Traveling exhibit tells how serving others transforms Catholic Charities workers

The traveling “People of Hope Museum” by Catholic Charities USA is sharing the transformative power of Christian service in a sprawling tour across the country.

Catholic Charities announced the 2026-2027 tour in April 2025 after it received a $5 million grant from the Lilly Endowment as part of its Christian Storytelling Initiative.

When considering what stories the charitable organization would like to tell, Catholic Charities USA Vice President for Communications Kevin Brennan told “EWTN News Nightly” on April 10: “Ultimately, it was the story of the people, the men and women of the Catholic Charities network, staff, and volunteers, and the profound and merciful service work that they perform day in and day out.”

The purpose, he said, is “to tell the story through their perspective, which is a bit of a change from how we would normally do it, and to show the rest of us around the country the profound impact this service has not only on the one being served but on the person doing the service.”

The exhibit, housed in a retrofitted tractor-trailer, contains 42 stories from Catholic Charities staff serving around the country, each “telling the story of the one person or one family whom they have served through their work who had the most profound impact on them,” Brennan said.

“The stories call the rest of us who experience the museum to act in kind, to find ways in ways big and small, to help our neighbors and to serve as the Gospel calls us to,” he said.

The museum also has a “poverty simulator,” according to Brennan, where participants take on the persona of someone “living on the margins” and “experience the types of decisions they make.”

The experience, Brennan said, helps participants to grow in “understanding and empathy” for those living in poverty.

In addition, the museum has an interactive data wall on poverty and other challenges facing Americans across the country as well as a learning library and recording booth to record reactions to the museum “and talk about those who give you hope in your life.”

The museum will travel through 21 states, from Texas to Ohio and from Maine to Florida, mostly in the eastern half of the United States, by December.

“Weʼre going to be all over the country for the next two and a half years,” Brennan said, noting the schedule for 2026 is available to view while dates for 2027 will be announced soon.