CWS holds its first inaugural meeting on 20 April 1959, with Archbishop Michael Olcomendy as President and Mr. Ee Peng Liang as Chairman.

CWS runs the first ever “Charities Week” collections among members to expand its activities and services.

Launch of the Breadline / Indigents’ Diner programme to distribute bread and milk drinks to the needy and destitute in the areas surrounding the CWS headquarters.

CWS is registered as a society with the Registrar of Societies on 4 May 1961.

CWS responds to the Bukit Ho Swee fire, being the first organisation to support the community by distributing food and supplies.

Launch of Rose Villa, a shelter operated by the Good Shepherd Sisters for unmarried mothers.

The CWS Workers’ Corp is formed to visit and distribute food to the patients of the Kwong Wai Sui Free Hospital.

The Study Scholarship Fund is set up to grant scholarships to well-performing students facing financial difficulties.

Launch of the Maranatha Centre, a clinic and welfare centre aimed at supporting the residents of the Queenstown Housing Estate.

Launch of the Catholic Welfare Rest Home.

The CWS Social and Welfare Centre in Jalan Kayu is opened to distribute food and supplies to those in need in the Yio Chu Kang/Jalan Kayu/Seletar Base areas.

The CWS Free Library Service is established at Mt. Alvernia Hospital.

Launch of second CWS Social and Welfare Centre, at Tuas Village, Jurong.

Opening of Mobile Clinic to provide medical services in rural areas such as Tuas Village, Jalan Kayu and Changi.

CWS Vocational Training Centre for Girls is launched to provide training for students from families facing financial challenges.

CWS Vocational Training Centre for Practical Electricity for Boys is set up to teach and empower underprivileged boys.

Girls’ Town Home at Chestnut Drive is officially opened to equip underprivileged girls with necessary life-skills.

The Catholic Welfare Transit Home is established to help underprivileged boys secure employment in the Jurong Industrial Estate.

Launch of the Self-Help Projects programme, an experimental programme where applicants propose self-help projects to undertake with support from CWS.

Jurong Town/JCW Workers’ Centre is launched, in collaboration with the Singapore Young Christian Workers’ Movement, and serves as a centre for the promotion of the integral development of young workers in Jurong Town.

CWS is registered as a member of Caritas Internationalis, a confederation of Catholic charities.

Launch of the Feed-the-Family Project, sponsored by donor to support specially-identified families in need.

CWS provides aid to Indochinese refugees, spearheaded by a Church collection initiated by the Archbishop Most Rev. Olcomendy in support of the Archbishop in Saigon. Funds raised help feed the Vietnamese refugees who were at the time housed in St. John’s Island.

In collaboration with SANA (Singapore Anti-Narcotics Association), the SANA Catholic Aftercare Counselling Service is launched, aimed at providing support to ex-drug offenders and their families

Launch of the Student Loan Fund, established to aid those in need of financial support to attend institutions of higher learning.

St. Joseph’s Home, administered by the Canossian Sisters, is set up in response to the needs of an aging society. In 1985, the home would go on to add hospice care for patients with advanced illnesses, becoming one of the pioneering institutions for the service in Singapore.

The Geylang Catholic Centre is established.

In collaboration with the Society of St Vincent de Paul, CWS sets up St. Vincent Home, a community home for ambulant elderly in need of a place to stay.

Launch of the UNHCR Project, an annual agreement signed with the UNHCR for CWS to act as the implementing agency for its programme and other refugee-related work in Singapore.

The Chai Chee Centre/Catholic Crisis Centre is opened, serving as a counselling centre and half-way house for male ex-drug offenders and ex-convicts.

CWS is registered as a charity on 29 June 1985 under the Charities Act of 1982

Gift of Love Home, run by the Missionaries of Charity, Sisters of the late Mother Teresa of Calcutta, is opened to house the elderly without homes. On 19 April 1991, the Home would be gazetted as a Welfare Home under the Destitute Persons Act.

The Good Shepherd Crisis and Rehabilitation Centre is launched, managed by the Good Shepherd Sisters and aimed at providing shelter and support for women in crises.

The Roman Catholic Prison Ministry is formed to coordinate services provided for inmates of Changi Prison under the direction of the RC Prison Chaplain.

The Redhill Project is kicked-off, with volunteers conducting monthly visits to poor and elderly female residents in the community, many of whom were Samsui sisters, providing them with love and care.

The Catholic Aids Response Effort is established, a lay apostolate ministry to counteract the discrimination and stigma against People Living with Aids (PWAs) and raise awareness and compassion.

The Poverello Teen Centre (PTC) is launched, a community project organised by CWS and managed by the Franciscan Missionaries of Mary, aimed at providing support for at-risk youths

The eponymous Ee Peng Liang Family Relief Fund is established, in memory of CWS’ late Chairman and co-founder, aimed at rendering financial assistance to families in need.

The Heartville Halfway House is launched, providing shelter for ex-prisoners, ex-drug users and men in crises.

The Galilee Centre is opened to replace the Jalan Kayu Centre, operated by the Infant Sisters.

The CWS Counselling Centre is established, functioning as an expansion of the service of the Therapeutic Counselling & Family Therapy Unit in CWS HQ.

The Gabrielite Centre for School Counselling and the Marine Parade Family Service Centre are launched. Both are joint community projects that serve as first-stop centres for individuals and families in the community in need of social service assistance

Launch of the Cyber Counselling for Youth programme, an innovative support initiative jointly organised by CWS, the South East CDC and the Brothers of St. Gabriel to provide online counselling to secondary school students. This programme received the New Volunteer Initiative Award (2002) from then Deputy Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong

CWS takes over management of Villa Francis Home for the Aged, formerly managed by the Franciscan Missionaries of the Divine Motherhood.

The Good Life @ South East Centre is established, organised jointly by CWS, South East CDC and Marine Parade CCC, to promote active aging and awareness on preventive health and developmental aspects involved with aging.

CWS takes over management of St. Theresa’s Home, a nursing home established in 1935 by the Little Sisters of the Poor.

The Funded Family Life Society and Morning Star Community Services are launched

CWS takes over management of St. Theresa’s Home, a nursing home established in 1935 by the Little Sisters of the Poor.

The Funded Family Life Society and Morning Star Community Services are launched.

The Catholic Aids Response Effort Shelter is opened to provide shelter for HIV patients who have been displaced from their homes or rejected by their families

CWS sends aid to victims of the 26 December Indian Ocean earthquake tsunami, contributing over $100,000 of anonymous donations through the Archdiocese of Singapore.

CWS participates in the Study and Restructuring of Catholic Charities in Singapore, ultimately deciding to remain autonomous and concentrate on providing direct services to those in need.

CWS approves and adopts its new Constitution and files it with the Registry of Societies. The revised Constitution strengthens CWS’ overall corporate governance and allows it to be more responsive to changes in the social service landscape.

CWS celebrates its 50th anniversary with its 50 Years of Caring campaign, based on the theme of thanksgiving and gratitude.

Launch of the CWS-BT YouthReach Programm in July 2010, an outreach programme developed in partnership with Boys’ Town. The programme aims to support vulnerable youth in the community through counselling, training and life-skills programmes

Launch of the Doulos Project in May 2011, in collaboration between CWS the Sacred Heart Church, to provide free lunch for those in need at the church. The programme would run till December 2014 before being exported to other locations.

Launch of the Dusk-to-Dawn pilot programme at St Joseph’s Home in May 2011, offering night care for elderly residents in the community, including dementia care services.

The Gift of Love Home moves from its old location in the Marymount area to its new premises at 35 Boon Lay Avenue on 8 February 8 2012.

CWS temporarily relocates to St. Theresa’s Home between April 2012 to December 2013 as 55 Waterloo Street undergoes construction and is eventually reopened as the Catholic Centre.

Villa Francis moves to from its original location in Mandai to its new premises at Yishun central on September 14 2013.

CWS officially launches the CWS Hub at its new and refurbished offices at the Catholic Centre, aimed at providing refuge and support for those in need.

St. Joseph’s Home moves to a temporary location in Mandai in September 2014 as redevelopment of its Jurong premises commences.

The CWS Night Mission is initiated on 30 May 2014, with volunteers going on weekly walks to reach out to rough sleepers in the community and provide them with assistance however possible

Villa Francis holds its official opening of its new location on 16 May 2015.

Agape Village officially opens on 21 November 2015, with CWS serving as lead case manager for the other in-house affiliates of Caritas Singapore.

St. Joseph’s Home returns to their newly redeveloped nursing home in February 2017, which features increased bed capacity and first-of-its-kind facilities such as an in-house child and infant care center, intergenerational playground and hydrotherapy pool.

CWS holds its first-ever Walkathon in April 2017 at Labrador Park. The event serves as an outreach effort to increase awareness on CWS and its services, and to nurture partnerships with corporate sponsors and volunteers, with the aim of implementing new initiatives to improve the lives of our beneficiaries

St. Joseph’s Home celebrates its 40th anniversary with the official opening of its newly redeveloped nursing home on 19 March 2018 – the Feast Day of St. Joseph. Honouring the event as Guest-of-Honour is Most Reverend Archbishop William Goh, and Special Guest Dr. Amy Khor, Senior Minister of State for Health.

CWS celebrates its 60th anniversary on 30 June 2019 with a Food and Fun Fair event at St. Theresa’s Home. The event brings together the residents from all of CWS’ three nursing homes and its sheltered home, as well as the beneficiaries from its social and financial welfare programmes, their family members and relatives, as well as the community at large. His Grace Archbishop William Goh celebrates Holy Mass at the Chapel, and the Guest-of-Honour for the event is Madam Halimah Yacob, President on the Republic of Singapore

CWS launches the Emmanuel Second Chance Education (“ESCE”) Programme, a life-changing educational support initiative that comes with no bond, no age limit, and no restrictions on course of study. Successful grant applicants are supported by a social worker and a career mentor to help them through this journey. Central to the programme is the belief that everyone deserves a second chance to build a better future themselves and their loved ones