Social Concerns Committee

Our Mission

We look to educate ourselves and create awareness for our parishioners on the work that's needed to be done for social concerns in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.  We promote initiatives and ask our parishioners to help others who are less fortunate in ways that are impactful and we look to adopt this mission as our core responsibility. We are the community service arm of Holy Cross Parish, partnering with local charities to better our community and help those in need.

Join Us!

Our Meetings are held every first Wednesday of the Month at 6pm in the St. Joseph’s Room in the Church’s Basement. All are welcome! Please contact Michael Rossano at 732.687.7686 or Annmarie Woods at 732.275.2109 for additional information.

Charitable Assistance

We are frequently asked to provide assistance to local organizations and aim to help while raising awareness. In order for us to better support these various organizations, we often invite them to come speak to our parish about their organization to help raise awareness. Please check the bulletin and website event list for upcoming speaker engagements at Holy Cross Parish.

Most recently, we have been working with: Mercy House - Asbury Park, Birthright Red Bank, Bridges at the Shore Keansburg, The Center for Great Expectations, Project Paul (Keansburg), and St. Anthony's Food Pantry (Red Bank).

Our Service Projects

Project Out Reach
In order to promote awareness, we invite various organizations and charities to come speak to our parish during select Masses about the work they do for our communities.

A few of our outreach service projects are listed below, we could use your help! 

• Gift Card Sunday April 2025 for Easter
  We are collecting $25/$50 denomination grocery gift cards from ShopRite, Foodtown, Target, Walmart, and Stop & Shop in April for Easter. You can drop off gift card donations to the parish office, in the offeratory or to committee representatives in the church vestibules before and after Masses during the month of April.
• Monthly Food Collection
  Our monthly parish food collection drive supports St. Anthony's Food Pantry in Red Bank and Project Paul in Keansburg, both of which help feed many local families and seniors in need. Collections take place during weekend Masses at church and dates are posted in the bulletin and online.
• Seasonal Collections
  • We partner with Holy Cross Academy for a Thanksgiving Food Collection and again in May for a Mother’s Day Diaper Drive.
  • We run a special Christmas Giving Collection to help St. Anthony's Food Pantry and Project Paul.
• Stars forJesus
  Our Stars for Jesus Christmas Gift Collection fulfills over 400 gift requests from six local charities alongside other agencies. We assist with material assistance, referrals, and provide food/gift cards to the needy in our parish and surrounding towns.
• Baby Bottle Fundraiser
  Last year we helped Holy Cross Academy students raise $2000 for The Center for Great Expectations. This organization helps young mothers battling addiction learn to care for and keep their babies while provide housing, daycare, and training so they may be able to succeed on their own. They house about 40 mothers and provide counseling for more than 1,000 women  and men on an outpatient basis.

Donations

We are heavily reliant on charitable donations, anything helps!

Holy Cross Parish’s 5th Sunday 2nd Collection
To help with the increased demand for assistance, our Parish dedicates the 2nd collection on the last Sunday of the month where there are 5 Sunday’s in the month to the Social Concern’s Committee. In 2025, this will take place in March , June, August and November.