Make a donation to CRS Rice Bowl, the Lenten program of Catholic Relief Services. Can't turn in your bowl? Give online!

To give by phone:
1-877-435-7277

Mail check to:
Diocese of Davenport
CRS - Rice Bowl Collection
Attn: Nancy Karn
780 W. Central Park Ave 
Davenport, IA 52804

Rice Bowl Grant Recipients History   

Rice Bowl Collection: Thank you to all the parishes that participated in the 2021 collection. We were able to distribute $13,700 in local grants. 

Enrich your Lent with CRS Rice Bowl program
 

By Bill Doucette
For The Catholic Messenger

Many of us are familiar with the Rice Bowl program run by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) each Lent since 1975. Over the years, countless children have put coins into the small cardboard “rice bowl” to help those in need. Today, CRS Rice Bowl is a tradition for millions of Catholics who follow the three Lenten pillars of prayer, fasting and almsgiving to help those in need.  Read More...

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
As we enter our third pandemic Lent, many of us are exhausted. The ongoing threat of the pandemic, healthcare workers who are overburdened, and disruptions to parish and family life, work and school have taken a toll. And, on top of all of that, there is the deepening partisan hostility and political divisions in our country as well as in the Church. It is tempting to want to check out, circle the wagons, and care only for ourselves. Read more...

Thank you for participating in CRS Rice Bowl this Lent and for your support of our global family through CRS Rice Bowl Collection.

We encourage all parishes to submit Rice Bowl funds as soon as they have them available in order to allow enough time for our Finance office to process all funds before the June board meeting. The final deadline to submit all funds is May 31st. 

25% of the funds stay in the Diocese of Davenport to fund local programs to fight hunger.  If funds are not submitted in a timely manner, it will affect the total grant distribution at the June meeting. CRS receives 75% of funds to support CRS development projects around the world.

Please submit your Rice Bowl collections promptly to:

Diocese of Davenport
Rice Bowl Collection
Attn: Nancy Karn
780 West Central Park Avenue
Davenport Iowa, 52804-1901

Don’t forget to write CRS Rice Bowl in the memo line of your check!

2023 Rice Bowl Materials Postcard – CRS has sent a thank you mailing on April 6th; all parishes and schools should have received it by now. The postcard has the quantities that your parish ordered for this year. Please take a moment to review it, make any necessary changes for 2023, and return it to CRS. 

Images of the front and back of the thank you mailing.

Parishes and Catholic Schools across the U.S. participate in the Catholic Relief Services (CRS) Rice Bowl Lenten program.  Through prayer, fasting,  learning and giving, parishioners learn solidarity with families and individuals in other countries.  During Lent, Parishioners are asked to contribute to the CRS Rice Bowl collection.  These funds further the work of CRS internationally, and support of organizations locally for programs that compliment CRS objectives such as feeding the hungry.  The first 25% of the total collection is retained by the Diocese for use as grants to such local organizations.  The other 75% assists CRS to address causes of global poverty and hunger.The Bishop appoint a Diocesan Board to allocate the  Rice Bowl funds retained for local use.  The Board is composed of clergy, religious, and laypeople from around the Diocese, and is chaired by the Diocesan Director for CRS, and is the same Board and Director for the Catholic Campaign for Human Development (CCHD).

Photo by Catholic Relief Services
 

Thank you for participating in CRS Rice Bowl this Lent.  During the past few weeks, we traveled to Guatemala, Bangladesh, and Rwanda.  We became companions and learned about their journeys this Lent with CRS Rice Bowl.  The prayers and devotions that your community has offered through this program are bringing new opportunities to our poorest and most vulnerable brothers and sisters in our own communities and around the world.

Please submit your Rice Bowl collections promptly to:

Diocese of Davenport
Rice Bowl Collection
Attn: Nancy Karn
780 West Central Park Avenue
Davenport Iowa, 52804-1901

If all possible please use Remittance form when submitting funds.  Don’t forget to write CRS Rice Bowl in the memo line of your check! 

We encourage all parishes to submit their funds as soon as they have them available.  With people working remotely we want to allow enough time for parishes and our Finance office to process all funds. The final deadline to submit all funds is May 31st. 

25% of the funds stay in the Diocese of Davenport to fund local programs to fight hunger.  If funds are not submitted in a timely manner it will affect the total grant distribution at the June meeting.  CRS receives 75% of funds to support CRS development project around the world.

Mama mia! It’s Lent! Youth group makes videos to promote Rice Bowl
 

By Lindsay Steele
The Catholic Messenger

Dressed in a dark suit and flower corsage reminiscent of Marlon Brando’s Godfather character, family and youth minister Nathan Clark addresses a concern faced by many during Lent: what to cook on Fridays.

“So you come to me at Lent and say, ‘Give me pizza, give me hamburgers, give me chicken nuggets,’” he emotes to viewers on a YouTube video in the Godfather’s trademark rasp. “No! Mama mia! It’s-a Lent!” Read More...

•  September - A postcard is mailed to parishes and schools at the end of September, encouraging them to update their order for 2022 CRS Rice Bowl materials.