Volunteers with Catholic Charities and the Diocese of Palm Beach collected donated items and packed a shipping container that was sent June 11, 2026, to assist struggling families in Cuba. The Helping Hands for Cuba campaign was urged by Bishop Manuel de Jesús Rodríguez, and parishioners came through with a generous response.
In a March 27 column in the Florida Catholic, the bishop appealed to the faithful of the diocese to help ease the suffering being lived every day in Cuba.
“Here in South Florida — within our own Diocese of Palm Beach — live countless Cuban Americans and Cuban immigrants whose hearts remain inseparably bound to that suffering land,” he wrote. “For them, this crisis is not reported; it is lived. It is the trembling voice of a mother on the phone. It is the anxiety for a sick father who cannot obtain medicine. It is the pain of knowing that loved ones are going hungry.
“Their suffering echoes here. Their anguish reaches us. Their cry must not go unanswered.
“As bishop of Palm Beach, I speak with urgency and with conviction: we cannot remain indifferent. To do so would be a failure not only of charity but of conscience. The proximity of Cuba — so close to us in every sense — places upon us a grave moral responsibility. We are not spectators. We are neighbors. And we are brothers and sisters.”
Bishop Rodríguez is grateful that so many members of his flock responded with loving support for those struggling in Cuba. Ellen Wayne, CEO of Catholic Charities, said it was good opportunity for her agency to spearhead this mission of mercy.
“Serving people in need is at the core of the mission of Catholic Charities, and our involvement in this project was an important way for us to demonstrate solidarity with the people of Cuba. The generosity from the people and parishes all across the Diocese of Palm Beach was such an important way for us to work together to recognize and uphold the dignity of those who will benefit from this effort,” she said.
For more information on Catholic Charities in the diocese, visit www.ccdpb.org or call 561-345-2000.
The weekend of July 4th and 5th the Diocese of Palm Beach rallied again to help those effected by the earthquakes in Venezuela.
Find more information at Relief for Venezuela.
