• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
Catholic Review

Catholic Review

Inspiring the Archdiocese of Baltimore

Menu
  • Home
  • News
        • Local News
        • World News
        • Vatican News
        • Obituaries
        • Featured Video
        • En Español
        • Sports News
        • Official Clergy Assignments
        • Schools News
  • Commentary
        • Contributors
          • Question Corner
          • George Weigel
          • Elizabeth Scalia
          • Michael R. Heinlein
          • Effie Caldarola
          • Guest Commentary
        • CR Columnists
          • Archbishop William E. Lori
          • Rita Buettner
          • Christopher Gunty
          • George Matysek Jr.
          • Mark Viviano
          • Father Joseph Breighner
          • Father Collin Poston
          • Robyn Barberry
          • Hanael Bianchi
          • Amen Columns
  • Entertainment
        • Events
        • Movie & Television Reviews
        • Arts & Culture
        • Books
        • Recipes
  • About Us
        • Contact Us
        • Our History
        • Meet Our Staff
        • Photos to own
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • CR Media platforms
        • Electronic Edition
  • Advertising
  • Shop
        • Purchase Photos
        • Books/CDs/Prayer Cards
        • Magazine Subscriptions
        • Archdiocesan Directory
  • CR Radio
        • CR Radio
        • Protagonistas de Fe
  • News Tips
  • Subscribe
People protest against the first Trump administration's cuts to the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program in front of the U.S. Capitol in Washington Oct. 15, 2019. After President Donald Trump and his second administration ceased the federal government's refugee resettlement program on Jan. 20, 2025, Catholic Community Services of Utah nearly had to shut down its refugee program until receiving more than $1.5 million in donations to continue the agency's resettlement services. (OSV News photo/Leah Millis, Reuters)

Utah diocese’s Catholic refugee program gets helping hand from greater community

May 24, 2025
By Linda Petersen
OSV News
Filed Under: Immigration and Migration, News, World News

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

SALT LAKE CITY (OSV News) — After the federal government ceased its refugee resettlement program in January, Catholic Community Services of Utah was left scrambling to serve the 300 refugee families already in Utah that they had contracted to provide for.

Because of the federal funding cuts, CCS had to lay off more than half of its resettlement staff. They also began praying for a miracle that would allow them to continue to provide critical services to the refugees. Now, the generosity of the Utah community has made that possible.

Over the last few weeks more than $1.5 million has been donated to the agency after Intermountain Catholic, Salt Lake City’s diocesan news outlet, newspaper and other local media outlets highlighted its plight. Most of the donations, ranging from $20 to $1 million, were from individuals, said Aden Batar, who directs CCS’s migration and refugee services.

On Jan. 20 President Donald Trump signed an executive order suspending the U.S. Refugee Admissions Program and canceling all contracts related to it, and the termination of the cooperative agreement by the U.S. Department of State with several refugee resettlement agencies, including the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The order also froze payment of all outstanding invoices for services already performed. This left CCS and other relief organizations across the country with large funding gaps for their programs.

Within weeks the agency, which is sponsored by the Diocese of Salt Lake City, had spent $1 million of its own reserves to continue to provide housing, employment assistance, health services and case management to refugee families already living here, having been resettled by the federal government.

In early April CCS announced it would be able to provide refugee services to those families only if private funding could be found to make up for the lack of federal funding. In addition to preparing to apply for grants, Catholic Community Services reached out to the community for help.

As always, community members responded, Batar said.

“I knew that our community would always come through, (but) I wasn’t expecting so quickly we were going to get that much money,” he told Intermountain Catholic. “That really gives us high hope. Our community is always there for us to support us and they always, whenever we ask them, support (our efforts). I knew they were going to come through. Every time that we are up against the wall, another door opens for us, and then our community really, really comes through.”

The services CCS provides are critical to the successful integration of these refugees into American society, he said.

“Integration takes a long time,” Batar said. “We can’t just bring people here and then after few months say, ‘Oh, the program is closed. Goodbye.’ We cannot do that. We have to make sure to provide them all the support that they need, because we want them to succeed.”

Batar acknowledged that the Trump administration is unlikely to resume resettlement of refugees at past levels, but he hopes it might do so on a smaller scale.

“The reason why we are focusing these four years on the families that are here is that we’re hopeful that the next administration will change the way things are right now, and hopefully, we’ll go back to the normal refugee resettlement program, as previous administrations have done,” he said.

While the donations already received are a good start, CCS will need an additional $1 million from the community to help fund the refugee program for the next four years, Batar said. With this funding CCS will also be able to continue to provide legal representation to 126 unaccompanied refugee youth who are seeking asylum in the U.S.

This is a tough task in today’s uncertain economy, Batar acknowledged, but he promises that CCS will be a good steward of the money they receive.

“I want to assure the community that every donation that they give, it will be put to good use,” he said. “It will not be wasted. People trust Catholic Community Services, and we will make sure that donations go to support the refugee families that are already here.”

This story was originally published by Intermountain Catholic, the news outlet of the Diocese of Salt Lake City, and distributed through a partnership with OSV News. Linda Petersen is a staff writer at Intermountain Catholic.

Read More Immigration & Migration

Catholic leaders ICE

Report on alleged conditions at ICE’s Florida detention sites prompts Catholic leaders’ call for change

LA archbishop, joined by business leaders, starts fund to help families affected by ICE raids

Broglio: Church teaching obligates the faithful to support pastoral care of migrants

Archdiocese of Baltimore offers resources for parishes to assist migrants

Miami archbishop presses for pastoral visitation at Alligator Alcatraz

Archbishop Wenski leads Knights on Bikes to pray rosary at Alligator Alcatraz

Copyright © 2025 OSV News

Print Print

Share
Share on Facebook
Share
Share this
Pin
Pin this
Share
Share on LinkedIn

Primary Sidebar

Linda Petersen

Click here to view all posts from this author

For the latest news delivered twice a week via email or text message, sign up to receive our free enewsletter.

| MOST POPULAR |

  • Warsaw archbishop ‘devastated, crushed’ by priest’s arrest in brutal murder of homeless man

  • Conference of Major Superiors of Men Men’s religious leaders confront change with fraternity and faith

  • Radio Interview: The true story of ‘Xavier Rynne’

  • St. Bernardine Choir celebrates 50 years of song, spirit and community

  • Massacre ‘of faithful in the house of God’ in Congolese Catholic church leaves 43 dead

| Latest Local News |

Sister Rita Ann Naughton, I.H.M., dies at 88

St. Bernardine Choir celebrates 50 years of song, spirit and community

Grillo Family Reflection Space

Loyola University Maryland receives $1 million gift supporting aspiring educators, creation of reflection space

Sister Miriam Jansen, former director of international programs at Notre Dame of Maryland, dies at 86

Conference of Major Superiors of Men

Men’s religious leaders confront change with fraternity and faith

| Latest World News |

Planned Parenthood defunding remains in question amid legal challenges

UNESCO-EXIT-CATHOLIC-SITES

Experts see US UNESCO exit as blow to historic preservation for churches, other sites

JUBILEE-YOUTH-FRASSATI

Thousands visit Blessed Frassati’s remains in Rome for Jubilee of Youth

Jubilee 2025

Young teen’s relics a reminder for pilgrims that holiness ‘is not impossible’

Court dismisses case against prominent exorcist priest

| Catholic Review Radio |

CatholicReview · Catholic Review Radio

Footer

Our Vision

Real Life. Real Faith. 

Catholic Review Media communicates the Gospel and its impact on people’s lives in the Archdiocese of Baltimore and beyond.

Our Mission

Catholic Review Media provides intergenerational communications that inform, teach, inspire and engage Catholics and all of good will in the mission of Christ through diverse forms of media.

Contact

Catholic Review
320 Cathedral Street
Baltimore, MD 21201
443-524-3150
mail@CatholicReview.org

 

Social Media

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent

  • Planned Parenthood defunding remains in question amid legal challenges
  • Experts see US UNESCO exit as blow to historic preservation for churches, other sites
  • Thousands visit Blessed Frassati’s remains in Rome for Jubilee of Youth
  • Young teen’s relics a reminder for pilgrims that holiness ‘is not impossible’
  • Court dismisses case against prominent exorcist priest
  • Against the odds, CRS has delivered aid to 1.7 million in Gaza since 2023
  • Why would God allow Satan to torture Job?
  • Pope paves way for St. John Henry Newman to be formally named doctor of the church
  • Sister Rita Ann Naughton, I.H.M., dies at 88

Search

Membership

Catholic Media Assocation

Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association

The Associated Church Press

© 2025 CATHOLIC REVIEW MEDIA, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

en Englishes Spanish
en en