Caritas Kaz planting seeds of hope
People
Karen de Sousa is more of a crochet than a gardening expert but it is not stopping her from helping to plant up to 32 million trees over the next four years.
Appointed as the Adelaide Diocesan director for Caritas in February, Karen is thinking big in whichever of the many hats she wears. And tree planting popped up through her many, and varied, church connections.
It all started in the UK where, for eight years prior to emigrating to Australia, Karen ran the human resources department for Caritas at its London headquarters. She was though, living in Brighton on the south coast which meant a two-hour train trip each way, each day. It couldn’t last.
The upshot was that in 2008, Karen moved to Adelaide with her husband Lloyd. They’d been to Adelaide and Kangaroo Island by chance on their honeymoon and have now long settled with their sons Aidan and Sam in the inner southern suburbs.
“The boys went to St Joseph’s school nearby and I got the job of parish secretary in Our Lady of Dolours Church, Kingswood. My life changed from a daily four-hour commute down to 30 seconds,” she told The Southern Cross.
The Adelaide Caritas opportunity was “definitely meant to be”, to the point where Karen, self-deprecatingly, refers to herself as Caritas Kaz.
“It was an advertised position. I had been doing two days a week at the parish and now also do two days with Caritas,” she said.
“My time working for Caritas in London cemented my deep belief in how vital this charity is and to be able to promote this within the Adelaide community is a joy.
“I hope all Catholics take Caritas into their hearts, knowing it’s their safe and secure way of supporting the most vulnerable in our world.”
In tandem with Caritas, Karen runs a crochet group in the Emmaus parish every Monday.
“It’s more than just crochet, it’s a beautiful support group,” she explained.
“Fr Bob Wilkinson, now 92 years old, comes along most meetings and shares his wisdom and stories of his life. We appreciate this precious time with him.”
She is also a member of the Catholic Women’s League and is its Australian board representative to the Worldwide Union of Catholic Women’s Organisation (WUCWO), which is where the tree planting idea originated.
Karen was asked to lead on the WUCWO goal of promoting and putting into action Pope Francis’ encyclical Laudato Si’, to help people understand integral ecology and how everything we do connects us globally.
While brainstorming at the annual board meeting in Rome, fellow board member, Lucy from Malawi, said that women from her home country wouldn’t understand the word ‘ecology’ but understood ‘soil erosion’ and its effects on them, Karen said.
“So, the idea is to get our eight million members plus their friends, families and communities, to plant one tree for the next four years to get to 32 million trees.”
Planting trees provides shade, reduces airconditioning bills and gives a habitat for native animals – and everyone in Australia can help, she added.
Being part of CWL and WUCWO has been highly rewarding, Karen said.
“CWL provides deep friendships and unwavering support from amazing people. And, as a group we achieve so much, for the homeless, for those who society rejects, for the greatest needs we see in our community.
“Nationally we input at government level and through WUCWO we do the same internationally.
“I would urge all Catholic women to find out about CWL, find their local group or start a new one. It’s a life-changer.”
There are other benefits to membership with an annual visit to Rome and a 2023 papal audience being a highlight for Karen.
“I was one row behind all the Ambassadors to the Holy See,” she recalled.
“Chiara Porro, the Australian Ambassador, asked if I’d like to come closer when Pope Francis passed by, so I squeezed into the front and there he was, in his wheelchair right in front of me. Incredible.
“He was such a good pope, so inspiring, so good for women and we will continue his work and legacy.
“We can plant our trees, look after those most in need and be a voice to the voiceless.”
Register your tree and add it to the count #WUCWO Planting Hope Campaign.
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