Youth

05-13-2021 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders

05-13-2021 A Letter From Our Servant Leaders 275 287 SVDP USA

Why should I care?

We all ask this at some point when we learn something new, and especially when it challenges our assumptions and what we think we believe. We want to stay in our comfort zone. We believe that we act as we always have, and may not realize that our views and knowledge change even when we don’t think about it. Little by little, it all then changes how we behave.

It feels that recently, we have all been asked to think more, and differently, about matters such as identity and race, health and safety, politics and citizenship, and rights and responsibilities. Even though we have been more isolated during a pandemic, media and new voices have brought us, or even forced us, together to see and perhaps to understand.

Why as Vincentians should we care about all this?

I suggest two reasons, both rooted in our mission. First, the way we accomplish our mission is through our relationships with, and service to people in need. Every time we hear of a new call for action, or a voice longing even simply to be heard, we should ask how this may be a part of our work with our neighbors. They don’t look the same, or come from the same cultural or personal backgrounds, even if they now live in the same neighborhood. What may be the impacts of personal identity, incarceration, citizenship, mental health, and so many other factors we hear in the news? If we learn more, won’t we be better able to communicate, have more empathy, and ultimately better serve others? We deepen our Vincentian relationships, and thus our ability to make real contributions to the lives of our neighbors, if we take the opportunities before us to understand.

Second, our Vincentian charism and mission call us to increase our own holiness. Sainthood is our goal. (To be clear, though, it isn’t a campaign!) In order to improve the lives of others, we need to better ourselves — in our knowledge, education, and then ultimately attitudes and personal actions. This set of improvements is not a one-time activity; it is lifelong learning. It leads to personal, spiritual evolution in our service to God and to others.

Today we often see any subject through one of two polarized lenses, especially in media and social media. I suggest we not choose just one, but try to absorb the topical points from multiple sources. As a college Journalism major, I was trained to read 6 – 7 newspapers (remember them?) daily, and was constantly surprised how the same story appeared so differently according to which paper reported on it. The media have changed today but the lenses remain the same. Yes, we could choose one that fits our current beliefs and remain comfortable. Or, we can seek out multiple, often contrasting views, and likely find the truth somewhere in the middle.

All those views out there may clash with each other, and with our existing view of the world in which we live. However, there is something stimulating about our ability to keep growing in our mindfulness and spirituality at any age. We can choose to hunker down in our mental caves, avoiding new discomforts. As Vincentians, however, we choose to listen and then discern, because we do indeed care.

Yours in Christ,
Dave Barringer
CEO

04-29-2021 News Roundup

04-29-2021 News Roundup 1200 1200 SVDP USA

Through the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Vincentians across the United States and around the world are finding spiritual growth by providing person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering. Read some of their stories here:

INTERNATIONAL

 AUSTRALIA: Vinnies 2021 CEO Sleepout will bring awareness to homelessness
AUSTRALIA: St. Stanislaus College students provide items of warmth to Vinnies’ appeal

NATIONAL

ATLANTA, GA: Social workers in Gwinnett libraries help residents with varied needs
BEND, OR: New village in Bend aims to provide shelter, aid to homeless people
BOISE, ID: St. Vincent de Paul hosts ‘Open House Days’
MEDFORD, OR: St. Vincent raises rent relief dollars
SEATTLE, WA: Specialized services help Latino immigrants and their young children
SOUTH BEND, IN: Jack’s Donuts partners with Sweet Dreams Ministry

Help us share the good news of the good work being done in your local Conference or Council! Email us at info@svdpusa.org with the subject line Good News.

04-22-2021 News Roundup

04-22-2021 News Roundup 1200 1200 SVDP USA

Through the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Vincentians across the United States and around the world are finding spiritual growth by providing person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering. Read some of their stories here:

INTERNATIONAL

NATIONAL

Help us share the good news of the good work being done in your local Conference or Council! Email us at info@svdpusa.org with the subject line Good News.

CARS donation

Donate Your Vehicle to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Donate Your Vehicle to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul 2560 1707 SVDP USA

Do you have a vehicle you no longer need that’s taking up space in your garage or driveway? Consider donating it to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul!

Your vehicle donation helps fund local programs that will help the Society of St. Vincent de Paul serve local neighbors in need. These programs can include housing and rent assistance, utilities, food, disaster relief, job training, and more. No work of charity is foreign to the Society — Vincentian volunteers provide help and hope, faith and friendship in myriad ways all across the country, including in your neighborhood.

“The National Vehicle Donation Program is a fundraising opportunity for Conferences and Councils,” says Nathan Martin, National Director of Fundraising Programs. “The funds from these donated vehicles allow local Conferences and Councils the ability to offer programs and emergency assistance for their neighbors in need. The National Council partners with a third-party vendor, Charitable Adult Rides and Services (CARS), who handles each donation from beginning to end. From this partnership, the National Vehicle Donation Program accepted 2,440 vehicles last year, netting almost $1.2 million for local Conferences and Councils.”

What Can I Donate?

All vehicles are considered, even if they’re no longer running! We accept most cars, trucks, trailers, boats, RVs, motorcycles, campers, off-road vehicles, heavy equipment, and other motorized vehicles. We’ll even help tow away your unused vehicles — talk about a win-win!

Learn More

To learn more about donating to our CARS program, contact Nathan Martin, National Director of Fundraising Programs, at (314) 576-3993 x 218, or visit svdpusa.careasy.org/HOME.html

04-15-2021 News Roundup

04-15-2021 News Roundup 1200 1200 SVDP USA

Through the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Vincentians across the United States and around the world are finding spiritual growth by providing person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering. Read some of their stories here:

INTERNATIONAL

 NATIONAL

Help us share the good news of the good work being done in your local Conference or Council! Email us at info@svdpusa.org with the subject line Good News.

03-11-2021 Letter From Our Servant Leaders

03-11-2021 Letter From Our Servant Leaders 275 287 SVDP USA

After five years of driving through my neighborhood, I thought I knew it pretty well. But when my wife worked briefly for the U.S. Census, she would point out small shops I had never realized were nearby. She could show me the home with an insane number of people living in it, and which were rentals or owned residences. The neighborhood took on a completely different perspective because she had walked the streets instead of driving while focused on traffic lights, bikes, and pedestrians.

This, my friends, is why the Society conducts Home Visits.

During the pandemic period, many Conferences adjusted to not visiting homes with counter-top services and phone interviews. Most Vincentians will quickly tell you that they miss the stronger relationship of a true visit in someone’s home or even visiting with them in a nearby public place. You see different things, and people often share a bit more not only about their specific problem, but also about their family and their life. There is understanding and empathy, not just a transaction.

It is also difficult to understand poverty until you at least see it, if not experience it yourself. In many ”rich” neighborhoods, we drive by and see the opulent lawns and large homes, assuming easily that everyone in that neighborhood must be wealthy. If you spent real time there, however, you would see that so many neighbors bought much more house than they could afford. The homes are often empty of furniture and the owners have trouble paying their bills. They tried to buy status through their house or their fancy car. The neighborhood’s true millionaires often have the used car and a modest home, but also money in the bank and a lot less stress.

Likewise, people in poverty live in or around these homes. They may have service jobs for the wealthy, or they operate the small businesses sprinkled around the opulent neighborhoods. They are often the invisible underclass that keeps our economy going, the working but underemployed families that we encounter in our Vincentian service.

During the past year we changed our service delivery as needed to be safe and legal. It was not usually our choice, but we did this because of our love for those we serve. We did not want to deny them whatever we could bring to demonstrate our, and God’s, love in these tough times.

We have all heard about not understanding someone until you walk a mile in their shoes. As Vincentians, we know that we don’t understand someone until we at least walk through their neighborhood. As Springtime comes, and pandemic restrictions slowly lift, let’s take that walk. Let’s get to know our neighborhoods, and our neighbors, once again as we venture together out of the darkness.

Yours in Christ,
Dave Barringer
CEO

02-04-21 News Roundup

02-04-21 News Roundup 1200 1200 SVDP USA

Through the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Vincentians across the United States and around the world are finding spiritual growth by providing person-to-person service to those who are needy and suffering. Read some of their stories here:

INTERNATIONAL
NATIONAL

Help us share the good news of the good work being done in your local Conference or Council! Email us at info@svdpusa.org with the subject line Good News.

New Youth Conference: Queen of Angels Youth in Chicago

New Youth Conference: Queen of Angels Youth in Chicago 1200 900 SVDP USA

Queen of Angels SVDP Youth Group and some 8th grade confirmandi helped with the holiday food distribution. They set up  tables, sorted groceries into departments including 20 cases of fresh produce and personal items like toilet paper and diapers.   As our client families arrived youth assisted in helping to select and carry.

Setting up  grocery store style allows those we serve the dignity of selecting items they want and need rather than receiving a random assortment which may not agree with their cultural preferences. Afterwards the youth helped to clean up and discard empty boxes.

The youth really made the connection of serving those in need while allowing for dignity of the person being served. Over 71  families were served.

Mary Kate Truss Shares A Special Blessing

Mary Kate Truss Shares A Special Blessing 1200 929 SVDP USA

Being blessed with the amazing opportunity to travel to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil for World Youth Day was an experience I will never forget. The memories and friendships made in Brazil are ones I will cherish for the rest of my life.  Having just graduated from high school a mere 4 weeks before leaving for World Youth Day, I was excited to travel and begin my life as an adult. I was preparing to venture out in the world, after twelve years of Catholic education, and attend my first public school at the University of North Florida.  World Youth Day provided me an opportunity to witness how other cultures celebrate the Catholic faith, which was the spiritual boost I  would need to continue on my faith journey.

Traveling out of the country, to what seemed like a whole new world to me, was a little intimidating at first. However, once I was in the midst of hundreds of Vincentians that first week in Belo Horziante at the St. Vincent de Paul gathering, all my worries melted away and were replaced with a joy and fire for my faith that I had not experienced before.
I met all these wonderful people, not only from different parts of the United States, but also from Scotland, Ireland, and parts of Brazil. The several different cultures were revealed to one another in the trading of wrist bands.  Each country had a wrist band that we would trade, as we shared a piece of who we were with our fellow brothers/sisters in Christ.  I could not wait to travel to Rio to meet even more people and learn about more different cultures.

Once we arrived in Rio de Janerio, the reality hit me – I was about to see Pope Francis in person!  After several activities preparing our hearts and minds for the actual World Youth Day, the festivities began.  Several catechesis were held each day that opened little doors in my heart, inviting the Holy Spirit in and preparing me for the Holy Father.  Hearing several Cardinals speak was very eye-opening. Cardinal Dolan spoke one of the days and truly opened my eyes to the purpose of World Youth Day.  It is about allowing Christ to work through us and be His hands and feet. Being an 18 year old girl in our society waiting for “Mr. Right” can be a little discouraging. The catechesis was about how we must prepare ourselves first and completely fall in love with our faith before we can let somebody else into our hearts. That statement really gave me a peace and understanding that everything will work out in God’s time. I must prepare myself and trust that God has a plan.

Getting the opportunity to be included in the 5% of 3 million pilgrims to see the spectacular Christ the Redeemer statue was such a blessing. I fell speechless when I saw Christ peeking through the fog, standing over Rio, with His arms open wide.  It made me even more excited and on fire for what was in store in the coming days. As the day arrived when Pope Francis was coming, I could not describe the joy I felt in my heart! He drove by in his humble jeep, waving to all of his children. What struck me most was how he acclaimed he was here for us.  He came to see us! I just broke down in tears. The humility of Pope Francis was pure beauty.

We had the opportunity to see him again in a much more personal setting when we awaited him outside of Rio’s cathedral, where he was saying Mass. I ended up being just five feet from him! I could not help but just watch him as he drove by, humbly waving to all of us; with a joy radiating from him that was definitely a joy coming from Christ.

After a lengthy, yet beautiful five mile pilgrimage through the city and onto Copacabana Beach, we were blessed with the opportunity of Adoration with Pope Francis. It was in the moment of Matt Maher singing “Lord I Need You” that I really felt the presence of the Holy Spirit. It struck me how much I really do need Christ in every single aspect of my life. I could feel and knew this amazing fire for the Catholic faith would stay with me. We all need Christ, every single one of us. The trip concluded with a Mass with Pope Francis – again another event that I will treasure in my heart.

I realize how blessed I have been with the Catholic faith being passed down to me through my ancestors. I am even more blessed that I had this opportunity to deepen and enhance my faith with this trip to World Youth Day.  I cannot wait to spread this fire in my heart onto the generations to come. God Bless.

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