To celebrate our accomplishments in ending homelessness together and provide another way for people to partner in our mission, Caritas of Austin (Caritas) hosts Songs of Hope, an annual fundraising concert under the stars in downtown Austin.
Songs of Hope is an avenue for community members to give back while enjoying local, award-winning music, dinner, dancing, a live and silent auction, a Fund the Mission opportunity, and much more to continue creating a future where no Austinite is without a home.
If you missed this year’s Songs of Hope, make sure to mark your calendars for Songs of Hope 2025 on April 3, 2025.
Kyler Wesp, Caritas’ Event Coordinator, explained the process of planning Songs of Hope and its impact on our neighbors without homes.
How does Songs of Hope help Caritas of Austin clients?
All the proceeds from this event go directly back to our programs, providing services our clients need to heal from the traumatic experience of homelessness and rebuild their well-being.
Funds from Songs of Hope serve our clients with all the resources they need: safe housing, healthy food from our pantry, or education and employment services.
At Caritas, we prioritize our clients’ needs. I wanted Songs of Hope to reflect this and create a space for them to enjoy this community event, so we offered our clients free tickets with full access.
This year, we also had two Caritas case managers on the Songs of Hope Committee, and they provided a lot of great insight and innovative ways to include and honor clients at this event.
On top of helping provide life changing services to our clients, Songs of Hope is a fun, safe space to educate our community members about the reality of homelessness in our city.
Whatever our future Songs of Hope events look like, you can be sure they’ll be client- and community-centered!
This year is Caritas of Austin’s 60th Anniversary. How did this milestone impact your Songs of Hope planning?
For me, Caritas’ 60th Anniversary was at the center of everything.
It felt like a natural way to celebrate how long Caritas has been serving Austin and our impact on the community. Serving our unhoused neighbors for six decades is a huge landmark, and I wanted our community to be able to celebrate that accomplishment because our work wouldn’t be possible without them.
Our Austin Original Partners were also a large part of Songs of Hope and our 60th Anniversary in general. H-E-B, MFI Foundation, and Downtown Austin Alliance are donating $60,000 to Caritas in honor of our 60 years of service. We wanted to honor the commitment and dedication of those helping end homelessness in our city at Songs of Hope.
Songs of Hope felt like a giant celebration for all of us, but also a perfect and pivotal time for new supporters to join us in the innovative and life changing work we’re doing.
For more information or to get involved with Songs of Hope, contact Kyler Wesp at kwesp@caritasofaustin.org.
