St. Rita's Outreach Ministry oversees activities that address needs within and beyond our parish boundaries. 


Outreach activities include:


Meals to Grow


Through collaboration with "Resources Vail Food Bank", the Meals to Grow program provides supplemental food to students in the Vail School District experiencing food insecurity on weekends. Each bag contains six meals, along with snacks, milk, and fruit. In the 2024-2025 school year, 550 bags were distributed each week for a yearly total of 19,327 bags. In addition to purchasing the ramen and granola bars that are included in every bag, St. Rita's Ministry provides three teams of drivers who deliver these meals to the schools every week. We can always use new drivers or back-up drivers! 


Holiday Food Baskets


The Holiday food Basket program provides families in the Vail, Corona de Tucson, and Rita Ranch communities with the makings of a Thanksgiving and Christmas Holiday meal. The collection and distribution of the holiday food is done at the food bank with our Outreach Ministry providing grocery gift cards so that families may purchase their own protein. In 2024, St. Rita's provided grocery gift cards for over 695 families. Our gift card drive is conducted the first weekend in November. In addition to the gift cards, St. Rita's assists with the collection, sorting, packing and distribution of food. This is a huge, collaborative community effort each November and December and we welcome anyone who can help.


Back-to-School Backpack Program


Each June, St. Rita's Outreach Ministry purchases backpacks for the Vail School District to fill with school supplies for students who need help. For the 2025-2026 School year, our Ministry provided 144 high quality backpacks for our middle school and high school students.


Support and Donations


Outreach is supported through the generous donations of our St. Rita Parishioners. Special collections are scheduled three times a year in March, July and November, along with the generosity of our monthly and quarterly donors.


For more information on the Outreach Ministry, please contact outreach@stritainthedesert.org.