SAN DIEGO (Press Release) — Family, colleagues, and staff at Father Joe’s Villages were saddened to announce the passing of Father Joe Carroll who died early morning Sunday, July 11. The President Emeritus of Father Joe’s Villages was 80.
The iconic San Diego priest was known as much for his compassion for those in need as he was for his pioneering vision of a comprehensive approach to homelessness which he called a “one-stop shop.” Under his guidance, Father Joe’s Villages became the largest and most comprehensive homeless services provider in San Diego.
Carroll’s support for the homeless spread well beyond Catholic charity, eventually involving numerous other religious groups who participated in support for the programs at St. Vincent de Paul, the forerunner of Father Joe’s Villages. Among them was Congregation Beth Israel which, under the leadership of Joan Kutner, assembled a team every Sunday morning to provide breakfast service for the homeless.
“Though I am personally saddened at Father Joe Carroll’s passing, I fondly remember the stories and laughs that we shared, and his legacy will live on in all that we do,” said Deacon Jim Vargas, President and CEO of Father Joe’s Villages. “Father Joe selflessly and tirelessly served our community for over three decades. We celebrate his lifetime of service.”
Father Joe grew up in New York City, in the Bronx borough, along with seven siblings. In 1963, Father Joe moved to Southern California where he entered the seminary. He was ordained a Catholic priest in 1974 and devoted the next eight years to parish work before being selected by Bishop Leo Maher in 1982 to lead the St. Vincent de Paul Center, partly due to his knack for fundraising and building community connections. Father Joe accepted and spent the next three decades transforming the center into a comprehensive-service focused organization committed to combating the root causes of homelessness. The organization would eventually bear his name, adopting the name Father Joe’s Villages in 2015.
Father Joe’s tenure saw the development of the Joan Kroc Center, the first facility of its kind to provide housing, medical care, childcare, meals and job training under one roof to families and individuals experiencing homelessness, in 1987. The Joan Kroc Center was followed by the Bishop Maher Center in 1989, the Paul Mirabile Center in 1994, and several other subsequent affordable housing apartment complexes through his retirement in 2011. Additionally, Father Joe Carroll’s relationship with the City of San Diego led to further collaborations with the City of Indio in developing Martha’s Village & Kitchen and with the City of Las Vegas on M.A.S.H. Village.
A private funeral mass will be held with his close friends and family.
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Based on material provided by Father Joe’s Villages.
I wouldn’t be here without Father Joe’s ministry. I live in his “Housing First” initial project…. Cypress apartments. I have a cancer diagnosis and have only been in San Diego. 14 months. Though they spoke about him as a name, I knew there was something beyond the name. I am so grateful for him. We all have reasons that we went homeless… Father Joe cared. Didn’t matter why….
Bible > NIV > Matthew 7
◄ Matthew 7 ►
New International Version Par ▾
Judging Others
1“Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.
3“Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4How can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? 5You hypocrite, first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother’s eye.
7“Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
I didn’t know for awhile, there was a man behind the name. Even my pastor in Indiana asked…. Father Joe? When I was approved for my appointment… I was happy to share about Father Joe and what I knew of his ministry here. My eyes are open THANK YOU FATHER JOE! Because of you, I don’t have to sleep on the street tonight! RIP