Three years ago, Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the Roman Catholic archbishop of Washington, tapped Monsignor John Enzler to take over Catholic Charities, the primary social-welfare arm of the archdiocese. The move took many by surprise. Catholic Charities helps not only Catholics but anyone in need, which last year meant treating more than 15,000 patients at its clinics and in physicians’ offices (200-plus doctors donated some $6.7 million worth of medical services to the poor last year), serving 5.5 million meals to the needy, and making more than 1,800 beds available every night, from shelters for the homeless to permanent housing for adults with disabilities.
Enzler is a beloved priest who has used his people skills to make his name as a successful pastor—and fundraiser—at two of Washington’s most prestigious parishes: Our Lady of Mercy in Potomac and Blessed Sacrament in Chevy Chase DC. Administration of a multifaceted social-welfare agency wasn’t on his résumé; he was more accustomed to baptisms and confessions than budgets and conference calls.
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