CNS photo/Andrew Biraj, Catholic Standard

ATLANTA—The Catholic Foundation of North Georgia, along with its board of directors, announces establishment of a permanent endowment fund to honor Atlanta’s previous archbishop, Cardinal Wilton Gregory. The foundation and board wanted to honor his commitment to the Catholic Foundation and years of service to the Catholic Church in the Archdiocese of Atlanta.

“We also wanted to commemorate him being named the first Black cardinal in the United States,” said Nancy Coveny, president of the Catholic Foundation.

Cardinal Gregory served as the sixth Archbishop of Atlanta from 2005 to 2019, until he was named by Pope Francis to lead the Archdiocese of Washington. He was elevated to the College of Cardinals on Nov. 28.

“His commitment to the development of the Catholic Foundation was profound,” said Coveny. “In my almost 11 years of working with Cardinal Gregory, he never missed a board meeting. He also ensured that every parish, mission, and archdiocesan Catholic school had an endowment fund to support their future needs. For all of these reasons, and more, the board of the Catholic Foundation is pleased to honor him with a named endowment fund at the Catholic Foundation.”

At the cardinal’s request, the endowment will provide grants annually to Catholic Charities Atlanta to help people in need.

“The staff and board of directors of Catholic Charities Atlanta are humbled at being selected as the beneficiaries of the Cardinal Wilton D. Gregory Fund,” said Vanessa Russell, chief executive officer of Catholic Charities Atlanta. “This gift will support our efforts to make families self-sufficient and will help keep Catholic Charities Atlanta strong for generations to come.  We are deeply grateful to the Catholic Foundation of North Georgia and Cardinal Wilton Gregory.”