Spanish Catholic Center Gala!

Saturday, we went to the Catholic Charities Spanish Catholic Center Gala at the Marriott Marquis Hotel. The annual gala was hosted by the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Washington, with this year marking the 50th anniversary of the Spanish Catholic Center. We snapped Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery’s Armando Retana with Rona Trinidad.

The gala raised hundreds of thousands of dollars to continue the center’s vital work in D.C.’s immigrant communities. Guests enjoyed a cocktail hour, dinner, dancing and performances by the Children’s Chorus of Washington followed by The Source. Here, Bethlehem University Foundation’s John Schlageter, Caitlin Schlageter and National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Monsignor Vito A. Buonanno.

As part of the evening’s festivities, His Eminence Donald Cardinal Wuerl dedicated the inaugural Saint Junipero Serra Award to the Spanish Catholic Center, an award named for the first saint to be canonized on American soil. Here, MJM Contracting’s Oscar Morinigo with Maria Morinigo.

The Spanish Catholic Center provides medical, dental, employment, immigration legal services and family support to immigrants and native-born residents alike. Last year, the center served around 25,000 people. Catholic Charities D.C. is the largest independent social services agency in the D.C. area and serves as the charitable arm of the Archdiocese of Washington. Catholic Charities provides critical services to hundreds of thousands of people in need throughout the District of Columbia and Montgomery, Prince George’s, Charles, Calvert and St. Mary’s counties in Maryland. Here, Catholic Charities D.C. President and CEO Monsignor John J. Enzler, Archbishop of Washington and honorary gala chair Cardinal Donald Wuerl and Auxiliary Bishop of Washington Most Reverent Mario E. Dorsonville.