Paul Frank clearly remembers an envelope from his childhood, tucked away each month and marked for someone else. His mother, a devout Catholic raising six children with modest means, never failed to give to others with even less. Her quiet, consistent generosity instilled the same lifelong commitment in Paul.

Paul described how she taught him that his Catholic faith means he is on this earth to be “a man for others,” as the Jesuits say. Today, charitable giving, and Catholic social teaching’s preferential options for the poor, remain core pillars of who Paul is.

He and his three brothers attended Canisius University (then College) where Paul became more familiar with the Jesuit tradition. “The Jesuits taught me how to learn and how to think,” Paul said.

Around this time, both of his sisters answered a call to religious life, becoming Franciscan sisters – women committed to living the Gospel through service, prayer, and communal life.

Paul credits his sisters with teaching him what “accompaniment” means: walking with one another as we navigate life’s greatest challenges from loss to poverty to displacement. “They taught me how to think about the others living around me,” Paul said.

Later in life, feeling called to “do better at living out the Gospel,” Paul sought to reconnect with the Jesuits. He reached out to a Jesuit Retreat House near his home and got involved with their different spiritual offerings. “The Jesuits recentered me,” he said.

It was during this time that Paul learned about Jesuit Refugee Service. Our mission – to accompany, serve, and advocate on behalf of forcibly displaced people so that they may heal, learn, and determine their own futures – deeply resonated with him.

“We cannot be like the rich man in the Bible,” Paul said. “We have a mandate from the Gospel, that at our core we must be people of empathy and compassion.”

Paul first began donating to JRS in 2009, and a decade later, deepened his commitment by establishing a charitable fund. Like Paul, many supporters choose to give through one-time or recurring donations, gifts of assets, or by creating charitable funds that reflect their long-term values. However they give, each donor becomes an integral part of our mission. For Paul, supporting JRS is more than a financial decision, it is part of how his faith calls him to live. He remains deeply engaged, holding forcibly displaced people close in both heart and prayer.

Recently, at an event at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia, where Paul lives today, a JRS-educated, former refugee shared her story. Paul was moved by her testimony of loss and sacrifice. In the chaos of displacement, she was separated from her mother and never saw her again.

“We must remember that Mary and Joseph were refugees,” Paul shared. “We can’t just go to church and forget how we are called to live.”

As many now know, recent U.S. foreign aid cuts have devastated refugee communities around the world. 22 JRS programs have been forced to end or significantly scale back critical services.

Resources like infant formula and insulin have run out. Child rehabilitation centers, emergency mental health services, and basic education programs for refugee children have had to shut their doors.

Shocked by the abrupt halt to these services, Paul increased both the size and frequency of his contributions to JRS. Because of Paul, and others like him, JRS is finding ways to continue walking with refugees and forcibly displaced people, even in the face of policies antithetical to our mission and faith.