Mission Cooperative Appeals
Welcome! Thank you for your interest in the Diocese of Charlotte’s Mission Cooperative Appeal. Our approved mission speakers are partners in our efforts to animate and educate Catholics in the western half of North Carolina about the mission work of the universal Church. Let us be missionary disciples together.
- Complete the application form below and all required documents no later than Dec. 31 to be considered for the following year’s appeal program.
- Selected speakers will receive confirmation in March.
- Appeals are typically conducted June 1 – Sept. 30. The date is at the discretion of the pastor of the invited parish.
- Submission of application is no guarantee of selection.
- A Letter of Good Standing will be required of all selected mission group speakers.
- Questions: Please contact Father Patrick Cahill, diocesan mission appeal director.
General FAQs
The Diocese of Charlotte welcomes applications from lay organizations, dioceses and religious orders. The diocese invites between 40-60 applicants to participate every year. The same mission may be invited to participate no more than three years in a row. Pastors at the parishes where the mission speakers are scheduled are responsible for the details once the mission appeal visit has been assigned.
- A recognized Catholic mission group or religious order in good standing with the United States Society for the Propagation of the Faith serving in one or more countries.
- A Catholic (arch)diocese or eparchy outside of the United States.
- A Catholic diocese in the United States designated as missionary by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Home Missions Office.
All applicants must meet the following criteria:
- For US-based organizations: be in Catholic Volunteer Network’s Response Directory or
- Official Catholic Directory and provide a scan of their page.
- In the application the mission requesting group should highlight to speak to the following commitments to Catholic teaching: a focus on community, a strong sacramental life, and a dedication to serving the spiritual and physical needs of those who on the margins.
Individual persons and parishes are unable to apply.
No, the diocese requires a new application every year.
Read the Guidelines for Speakers and Application Agreement for details. All sending groups selected to participate in the Mission Cooperative Appeal Plan will be notified in/around March of the appeal program year.
Due to the number of applications and requests received each year, the Diocese of Charlotte accepts a limited number of missionaries every year. You may apply by Dec. 31 for the next Mission Cooperative Appeal Plan year.
- January 1: Online application period opens.
- December 31: Online application period closes.
- Around March 1: The Mission Cooperative Appeal Plan Selection Committee reviews applications and makes participant selections. Parishes are notified by the Office of Missions of their upcoming participation in the Mission Cooperative Appeal Plan. Notification of assignments will be sent to the mission groups selected and to the host parishes.
- June 1 – September 30: Appeals are made at the scheduled parishes. Usually these are scheduled during the summer timeframe, but pastors may select other times.
A lasting legacy of service
The Diocese of Charlotte’s mission appeal program’s first director was Monsignor Anthony Kovacic. A native of Slovenia, his life was filled with joys and sorrows but his faith in God and in the goodness of people never wavered. After narrowly escaping the Nazis, who invaded his home country and killed many of his family in concentration camps, he made his way to Rome to study for the priesthood. He was ordained in 1947 and had hoped to work in the foreign missions, but instead he was sent to the United States – specifically, North Carolina, to minister to what was then a tiny Catholic population of 5,000. “Father Tony” served the People of God with humility, love and joy for nearly seven decades before his death in 2016. His legacy of service in the “missions of North Carolina” continues to thrive today.
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