PALM BEACH | Kathy and Paul Leone are set to be honored with others at the 16th annual Caritas Dei Bishop’s Gala for Catholic Charities Thursday, Jan. 29, at The Breakers in Palm Beach. They won’t have far to travel because Paul is the CEO of the beachfront resort.
Bishop-Emeritus Gerald M. Barbarito will serve as host of the black-tie event, during which special awards will be presented recognizing local contributions to Catholic Charities and those in need. The Leones will receive the Caritas Dei Award; the Fanjul family will receive the Bishop’s Charity Medal; Margaret Donnelly, the Caritas Spiritus Sanctus Award; and Father Raúl Cárdenas, pastor of St. Mary Parish in Pahokee, receiving the Caritas Christi Award. The evening, with the theme of “Beyond the Palms,” will include a silent auction, dinner and dancing. Money raised through the gala will serve a multitude of needs in the five-county diocese that are filled by Catholic Charities.
Paul and Kathy met in 1985 as employees at The Breakers. Speaking to the Florida Catholic in a conference room at the hotel, Paul said, “We were married here in 1991, so 34 years ago on Nov. 1. And I have some fun because of our Catholic faith. I might be exaggerating the dates a little, but we really connected on Good Friday in 1985, we got engaged on Christmas Eve in 1990 and we got married on All Saints’ Day in 1991. I’d like to say I planned it that way, but that’s not the way this stuff works. But that’s what makes it even more special in our faith life together. We’ve been blessed.”
Beginning at St. Juliana Parish, where Kathy taught religious education and confirmation classes for 20 years, they raised four sons. As the boys grew, they moved to Palm Beach and began attending Mass at St. Edward. Now that the boys are grown, Kathy and Paul alternate between St. Juliana, St. Edward and St. Ann, going to daily Mass as often as possible, and he serves on the finance committee at St. Juliana.
Working in the foster care system, Kathy has seen many families benefit from Catholic Charities. “Their clothing program, their food program, the immigration services that they provide, the prison ministry. All of it connects with the work I do because we see struggling families all over our county, and with help, they can thrive. So, without someone like Catholic Charities, these lives just become needlessly unproductive and sad,” she said.
“We need them to do that in this community. Along with all the wealth, there’s a lot of poverty, and we find in a lot of ways that most of the struggling families, for example, in the dependency system, just need a little help to get back on track. And that’s something that Catholic Charities does beautifully,” Kathy added.
Paul said he especially likes how Catholic Charities staff roll up their sleeves to tackle difficult problems with love and compassion. And the Leones are there to help carry the load.
“Whenever they ask, we always say yes. Whatever that is, whether it’s help with the organization, help with the event. They know that about us, I think, that we’re there to help whenever we’re needed,” Kathy said. “We always go to the event and support it in a significant way because we just feel Catholic Charities is super-important in this community.”
While it’s great to receive an award, they said, there is an urgency to the work of Catholic Charities.
“We appreciate the recognition, but we’re so blessed. It’s a blessing to be able to live in this community, work in this community and give back to this community,” Paul said.
Kathy added, “I just think that it’s the moment now to step up. If you can, you need to, because the need out there is greater than ever, and there’s no need for it to be that way in this community. There’s enough wealth to share. There should be no child who’s hungry, who doesn’t have clothing, who doesn’t have a pencil. Shame on us if we don’t step up and meet that need. And that’s the beauty and strength of an organization like Catholic Charities.”
To learn more about the work of Catholic Charities and its vital social service programs, visit www.ccdpb.org. Gifts of service and money can be made at www.ccdpb.org/get-involved/donate.html.
