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Participants in the March 19 "Catholics at the Capitol" lobby day in Albany seemed confident their conversations with legislators and their advocacy for public policy issues would effect change.

"To be able to make any difference, we have to raise our voices," said Deacon Miguel Fabian of Our Lady of the Americas Shrine Church in Albany, a mission of Blessed Sacrament parish. "If we say something, someone's going to listen."

Deacon Fabian, who is a chaplain at a local prison, came to the annual lobby day to push for humane treatment of incarcerated individuals, hoping specifically for more funding for substance abuse treatment and programs for released individuals.

"They should be able to be part of the community, to be regular citizens," he said.

Many issues
About 1,000 Catholics from across New York State came out to lobby for help for the incarcerated, one of a slate of issues that also included:

•  education investment tax credits,

•  funding for vulnerable populations,

•  support of pregnant women and opposition of the abortion piece of Gov. Andrew Cuomo's Women's Equality Act, and

•  justice for farmworkers.

Education first
The state's bishops, led by Cardinal Timothy Dolan of the Archdiocese of New York, met with the Governor and legislative leaders a day ahead of the lobby day to rally support for the education investment tax credits that are currently being negotiated in the state budget.

The bishops reiterated that the bill would benefit all schools and wouldn't divert money away from teachers. The Governor reiterated his support, according to Dennis Poust, director of communications for the New York State Catholic Conference, and other legislators seemed interested, though no one gave a definitive answer: "We didn't hear a 'no;' we didn't hear a 'yes.'"

Mary Ellen and Paul Gwozdz of St. Jude the Apostle parish in Wynantskill came to advocate for funding for low-income populations. Their daughter recently was recently diagnosed with a mental illness and started receiving social services.

"What a poorly-run system," Mrs. Gwozdz said, pointing to inadequate public housing vouchers and how the "[Department of] Social Services drops people suddenly" from receiving aid.

Young and old
Mr. Gwozdz is also concerned about abortion: "How many people [who] were aborted could have solved the world's problems? Ending lives like that is not solving the woman's problem. The majority of Americans don't agree with it and yet America's going along with it."

Kathryn Horan, a program manager at Catholic Charities Senior Services of Schenectady County, fought for funding for the Maternity and Early Childhood Foundation, as well as seniors and people with developmental disabilities.

"The funding gets tighter every year," she said. In her program, that limits the number of staff and results in a waiting list for delivering meals to seniors.

Ms. Horan also hopes for higher pay for non-profit employees: "We want to keep good people doing good work."

Stuart Mann, 15, chose to focus on funding for private schools and enactment of the education investment tax credit proposal. A student at Bishop Maginn High School in Albany, he took a day off from school with other members of the youth group at St. Mary's parish in Coxsackie as they made presentations on the policy issues for a confirmation service project.

"I enjoy my private education," Stuart said. "It's been my life and I want it to be a part of my life. Catholic schools are places where you can celebrate religion freely."

Student thoughts Liz Heinzinger, a 15-year-old student at Coxsackie-Athens High School, woke up at 6 a.m. to write the essay on abortion she would recite to Assemblyman Pete Lopez (R, C, I-Schoharie).

"It's just not right to take the life from an innocent human being," Liz told The Evangelist. "When they're in the womb, they don't have a say. [If not aborted,] one day they could be the president of the United States. You just never know."

Liz's research taught her that the abortion piece of the Women's Equality Act expands late-term abortions and allows non-doctors to perform them: "I don't feel that's right," she said. "It's just not safe."

A group of her friends chose as their topic the compassionate release of some sick or elderly incarcerated individuals and curtailment of solitary confinement.

Dionna Taccetta, 15, and Julia Reda, 16, both Coxsackie-Athens students, said they feel strongly about giving inmates access to quality health care. Dionna said imprisoned sick and elderly individuals are a forgotten population: "People definitely look down on them, but they're still humans.

"As long as they don't pose a threat to society," she said, "we're hoping to release them back to their families" or put them on house arrest.

The girls said that solitary confinement can exacerbate mental health issues in inmates.

"As humans, we need interaction," Dionna lamented. "As if prison isn't bad enough, they find ways to make it worse."

Julia believes that "the most human thing we can do is take care of other humans. It's very un-human to put them in cages and not give them the correct care."

Lasting effects
She also said it's important for constituents to have face time with their elected representatives to "help make [politics] more honest."

St. Mary's youth minister, Bob Desrosiers, always hopes the lobby day helps "these young kids to see early that there's the private aspect of their faith and the communal - and faith is something that affects you in everyday dealings. They get to see how government should work and they get a chance to see they have a voice."[[In-content Ad]]

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