Travel “People of Asha MuseumThe transformative power of Christian service is being shared by Catholic Charities USA in a massive tour across the country.
Catholic Charities announces 2026–2027 tour in April 2025 $5 million grant from the Lilly Endowment as part of its Christian Storytelling Initiative.
When considering what stories the charitable organization would want to tell, Catholic Charities USA vice president of communications Kevin Brennan told “EWTN News Nightly” on April 10: “Ultimately, this was the story of the people, men and women, staff and volunteers of the Catholic Charities network, and the deep and compassionate service work they do day in and day out.”
The purpose, he said, “is to tell the story through their perspective, which is a little bit of a change from how we typically do it, and to show the rest of us across the country that this service has a profound impact on not only the person being served, but also on the person being served.”
The exhibit, housed in a retrofitted tractor-trailer, features 42 stories of Catholic Charities employees serving across the country, each “telling the story of a person or a family they served through their work that had the most profound impact on them,” Brennan said.
He said, “The stories call the rest of us who experience the museum to act with kindness, to find ways in big and small ways, to help our neighbors, and to serve according to the gospel.”
According to Brennan, the museum also features a “poverty simulator”, where participants adopt the persona of a “marginalized” person and “experience the types of decisions they have to make.”
The experience helps participants increase “understanding and empathy” for people living in poverty, Brennan said.
In addition, the museum features an interactive data wall on poverty and other challenges facing Americans across the country as well as a learning library and recording booth to record responses to the museum “and talk about the people who give you hope in your life.”
The museum will travel through December to 21 states, from Texas to Ohio and Maine to Florida, mostly in the eastern half of the United States.
“We’ll be all over the country for the next two and a half years,” Brennan said. Program for 2026 Available to watch while dates for 2027 will be announced soon.
