The Catholic Foundation for the Diocese of Saint Cloud recently made a $32,000 investment in WCCN through its Father John Kaiser Social Justice Fund. The Foundation started the social justice fund with help from Father Tony Kroll, an investor and ardent advocate for WCCN over the past twenty years.
Father John Kaiser grew up in Northern Minnesota, but worked in Kenya for close to 40 years. He was passionate about social justice issues and locals referred to him as “Rhino” due to his tough and stubborn nature, and his refusal to let injustices go unspoken. He was beaten, jailed and followed on multiple occasions which eventually ended in his murder on August 24, 2000.
Father Kroll, who never met Father Kaiser, is also passionate about social justice issues but served in Latin America for most of his career. Father Kroll encouraged The Catholic Foundation to start a fund honoring Father Kaiser, and was the main fundraiser for the fund. The Catholic Foundation has decided to invest the bulk of the Father John Kaiser Social Justice Fund in WCCN, with the interest earned on the fund going to scholarships for young people to learn about social justice issues.
