Tracy Fick sees agency’s outreach as example of evangelization
Tracy Fick is excited about her new role as president and CEO of Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia (CCEVA) because it will allow her to lead an organization that “gives a voice to the voiceless” as it serves more than 10,000 families a year.
Services of CCEVA, now in its 90th year, include pregnancy, parenting and adoption support, mentoring initiatives, mental health counseling, financial and housing counseling, public and private guardianship, and senior services. The organization primarily serves families living at or below 200 percent of the poverty level, and most clients aren’t Catholic.
“I love that I get to live out my faith at work. I get to pray, and we get to talk about God and our faith and hopefully attract a lot of people to faith through our service,” she said. “At CCEVA, we believe the best evangelization occurs when we act as the hands and feet of Christ to all those who walk through our doors.”
Fick earned a bachelor’s degree in marketing from Franklin University in Columbus, Ohio. She is also a HUD-certified housing and financial counselor and trained in disaster response.
Fick has devoted more than 20 years working in the nonprofit sector. Before coming to CCEVA as a grants administrator in 2013, her work included public information specialist for Crittenton Family Services in Columbus, Ohio; director of development at I Love A Clean San Diego in California; and development director at Exchange Club Family Center in Jacksonville, Florida.
After serving as the grants administrator at CCEVA for about a year, she became the director of marketing in 2014 and associate director, chief programs officer, in 2018. On July 14, she was promoted to president and CEO.
Board chair Stephen Fuschetti said in a press release that Fick “is a true servant leader and has been instrumental in growing the organization to meet the ever-changing needs of families in our community.”
Fick, one of eight siblings, was raised in the Catholic faith in Akron, Ohio. She attended Catholic school from kindergarten through high school, and she said her parents set a good example by attending daily Mass regularly, in addition to weekend Masses.
Her mother, concerned about the elderly at church who didn’t have anyone to assist them, helped them in such ways as taking Communion to them, making holiday meals for them and even inviting them to have holiday meals with her family, Fick said.
“We definitely saw our parents living the faith.”
Likewise, Fick said she and her husband, Greg, strove to instill faith in their four children, who are all adults now. The family went to Mass regularly, prayed together before meals and went to several March for Life events in Washington. She and her husband were active at their former parish, St. Gregory the Great, Virginia Beach, and currently at Holy Trinity, Norfolk.
“I hope that Greg and I have been able to make our faith very real for our kids and for them to see that faith is not just something you talk about. It’s something you live,” she said. “I believe strongly that how we treat others, especially those most in need, and how we use our gifts is the best way to share our faith.”
“Jesus gave us the best example of servant leadership by washing the feet of the disciples, and I am very fortunate to be a part of an organization that ‘washes the feet’ of so many families every day,” Fick continued. “Hopefully, every person who comes to our doors leaves feeling that their life is valued and appreciated.”
Immediate needs
Fick said her first priority will be to work on the organization’s strategic plan “to guide our work and growth toward our centennial anniversary.”
She said one of the greatest needs facing clients is inflation, so another focus will be “to develop and secure the resources necessary to meet the increasing needs of hard-working families in our community right now.”
“The costs of housing, gas and groceries have skyrocketed, and wages are not keeping up, and those on fixed incomes are even more vulnerable with costs rising,” she explained. “We want to be able to meet the increasing need of those seeking our help and be poised to grow our programs to best help families reach platforms of self-sufficiency.”
Fick cited CCEVA’s mentoring programs, Strive and Aspire, which focus on moving women and their families out of poverty through efforts such as goal setting, financial counseling and addressing other concerns like family life, health, education and career.
Through these programs, both of which are in partnership with Women United of United Way of South Hampton Roads, participants have increased their credit scores on average by more than 100 points in a year, increased earnings on average of more than $20,000 annually and are helping many individuals become first-time homebuyers, which helps them become “economically independent and build wealth,” she said.
“We will always strive to meet the needs of the most vulnerable by providing guardianship for those that are incapacitated and have no family to care for them, distributing diapers and baby clothing, and providing rent assistance, but we are also focusing on moving families out of poverty through our mentoring initiatives,” Fick said. “Giving families the tools they need to reach their own goals is beautiful to watch. Families are better able to navigate crisis and go from just surviving to thriving.”
Support for women
Fick also said “one of greatest callings right now” is to support women who are choosing life. In addition to continuing present services for them, she hopes CCEVA will be able to provide housing stipends for rent to those women at risk of homelessness. Some existing services are pregnancy counseling, adoption services, help with making parenting plans and referrals to community resources addressing needs such as housing, employment, insurance and education.
She feels her most challenging and rewarding work at CCEVA occurred in 2019 when the organization provided case management to the 16 families whose loved ones either died or were injured in the mass shooting at the Virginia Beach municipal center.
“Hopefully we helped them in the darkest moment of life get through that tragedy. Nothing can take away that kind of pain, but hopefully again they felt loved and cared for and accompanied during that very difficult time,” she said.
Fick explained that many of their clients “come to us on their worst day” and it’s important “to be able to meet people in that hard space.” She hopes CCEVA gives them “the hope and help that they need to see a way out and that we can accompany them on that journey so they don’t have to go through life’s hardest struggles on their own.”
“That’s really our mission and how we bring the faith to our work,” she said. “We want to make sure everyone feels the love of God, knows they are made in God’s image and likeness and are valued; we want to make sure those without a voice have one and that no one has to go through tough times alone.”
Editor’s note: For further information about Catholic Charities of Eastern Virginia, visit https://cceva.org or call 757-456-2367.