Two Area Churches Lead Catholic Fundraising

When it comes to fundraising, the reigning cash cows in Orange County's Catholic universe are in Aliso Viejo and in Mission Viejo.

Every year, the Roman Catholic Diocese of Orange passes the hat for its Pastoral Services Appeal, which finances various charities and programs, including a prison ministry, seminaries and tuition assistance for low-income students at Catholic elementary schools.

In 2011, parishioners at the diocese's 57 churches and five pastoral centers pledged nearly $11 million for the drive. Of that, $1.1 million came from just two parishes, Corpus Christi ($639,000) and St. Kilian ($432,000).

However, that doesn't necessarily mean Catholics in Aliso Viejo and Mission Viejo are more generous than their counterparts in other towns, said Debbie Leaverton, the diocese's Pastoral Services Appeal coordinator.

"We try not to rank them," said Leaverton, because parishes vary widely in size and wealth.

It would be like comparing alumni donations at Harvard to donations at San Diego State University, said Cynthia Bobruk, executive director of the Orange Catholic Foundation, which oversees the PSA. Harvard's dollar amount is higher because it draws from a wealthier alumni base, but both schools are successful at fundraising, she said.

In addition, not every church uses the Pastoral Services Appeal the same way. Some parishes rely on the PSA as their own main fundraiser, because donations above the goal set by the diocese are rebated to the church. At Corpus Christi, the PSA is pitched mainly as a way to finance a future church for the young parish.

St. Kilian and several other top PSA fundraisers -- such as La Purisma and St. Norbert in Orange ($322,000 and $296,000, respectively), Holy Trinity in Ladera Ranch ($288,000) and Santa Clara de Asis in Yorba Linda ($287,000) -- are also using the drive to finance construction projects.

An exception is Our Lady of Guadalupe in Santa Ana, which consistently pulls in about $300,000 a year without any major projects -- and without an affluent congregation, Leaverton said.

In contrast, parishioners at in Rancho Santa Margarita appear downright stingy. Despite a 2011 PSA goal of $165,000, they contributed just $5,000 to this year's campaign.

But they had an excuse, Bobruk said. Parishes raising money for major building projects can request a year or two off from the PSA, which is what San Francisco Solano did. In 2011, the parish rustled up pledges of $2.8 million, to be paid over the next three to five years, for a new parish hall and teen center.

Countywide, the average individual contribution to the PSA campaign is $363, Leaverton said. Pledges are made in January and typically paid in installments.

After peaking in 2007, overall PSA donations fell as the economy struggled in 2008, 2009 and 2010, officials said. But contributions rebounded in 2011.

"This is the first year we've started to recover," Leaverton said. As of Sept. 30, pledges and payments were about 11 percent higher than a year ago.