Manu’a Islands, AMERICAN SAMOA — The Manu’a Mission of the Diocese of Samoa Pago Pago is one of the programs that will be receiving financial support from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), whose Subcommittee on Catholic Home Missions approved $9.5 million in grants to assist 79 dioceses and eparchies in the US.

 Approval of grants was made during the subcommittee’s meeting in October, and the USCCB made the official announcement late last week through a national statement.

“Many dioceses and eparchies throughout the United States cannot provide basic pastoral services without outside assistance. Through the generosity of catholics to the Catholic Home Missions Appeal, we can help strengthen the church here at home,” said Archbishop Paul D. Etienne of Anchorage, Chairman for the Committee on National Collections.

The list of projects approved for funding does not provide the specific amounts but among the projects, according to the list, is the “Manu'a Mission in the Diocese of Samoa-Pago Pago, American Samoa, to provide missionary services and pastoral support to children and families who are isolated from the main island of Tutuila, and live in the outlying islands of Manu'a.”

Subcommittee grants assist dioceses and eparchies that would otherwise struggle due to difficult geography, impoverished populations, and limited resources.