Capuchin Family Ministries

06/17/2026

🎉 Happy Birthday, Emily!

From retreat participant to retreat leader, from Summer Outreach Week to Capuchin Appalachian Mission, your generosity, faith, and willingness to serve have blessed countless members of the CFM family over the years.

Thank you for sharing your gifts, your leadership, and your joyful spirit with our community. We are grateful for you and pray that God blesses you abundantly in the year ahead.

Happy Birthday! 🎂🙏

06/16/2026

Memorial of Blessed Anicet Kopliński and Companions, Capuchin Martyrs

Known as the “Saint Francis of Warsaw,” Blessed Anicet Kopliński spent his life serving the poor. Walking the streets in his worn Capuchin habit and sandals, he begged not for himself, but for those in need, filling the deep pockets of his mantle with bread, fruit, vegetables, and sweets for children.

The poor knew him. The hungry sought him out. He saw Christ in those who were suffering and forgotten.

When N**i forces occupied Poland, his ministry did not cease. Arrested with fellow Capuchin friars and subjected to imprisonment and torture, he remained steadfast in faith and charity.

When questioned about helping both Jews and Poles, he replied:

“I am a priest and wherever there are people I will exercise that priesthood: be those people Jews or Poles—especially if they are suffering or poor.”

Before his martyrdom at Auschwitz in 1941, he told a friend:

“We must drink this chalice to the bottom.”

As we continue our own ministries of service through Capuchin Family Ministries, Summer Outreach Week, Capuchin Appalachian Mission, and our outreach to those in need, may we imitate Blessed Anicet’s love for Christ present in the poor.

Blessed Anicet Kopliński and Companions, pray for us.

06/13/2026

THANK YOU! ❤️

Our hearts are full of gratitude for everyone who joined us for our 3rd Annual Heart & Sole Walk-a-Thon. Thanks to your generosity, encouragement, and support, this was our most successful walk yet!

Every step taken and every dollar raised helps make our summer programs possible, supporting participants as they serve those in need through Summer Outreach Week in the Hudson Valley and Capuchin Appalachian Mission in Harlan, Kentucky.

Thank you for walking with us, praying with us, and helping us continue Christ’s work among those who are struggling with poverty and hardship.

If you were unable to attend but would still like to support these efforts, the donation link can be found in the comments.

06/11/2026

“We gladly live our life as brothers among the poor.”

Today’s passage from the Capuchin Constitutions reminds us that the Franciscan vocation is not simply about serving others from a distance, but about sharing life with them—listening, accompanying, encouraging, and walking together in faith.

This image of Fr. Erik was taken during Summer Outreach Week, where friars, volunteers, and young people come together to encounter Christ in one another through prayer, service, and community. It is a small glimpse of what St. Francis envisioned and what the Capuchin friars continue to live today.

As we prepare for this weekend’s Heart & Sole Walk-a-Thon and our upcoming summer programs, we are reminded why we do what we do. Through SOW, CAM, CLASP, and the support of so many generous friends, we seek to build communities where people are known, loved, served, and invited to grow closer to Christ.

“By doing this we manifest the spirit of our life as lesser brothers and become a leaven of justice, unity, and peace.”

— Capuchin Constitutions, Article II, 14

06/08/2026

Today, we celebrate Blessed Nicholas of Gèsturi, known as “Fra Silenzio” (“Brother Silence”), a Capuchin lay brother (1882–1958) who served as a questor for 34 years.

A questor’s ministry was to go among the people, seeking food and other necessities for the friars and the poor they served. In return, the friars offered prayers, encouragement, and the Good News of the Gospel. It was a ministry built on faith, generosity, and relationships.

More than a century later, that same spirit continues.

The friars still serve. Volunteers still give of their time and talents. Participants still answer the call to serve their neighbors. Benefactors still make that work possible through their generosity.

As we prepare for this Saturday’s Heart & Sole Walkathon, we remember that none of our ministries happen alone. Like Blessed Nicholas, we rely on a community of people willing to walk alongside us in service of Christ and those most in need.

May Blessed Nicholas inspire us to be generous with our prayers, our time, our gifts, and our hearts.

Blessed Nicholas of Gèsturi, pray for us!

06/07/2026

“In this world I cannot see the Most High Son of God with my own eyes, except for His Most Holy Body and Blood.”

— St. Francis of Assisi

On this Solemnity of Corpus Christi, we give thanks for the gift of the Holy Eucharist, the true presence of Jesus Christ among us.

With wonder and humility, St. Francis recognized that the Lord of heaven and earth remains with His people under the appearance of bread and wine. At every Mass, Christ continues to feed us with His Body and Blood and draw us into communion with Him.

May our love for the Eucharist deepen, and may the Lord raise up holy friars and priests to serve His people at the altar.

05/31/2026

Today we celebrate the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.

The Trinity reveals that love is never solitary. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit live in an eternal communion of love, self-giving, and unity.

We were created for that same communion—with God and with one another.

In a culture that often settles for connection, today’s feast reminds us that we are called to something deeper: to pray together, serve together, walk together, and help one another grow in faith.

May the Holy Trinity teach us how to build communities where every person is welcomed, valued, and loved.

05/29/2026

Your feet have room for both this summer.

There will be days for beaches, barbecues, vacations, and rest. Those things are good gifts.

But what if you set aside one week to walk alongside others?

At Summer Outreach Week, you’ll serve at Vacation Bible School, visit seniors, support local outreach ministries, and discover that service is about more than what you do—it’s about the people you meet, the community you build, and the ways God works through each of us.

Give one week to something that matters.

📅 June 29–July 3
📍 Hudson Valley, NY

Registration closes June 1.

🔗 Link in bio

Capuchin Fransicans Province of St. Mary - Capuchins

05/25/2026

Happy Birthday, St. Padre Pio!

“Pray, hope, and don’t worry.”

Born on this day in 1887, the humble Capuchin friar from Pietrelcina continues to lead countless souls closer to Christ through his witness of prayer, sacrifice, and trust in God’s mercy.

St. Padre Pio, pray for us!