Catholic Charities Serving Portage and Stark Counties

Basic needs assistance, including those services typically referred to as emergency assistance (EA), is at the core of our mission and is offered to those in need within the Portage and Stark County communities. In many cases, we also seek to provide case management services and referrals.

Portage County Services

• Utility assistance
• Food pantry
• Community Cupboard (personal hygiene and household cleaning items)
• Seasonal assistance (e.g. Christmas gifts, back-to-school materials)
• Birth certificates and photo ID’s
• Transportation (bus tokens and, in special circumstances, longer distance bus fare)
• Vehicle services (help with car repair/payments for employment/medical reasons)

Stark County Services

• Utility assistance
• Rent assistance
• AEP Neighbor to Neighbor program (click here for more information)
• Food pantry
• Community Cupboard (personal hygiene and household cleaning items)
• Seasonal assistance (e.g. Christmas gifts)
• Birth certificates and photo ID’s
• Transportation (bus tokens and, in special circumstances, longer distance bus fare)

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The Catholic Charities First Step Center for Family Support program provides assistance to low income pregnant women and families with young children in obtaining infant supplies such as formula, diapers, and clothing; case management; parenting support and education; and related referrals. Other First Step services include toilet training kits, facilitation of the Cribs for Kids program, Family Support Services (educational activities paired with material incentives), and the Stark County Baby Boutique (gently used infant and toddler clothing, accessories, etc.).

Additional material assistance and support is available for foster parents and kinship caregivers in Portage County, through the Foster & Kinship Care Support Program at our Ravenna office.

We are a Community Distribution Partner Site of Heart of Ohio Diaper Bank, a distributor of free diapers to our Stark County Site, which helps augment our supply of diapers for distribution and end diaper need in Stark County. Find the Heart of Ohio Diaper Bank on Facebook here.

We are partners with Project MKC, which helps augment our supply of diapers for distribution from our Portage County office. Find Project MKC on Facebook here.

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Catholic Charities’ Emergency Furniture Program, in partnership with the Habitat for Humanity Restore, is intended for individuals or households with an emergency need for furniture caused by a recent, documentable event.

Examples of qualifying events include, but are not limited to, exiting a homeless or domestic violence shelter or recovering from a home disaster such as a house-fire.

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We strive to provide supportive services to adults 60 and over in our communities with basic needs assistance, case management, and other services. Services and eligibility vary by county, but may include:

Portage County Services

• Participation in the Healthy Aging Program (click here for more information)
• Personal hygiene kits
• Grocery assistance
• Payee services

Stark County Services

• Senior housing assistance, including rent and mortgage assistance (click here for more information)

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While basic needs assistance represents our core mission, we also recognize the benefit of helping people take the “next step” toward a more stable and self-sustaining life. We have developed a number of services which fall into this category. Generally speaking, these ministries are relatively low volume/high intensity in comparison to our other services, and they are unavailable at times (e.g. due to COVID-19 restrictions or limited demand). Services include:

• Project ASSISI provides case management, short-term financial assistance, resources, and referrals to help qualifying individuals and families achieve long-term financial stability.
• Steps to Opportunity, a pilot program offered at our Portage County location, is aimed at providing childcare assistance for parents who want to return to work. Families that fall just outside the parameters of childcare assistance with Job and Family Services may qualify for childcare subsidies through this program, in addition to programing that offers the opportunity to develop financial skills, parenting abilities, and community involvement. For more information, click here.

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Volunteer opportunities are available at our Stark County office. Some opportunities are detailed in the link below. If you are interested in volunteering or would like more information on upcoming openings at this location, please contact us at (330) 491-0896, ext. 101; or info@CatholicCharitiesPS.org.

Click here for more information about volunteer opportunities at our Stark County, Canton location.

Information regarding volunteer opportunities in our Portage County, Ravenna location will be coming soon! 

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