JustFaith Social Justice Ministry of Holy Family

Formed in January 2015, the JustFaith Social Justice Ministry of Holy Family started with 15 individuals on a 27-week journey of study and discussion based on the JustFaith Ministries nationwide program, which is designed to gain an understanding of the root causes of many of our broken social systems in the US and abroad. Topics included poverty, racism, immigration and refugees, homelessness and more. 

Since completing the program, the group has opened its arms to the broader faith community at Holy Family and volunteers in areas such as poverty, racism, immigration, and prison reform. In addition to a variety of volunteer opportunities, the JustFaith Social Justice Ministry also hosts a variety of events throughout the year to raise public awareness about these issues.  

We continue to welcome members of the Holy Family Faith Community to become involved in our JustFaith efforts in any manner they feel called. Please contact us at justfaith@holyfamilyretreat.org for more information. 

Upcoming Events

Stay tuned for more upcoming programs and events.

Ongoing JustFaith Initiatives & Community Outreach

Here is a list of the various activities we are presently engaged in. Please contact us at justfaith@holyfamilyretreat.org if you are interested in joining in any of these activities.

Please contact us at justfaith@holyfamilyretreat.org if you are interested in joining in any of the above activities.

Planting Trees, Planting Hope Project  

Participatory envelopes available at Holy Family

In keeping with our desire here at Holy Family to care for the Earth, our common home, our Just Faith Social Justice Ministry is sponsoring a Planting Trees, Planting Hope Project with the Arbor Day Foundation. For a donation of $5 one tree will be planted in your name, for $10 3 trees, for $20 7 trees. The trees as seedlings will be planted where needed and will help to sequester carbon and provide oxygen. Consider giving the gift of trees for birthdays or as Christmas presents.

This is a 2 for 1 project as some of the proceeds will also help fund local outreach to the migrant workers in CT, the children at the Hartford Catholic Worker, and other miscellaneous needs. Please contact us at justfaith@holyfamilyretreat.org for more information. 

Continuing Care for Creation - interesting tips from the Catholic Climate Covenant

Ten Minutes

A) Register for Catholic Climate Covenant’s October 21st webinar, “What’s in the Air We Breathe?” In this very informative online conversation, staff from the American Lung Association and from the Environmental Justice Program of the Diocese of Stockton will:

1) Summarize the 2026 ALA report’s key findings
2) Lift advocacy opportunities and recommendations for action
3) Provide an example of how U.S. Catholics can respond to the impacts of air pollution in our communities

B) What creation care actions at home and in your parish/school facilities can you take in 10 minutes this month? 

Manage Autumn Waste

• Leave the leaves: Instead of bagging up fallen autumn leaves to be sent to a landfill, rake them directly into your garden beds or under shrubs. Best yet, if you can, don’t rake or shred them, just leave them be! They act as a natural mulch. To compost them, bury them in your garden rather than tossing them in the trash, where they break down and produce methane.

Plan ahead for your pumpkins! 

• If you decorate with pumpkins or gourds this month, make a plan for how you can:

• Chop and compost them: Cut the pumpkin into smaller pieces and add it to your compost bin to enrich the soil.

• Bury for fertilizer: Bury small chunks directly into your garden soil to release slow nutrients for your plants.

• Avoid landfills: Discarding pumpkins in regular trash creates methane gas as they rot in landfills

Half Day

1) Learn more about plastics this month! 

Watch the recording of “Moving Beyond Plastics in a “Throwaway Culture”, the third in the series of the Franciscan Eco-Spirituality: Renewing Our Vision in a Jubilee Year (a four-part webinar series for 2026), Judith Enck, author of “The Problem with Plastic” and founder of Beyond Plastics, shares with us about the impacts of plastics on Mother Earth and on vulnerable communities. Judith outlines how we can get involved at the local and state levels to cut toxic plastic pollution. Students from Siena University also share their work to combat plastics pollution in the state of New York.

2) Sign up and attend Plastic Pollution Coalition’s October Webinar: Unwrapped: How to Get Plastic Off Our Food!

Walk down the aisles of almost any grocery store and you’ll see it everywhere: plastic-wrapped vegetables, fruit in plastic containers, and plastic bottles lining the shelves. 95% of this packaging is designed for just one use, and it can release microplastics and harmful chemicals into our food. Not long ago, milk was readily available in glass, and fruits and vegetables were sold without plastic packaging. So how did plastic become so deeply embedded in our food system — and how do we get it out? On October 14, Plastic Pollution Coalition will host a webinar exploring the risks of plastic food packaging and how to unwrap our food systems. Getting plastic off our tables shouldn’t be a personal choice problem: it’s a policy problem. And it’s one we can solve. Sign up.

Ongoing 

1) Pope Leo Warns Climate Crisis is Threatening Human Dignity, Catholic Online, September 24th, 2026

2) Living Water Guided Meditation and Prayer Walk: The St. Thomas Aquinas Creation Care Ministry (Indianapolis) led a meditation/prayer walk at a local art and nature park to close out this year's Season of Creation. They have generously shared it with everyone. 

3) Children in the Pittsburgh area are helping improve their neighborhoods by planting trees. The One Tree Per Child Program, run by the nonprofit Tree Pittsburgh, helps children plant trees around schools, parks, streets, playgrounds, and other spots.