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Lidia Bastianich was a girl of 11 when she and her mother, father and brother arrived from Italy in 1958, and she’s never forgotten the help Catholic Charities provided after they came to New York. They were resettled in an apartment in North Bergen, New Jersey, with a rent subsidy for several months, and connected with Italian-American organizations and the local Catholic church, Sacred Heart.

“All those connections were necessary to give us a start,” Lidia said, explaining that representatives of Catholic Charities stayed in touch and encouraged their pursuit of the American Dream.

Lidia was interviewed at her restaurant Becco in the Manhattan theater district for “You Did It for Me,” a new Catholic Faith Network series hosted by Danielle Campbell, director of development and communications for Catholic Charities of Long Island. The show shares heartwarming stories of dignified and compassionate care, highlighting Catholic Charities’ extraordinary services and outreach. Lidia relates her life story, featuring how her family came to the United States through the efforts of Catholic Relief Services and resettled in America with help from Catholic Charities.

Lidia has hosted five cooking programs on PBS over the past quarter-century, including Lidia’s Kitchen since 2014. She’s owned restaurants in New York and other cities and is the author of 16 books. “It’s a pleasure sharing my life and all that I have received in life,” Lidia explains. “Maybe it’s time to give a little back.”

Lidia was born into an Istrian Italian family. Istria was assigned to the neighboring Yugoslavia military administration following World War II. She and her mother and brother later traveled to nearby Trieste, Italy, to visit her Aunt Nina. When her father joined them one night, she knew that the family journey was not a vacation, as she had been told. They spent two difficult years in a refugee camp. Her parents requested asylum in America, where President Dwight Eisenhower had opened the door to refugees fleeing the forces of communism. When her family came to the United States, Catholic Charities was ready to help. “They gave families like mine the opportunity to be independent and not to be needy,” Lidia said. She and her brother picked up English within a year. She recalls eagerly adopting cultural trends such as bobby socks. “I couldn’t wait to become an American citizen,” she said.

The renowned chef, now 78, is a familiar face to CFN viewers, having appeared many times as a guest on “Real Food” with program host Msgr. James Vlaun, the network’s president and CEO. One way she gives back is by auctioning off dinners at Becco during the annual CFN telethon. As she described it, the restaurant is subsequently filled two or three times over for a great menu with an appetizer, two or three pastas, a main course and dessert. Near the end of the taping, Becco’s executive chef Billy Gallagher joined Lidia and Danielle in the dining room, where a selection of delicious pastas was served.

They shared memories of when Lidia and Billy cooked for Pope Benedict XVI and Pope Francis when the pontiffs visited New York in 2008 and 2015, respectively. Although Lidia never expected the assignment, she felt very comfortable in their presence, preparing breakfast, lunch and dinner each day. When Pope Francis came downstairs to the kitchen for a cup of espresso, she remembers Secret Service agents looking all over to locate him. Chef Gallagher actually caught a striped bass that was grilled and served to Pope Francis. When family members were invited to meet Pope Benedict, Gallagher fished “a fistful of rosaries” out of his pocket for a papal blessing.

During the interview, Campbell noted how Lidia’s sincerity and real values attract people. “I am a straight-forward person who embraces the situation,” Lidia said. In breaks during the taping, Lidia could be heard arranging floral staging and conferring with Campbell and the crew about camera angles and shots. The attributes came in handy when pioneering TV chef Julia Child invited Lidia on her show. After the two episodes, she thought to herself, “I can do that.”

And she has. Her success was forged at the family table, growing up connected to the natural world outside. Her Italian heritage has played a key role, too. “We argue together, we sing together, whatever’s necessary to keep the family together,” she said. “That radiated out to my children and grandchildren. I always tell my children, ‘Be humble and appreciate it.’”
She is very proud to be an American. “There’s no country like America…Catholic Charities is part of this,” Lidia said. “You have these opportunities, you have to work at it, you have to make the best of it. You have to be emotionally and spiritually strong.”

“You Did It for Me” airs on Sundays at 10 a.m., Tuesdays at 10 a.m., Thursdays at 10 a.m., Fridays at 8:30 p.m. and Saturdays at 6:30 p.m.

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The following story was provided by Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois.

As Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois, we are proud to celebrate one hundred years of services to individuals of all faiths throughout the 28-county Springfield Diocese in Central Illinois. Our story began on March 1, 1925, when Bishop James A. Griffin hired Elizabeth Kuhlman as the first and only employee of Catholic Charities. Miss Kuhlman’s mission was to bring help and relief to those suffering in the Springfield community. She also served as president of the Ladies of Charity, another organization started by Bishop Griffin to provide material support to our newly-established office. The Ladies of Charity were essential in our early years, donating blankets, clothing, and funds to support the poor.

Bishop Griffin’s vision was to establish Catholic Charities in Springfield and expand our presence throughout the diocese. We expanded under the direction of Monsignor William Cassin, opening area offices in Alton, Quincy, Decatur and Granite City in the 1940s. Throughout the second half of the 20th century, we expanded further, opening our Effingham, Carlinville, and Mattoon locations.

Throughout the decades, we have developed programs to support the poor, abused children, senior citizens, veterans, refugees, disaster victims, broken families, the sick, and the forgotten. This was all made possible because of the generosity of thousands of volunteers, board members, and benefactors. True to the vision of Bishop Griffin, we now have offices and facilities in nine communities and outreach programs that serve thousands of individuals in rural towns and villages across our diocese. Additionally, we manage three facilities: the Catholic Children’s Home in Alton, St. Anne Residence in Beardstown, and St. John’s Breadline in Springfield.

On Saturday, March 1, 2025, we marked our centennial with a special Mass at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception in Springfield, led by Bishop Thomas John Paprocki. This Mass recognized the century of compassionate service we have provided to God’s children in need. Following the Mass, Bishop Paprocki presided over a Centennial Celebration banquet at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, where he expressed his gratitude to those whose dedicated efforts have sustained our mission of mercy for 100 years. Bishop Paprocki stated:

Catholic Charities does not do these things because it is a ‘nice thing to do’ but because we are commanded by our Savior to love one another. As Catholics, we are taught that charitable works are so integral to our faith that without them, our faith is dead.

During our Centennial Celebration, we presented the Magnificat Award to individuals, businesses, and organizations across the diocese, recognizing their outstanding contributions to our success. The Magnificat Award is given for “Outstanding Service to God and Neighbor,” and we are proud to honor those whose dedication has made such a difference.

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We are deeply grateful to our staff, volunteers, board members, and donors of all faiths who have joined us in our sacred calling to show Christ’s love and mercy to the world. “We are so grateful to our staff, volunteers, board members, and donors of all faiths who have joined us in our sacred calling to show Christ’s love and mercy to the world,” said Executive Director Steve Roach.

Looking ahead, Catholic Charities is excited to launch a centennial fundraising campaign aimed at ensuring that future generations will continue to have access to our services when needed. The St. Michael the Archangel Endowment and the Elizabeth Kuhlman Giving Society will fund crisis assistance services. As Steven Roach shared, “The most disheartening situation we encounter is when people in desperate situations reach out to us for help and we cannot help them because of a lack of resources. This happens on a daily basis and we must work to do something about it.”

With the support of our community, we will continue to carry out our mission of mercy and service for another 100 years and beyond.

Learn more about the Centennial Magnificat award honorees.

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The Refugee Youth Mentoring program at Catholic Charities Atlanta is part of a larger effort to welcome new neighbors to Georgia, providing services and support as they adjust to their new homes in the U.S.

Among the services are afterschool programming to assist with homework, English language learning and acclimating to life and school. Parents also receive help with transportation and interpretation/translation for school-related events.

The program matches 3rd and 4th grade students with adult mentors who take an interest in the youngsters, both for fun and for educational purposes.

Anna and Deloise are just such a pair. Anna is 10 years old and came to the U.S. with her family as refugees from Democratic Republic of Congo. Her parents wanted her to improve her reading, writing and conversational English – their first language is Swahili – as well as explore her new community.

Anna and Deloise like being out and about together, visiting the library, reading to each other, eating out and enjoying local events, including horseback riding!

Deloise has particularly enjoyed meeting people from another country. “I like the opportunity to meet Anna and her extended family and to learn more about their culture,” she said.

As for Anna, she loves being read to by Deloise, and, well, as she said, “I like everything!”

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