begin the process of finding Pape’s successor.

Pape shared with her team that she has put much thought into the timing of this, taking into consideration the agency’s next re-accreditation process, upcoming new initiatives, and our budgeting cycle. Her successor will have a full plate of new challenges according to Pape.

“The current Catholic Charities board of directors are strong and well suited for this endeavor now,” said Pape.

With all the energy and drive that has made Pape a person to watch in Wichita, she told her team, “I will continue to do what I think is best for this organization as we transition to new leadership. It is my intent to work even harder to bring closure to as many projects as possible while readying others for the best possible transition.”

The goal for the search committee is to have someone in place so that Pape can work with him or her prior to May 1. Under Pape’s more than 17 years as director, Catholic Charities, Inc. – Diocese of Wichita has:

• Increased its budget from $2 million to $8 million from 1992 to now, enabling an enhanced service delivery structure and new programming to be developed in response to community needs.

• Developed two Advisory Councils that lead two successful fund-raising events to support the work of Catholic Charities shelters;

• Developed a strong Board of Directors involvement and gained recognition across the region;

• Planned, launched, and completed Shelter the Heart, the first capital campaign in the agency’s history, gaining numerous new supporters for Catholic Charities and building two shelters that welcome families with children (St. Anthony Family Shelter) and women and their children fleeing abuse (Harbor House);

• Implemented its first multi-million dollar research-based grant focused on marriage enrichment, which has gained recognition as a project leader across the nation;

• Launched a $1 million grant in collaboration with community partners to end teen dating violence; and

• Become accredited and re-accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA), upholding best-practice standards to increase the efficiencies and quality of the services provided to those in need.

“Janet’s leadership has moved the agency in new strategic directions and has guided the way to a mission driven, financially stable, and well managed non-profit organization,” said Les Depperschmidt, Chair of the Catholic Charities Board of Directors. “We will certainly miss her outstanding leadership abilities and wish her the very best in her active retirement.”

What are her plans for the future?
“I will leave Catholic Charities to pursue what I am calling, “active retirement”… lots of travel, more time with friends and family, and as it unfolds, some community engagement and maybe just a little work,” said Pape.

She will continue on the national board for Catholic Charities USA for at least another year. For the next 9 months, Pape will continue to move forward, even more driven, as she seeks to leave a legacy through a strong Catholic Charities that provides mission-focused, quality, and cost-effective, services meeting community needs while demonstrating the love of Christ in the lives of families and individuals.

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About Catholic Charities
Established in 1943 as a social service outreach of the Catholic Diocese of Wichita, Catholic Charities has served the community for more than 65 years. Since its beginning, Catholic Charities has helped people of all faiths and backgrounds, “demonstrating the Gospel values of love and justice through service, education, advocacy, and collaboration.” Accredited by the Council on Accreditation (COA), Catholic Charities works to ensure efficiencies and effectiveness of its program – striving for quality, while being good stewards of our earthly resources. Catholic Charities has made an assertive effort to become more energy efficient and resource conscious. Learn more about this and other Catholic Charities efforts at www.catholiccharitieswichita.org.