Bishop Pilla’s Legacy
Remembering Bishop Emeritus of Cleveland Anthony M. Pilla November 12, 1932 – September 21, 2021 Bishop Pilla’s Legacy with COAR: “Come with me on a pilgrimage of hope” Watch Bishop’s Pilla’s full speech at our 2017 Annual Benefit here (10 minutes) COAR joins in mourning the death and celebrating the life of Bishop Emeritus of […]
Exciting Podcast on COAR’s past & future
In the September episode of the Generative Spirits Rachel Drotar of the Sisters of Charity Foundation of Cleveland speaks to Sr. Sheila Marie Tobbe, OSU, and Mary Stevenson, Executive Director of COAR, about the mission and history of COAR and how its connection to Cleveland has lasted for decades. We invite you to listen to […]
Solidarity in these divided times
Whenever we have visitors at COAR, the students (in the school) and the residents (living at COAR in foster care) thrill, delight, and overwhelm us with their generosity of spirit and their creativity in signs, decorations, hand-crafted gifts, and culinary confections. Really, it is a wonderful experience to be enveloped by their youth, exuberance, and […]
Looking Toward the Future . . .
. . . empowered by examples from the past Pictured above is Brother Mick Joyce, OFM Cap., visiting COAR on June 9th. Karla gave him a card on behalf of all the children and staff memorializing Brother Saul Soriano, OFM Cap., our dear friend, taken too soon, May 7, 2018, read our tribute to him […]
June 2021 Memorials & Honorary
Community Film School and Facing Reality
Or, how to keep busy during an ongoing pandemic . . . Interhouse soccer tournaments, daily gospel reflections, and Zumba videos can only get you so far—even with the usual schoolwork and household chores. So Marta, our director, has found a creative outlet for six of our COAR kids. She’s signed them up for film […]
June 2021 – Executive Director’s Reflections & News from El Salvador
I DESERVE A PATH FREE OF VIOLENCE COAR Children designed this movie poster on emigration: “YOUR LIFE IS WORTH MORE THAN AN UNCERTAIN DESTINATION / I DESERVE A PATH FREE OF VIOLENCE” The film school opportunity (featured in our news this month) started as a remote‑learning, creative outlet during the pandemic. But the first project […]
Report on 2020 and Challenges for 2021
By COAR’s Board President: Melanie Reda On January 4th, my father called me to tell me that he received his $600 stimulus check and he was so excited. So of course, I checked too. And I had indeed received a $600 stimulus check. How exciting! What a windfall! And then my thoughts turned to how […]
August 15th – Foundation Day
August 15th – Foundation Day – A Day of Joy between two sorrows – and Joy for 40 years August 15th is the Catholic feast day of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary into heaven. It was also the birthday of St. Romero in 1915. As refugee children came to the CLAM Team Parish […]
December 2019 – Motherless
At the COAR office, we are motherless. Mary Alice (Mickey) Horner died on October 17th. Ellen Hayes Stevenson died on October 23rd. Mickey is John Atlee Horner’s mother, our Director of International Programs. Ellen is Mary Stevenson’s mother, our Executive Director. Our only other staff member, Jenni, our bookkeeper and database manager, lost her mother, […]