Catholic Charities breaks ground on new Wichita Falls campus

WICHITA FALLS, Texas (KAUZ) - Catholic Charities broke ground on a new facility in downtown Wichita Falls, marking a major milestone for an organization that has spent 12 years working toward establishing a permanent home in the community.

The new Catholic Charities Northwest Campus, located at 907 Holliday St., will allow the organization to expand its services throughout Wichita Falls and the surrounding area.

Planned services include educational opportunities to help people earn degrees, programs focused on financial stability and additional support for veterans.

Catholic Charities Head of Regional Operations Laura Sotelo said the project has been a long time coming.

“We’d always talked about, you know, putting down permanent roots. And so this has just been an incredible honor and blessing that we were actually able to make this happen. And we can only do that because of the support of so many people in the community. So just very grateful,” Sotelo said.

Veteran support will be a major focus of the new campus. According to Catholic Charities, veterans make up nearly 10% of Wichita Falls’ population.

Catholic Charities Veteran Outreach Specialist Brian Lalonde, who served 10 years in the Marine Corps, said having a dedicated facility could make a significant difference for veterans seeking assistance.

“When I got out of the Marines, I struggled to find a place that could help me with assistance, whether it was financially or with career guidance. And so this building means a lot because it’s going to be a place for veterans to be able to come and get the assistance that they need, get that hand up and not just that hand out and really have someone that’s going to sit and listen to them,” Lalonde said.

Bishop Michael Olson traveled from Fort Worth to attend the groundbreaking. He said he hopes the facility will provide veterans with a place to find support, connect with advocates and work with organizations and government agencies.

“It’s a place for them to talk. It’s a place for them also to have somebody to advocate for them. It’s a way to collaborate with our military to help them to better serve their own veterans. And I think those are some of the ways that it’s being done and really to recognize what they’ve done for our country,” Olson said.

In addition to the groundbreaking, Catholic Charities visited the Senior Care Health and Rehabilitation Center, where representatives handed out challenge coins and thank-you notes written by children to recognize veterans.

The visit was part of the organization’s efforts to recognize those who have served ahead of Veterans Day on Wednesday, Nov. 11.