This December saw the disbanding of the Guild of Catholic Women (GCW), a philanthropic organization that since 1906 engaged Catholic women in providing care and support for St. Paul’s needy. The legacy of GCW will continue to influence the community through the organizations they helped establish, and in two endowment funds designated to help local community organizations.
GCW founded Guild, Inc., a non-profit dedicated to helping individuals with mental illness lead quality lives, that will continue to operate and currently serves over 1600 individuals. GWC was also a major contributor in establishing the Bureau of Catholic Charities, a forerunner Catholic Charities of St. Paul and Minneapolis; the umbrella group of social services provided by the Archdioceses of St. Paul and Minneapolis; and Our Lady of Peace Home for adults with incurable Cancer.
Their legacy began when St. Paul was less than half a century old. Caroline Beaumont and several other well-off women at St. Luke’s Parish, now the Catholic Community of St. Thomas More, founded the organization to help relieve the poverty of members in the community, especially the cities growing immigrant population. They would go on to set up temporary housing for poor immigrant women, establish a church for Mexican Immigrants now known as Our Lady of Guadalupe, assist in the reintegration of soldiers during World War I and II, and most recently began focusing on mental health issues, especially in children and young adults.
The decision to dissolve the organization was cited as due to its aging membership and declining membership numbers, down to less than 100 active members from over 1,000 in the 1970’s and early 1980’s. Many factors influenced the decline in member numbers, including the changing role of women in philanthropy and society, changes in volunteering trends, and the closure and consolidation of parishes.
The first endowment totaling $630,000 was given to the Guild, Inc. to continue their work with the mentally ill. The second endowment was created from the sale of the GCW’s real estate holding, totaling over $200,000, and will be given to organizations throughout St. Paul that promote “wellness in the community,” administered by MCF member Catholic Community Foundation.
For more information, the Guild, Inc. has a list of articles regarding the GWC’s dissolution.
-Kaitlin Ostlie, MCF administrative assistant
Posted by MCF Webmaster 



