ORLANDO | Catholic Charities of Central Florida (CCCF) welcomed a delegation of 10 visitors from Taiwan to its headquarters Oct. 26, 2026, to share lessons learned from their disaster preparedness and response team and showcase their food ministry program.
The visit, focused on emergency preparedness and management, was part of the International Visitor Leadership Program sponsored by the U.S. State Department.
Deacon Wilmar Rojas, director of operations for CCCF, offered a presentation on emergency operations centers and disaster collaboration across Central Florida. He emphasized the importance of building blue-sky relationships.
“Over the years, our main focus on blue skies is to strengthen relationships with all organizations,” he said. Catholic Charities builds relationship with entities in the public and private sectors during calm, uneventful periods so when a natural or manmade disaster occurs the relationships and resources are already in place for a fast and effective response. Through monthly meetings and regular communication, Deacon Rojas said they have created a strong network that responds fast when disaster strikes, leading to better outcomes and more resilient communities.
As a Catholic organization, CCCF provides service throughout its disaster response efforts. “Our role expands beyond the support, preparedness, (and) resource coordination,” said Deacon Rojas. “We are also able to add on a layer of spirituality to the survivors of disasters. It’s an added value that we bring to the table, to the municipalities in the state.” Along with providing spiritual triage during disasters, the relationships built between parishes, pastors, parishioners and CCCF are activated during a disaster response to mobilize resources and deploy relief swiftly and efficiently. Deacon Rojas said Catholic Charities’ work would not be possible without the generosity and support of hundreds of volunteers.
“(Some) 1,200 people call us here on a daily basis looking for help, so that takes volunteers (to respond),” he said. “Those same volunteers that help us throughout the day, throughout the year, become our volunteers when it comes to disaster(s).”
After watching a short video introducing the recently opened Agape Mission Market at St. Joseph Parish in Orlando, Juan Vega, director of food ministries and Mission Markets for CCCF, took the delegates on a tour of the Semoran Mission Market. He said Catholic Charities managed 3.2 million pounds of food last fiscal year. Delegates learned about the reservation system used to manage demand and how the food distribution process works across nine locations in five counties throughout Central Florida. Vega explained CCCF’s partnership with Second Harvest, the type of food they receive, and how food is stored onsite.
Responding to a question about whether they provide diapers and baby food, Vega highlighted the Walking with Moms in Need and family stability programs. Both coordinate with the food assistance ministry to provide food and supplies for infants and families in need. “It’s more (than) just having a food pantry here,” Vega said.
After the tour, members from the Taipei City Fire Department presented Deacon Rojas and Vega with a gift bag including pineapple cake, fire department badges and a miniature fire truck.
Established in 1940 under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, the International Visitor Leadership Program has hosted more than 225,000 global leaders across all 50 states since its inception. WorldOrlando, the local exchange host, is one of five community-based members of the Global Ties U.S. Network in the state of Florida and an implementer of the IVLP. The Taiwanese delegation spent 13 days in the United States for the program, entitled “Resilient Cities: Disaster Preparedness and Response — A Project for Taiwan.”
“For each group of IVLP participants visiting Central Florida, WorldOrlando arranges 2-4 days of meetings with their local professional counterparts, cultural activities, volunteer opportunities, dinner with local hosts, as well as hotel and ground transportation,” explained Sarah Gal, Executive Director of WorldOrlando. “Catholic Charities has hosted numerous IVLP groups for us over the years. We value their time and commitment to people to people exchanges like the IVLP.”