As Jim Parker was presented with the Burlington County Light of Hope Award at the Catholic Charities Guardian Angel Dinner Dance, his father, Charles Parker Jr. was looking on, beaming with pride.

With a twinkle in his eye, the elder Parker conveyed that it’s one of his wishes “and I’ve said this more than once, that if I’d ever grow up, I’d want to be like my son. I’m very proud of Jim.”

Jim Parker, president of Riverview Studios, Bordentown, was one of four from the diocese named to receive the Light of Hope Award by Bishop John M. Smith at the agency’s fundraising gala which honors individuals for their commitment to serve the community’s poor and vulnerable. (CLICK HERE FOR PHOTOS OF THE EVENT)

“It is the work by these individuals and organizations that helps Catholic Charities to fulfill its mission – to help fewer people be hungry; fewer to be homeless or ill, and to help give a better life to those less fortunate. This year is no exception in that we have an outstanding group of individuals and organizations who have made a difference in the community they serve. We are truly blessed to have guardian angels like you in our lives,” said Richard Gillespie, this year’s dinner chairman.

Along with Parker, the other Light of Hope honorees were Suzanne Svizeny, Wells Fargo’s Commercial Banking Division for Pennsylvania and Delaware, Mercer County; Virginia LaMorte, Monmouth County, and Deacon Jim Knipper of St. Paul Parish, Princeton, Ocean County.

Humanitarian Award
While Merrill Lynch Global Wealth Management was honored with the Corporate Citizen of the Year Award, and Scott A. Fairman with the Catholic Charities Client Achievement Award, the principal honoree was Bishop Smith who received the Richard J. Hughes, Catholic Charities Humanitarian Award, which is specifically given to a person who has had a major impact on the work of Catholic Charities over a substantial period of time.

“Bishop Smith has spent his entire life improving the lives of everyone around him,” said Judge John Hughes, in presenting the award to Bishop Smith. Judge Hughes is the son of the late Gov. Richard J. Hughes, who was the first to serve as chairman of the Guardian Angel dinner dance when it was inaugurated 19 years ago.

“Bishop Smith is a true humanitarian and worthy of this magnificent award,” said Judge Hughes.

In his remarks, Bishop Smith praised the tireless work of Catholic Charities in “alleviating human suffering.”

“I recognize the feelings that many have – that the problems of poverty, homelessness and hunger are far too big for any one person to be able to help,” said Bishop Smith. “Rather than asking one person to do it, we need to ask: ‘Who can I work with to make a real difference?’”

“The Catholic Charities community has both asked and answered that question,” said Bishop Smith. “They give daily witness to the value of doing their part and work together in order to bring help and hope to those in real need. It is because of the dedicated staff and volunteers, supported by the generous and caring benefactors that Catholic Charities is able to make a difference in the lives of those who are poor and vulnerable in central New Jersey.”

As Bishop Smith said that while he was “truly honored” to receive the Richard J. Hughes Humanitarian Award, he also accepted it on behalf of his eight predecessors – those who had preceded him as Bishop of Trenton.

“All the bishops of Trenton have been involved and interested in the work of Catholic Charities, so we stand on their shoulders. What I have been able to do in my 13 years in the diocese is to build upon what they began so many, many years ago,” said Bishop Smith.

Client Achievement Award
Each year, Catholic Charities names one exceptional individual to receive the Client Achievement Award at the Guardian Angel Dinner Dance. Recipients are selected because their success with Catholic Charities programs epitomizes the agency’s mission to meet the social and human service needs of residents of the four-county diocese.

The compelling story told by this year’s recipient, Scott A. Fairman, essentially had the message that hard times can fall on anyone at anytime – even someone with a master’s degree in business administration and a career in finance.

Fairman found his way to Catholic Charities three years ago when he came to a crossroads in his life when he had “lost everything” – his car, his job and his condominium. He lived in a homeless shelter in Camden for five months, but when he finally decided it was time to seek help in support, he turned to Catholic Charities’ Diocese of Trenton’s Partners in Recovery and the Guidance Clinic seeking help with a dual diagnosis.

Fairman decided to return to school for training as a paralegal, and with the professional and compassionate support of Denise Higgins of Supportive Employment at Catholic Charities and the financial assistance provided by the New Jersey Division of Vocational Rehabilitation Services, he was able to complete his Certificate of Proficiency in paralegal studies and graduated from Mercer County Community College in the Spring of 2008. He also successfully completed an unpaid internship with a local attorney which ended in August, 2008 when he became an AmeriCorps Vista Member.

Fairman currently works with the Mercer Alliance to End Homelessness and with Joyce Campbell, director of Catholic Charities’ Community and Government Relations, on issues related to homelessness through the New Jersey Advocacy Network to End Homelessness. He also serves on the board of trustees of Central Jersey Legal Services and was just recently appointed by Gov. Jon Corzine to the newly formed Interagency Council on Preventing and Reducing Homelessness.

Fairman believes that these opportunities were only possible because of his affiliation with Catholic Charities, and that his involvement with AmeriCorps as a Vista Member for the Mercer Alliance to End Homelessness and with Central Jersey Legal Service has provided an additional vehicle to serve the community. It’s his goal to combine his business background with his paralegal certificate to work on legal issues related to homelessness, poverty and disability rights.

“Catholic Charities helped save my situation; they helped me to move forward,” said Fairman. “Catholic Charities is a non-profit that’s for the people. It empowers people to become the best they can be and that’s really all God wants – for us to become the best people we can be.”