homelessness

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International members tour St. Vincent de Paul programs in United States
International members tour St. Vincent de Paul programs in United States 600 400 SVDP USA

International members tour St. Vincent de Paul programs in United States

Published in the Catholic Review Apr 4, 2025 

Majid Zaghari, left, vice president for enterprises with St. Vincent De Paul Baltimore, gives a tour of the Good Harvest Community Kitchen facility to leadership from the International Confederation of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul April 3 off Moravia Road. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

Majid Zaghari, vice president for enterprises with St. Vincent De Paul Baltimore, right, gives an April 3 tour of the Good Harvest Community Kitchen to leadership from the International Confederation of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul April 3 off Moravia Road. (Kevin J. Parks/CR Staff)

For the first time in its history, the International Council General Society of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (CGI), met in the United States the week of March 31. Hailing from Europe, Australia, Africa and South America, the group of 12 international chapter presidents were hosted by John Berry, the national president of the United States of America, who took them on a tour from Atlanta to Washington, D.C., to Baltimore April 3.

“I think It is very important to meet in different cities and see what everybody is doing,” Berry said, as the group enjoyed lunch at Beans & Bread in Fells Point, one of St. Vincent de Paul Baltimore’s oldest programs. “I have learned from every place we’ve gone.”

The group was greeted by John Schiavone, president and CEO of St. Vincent de Paul Baltimore, who provided a brief history on the beginnings of Beans & Bread in 1977 by a former Benedictine priest who served free meals in a row house.

“He created a home-like atmosphere,” Schiavone said. “He would greet each person and play the piano.”

By 1986, more than 200 people a day were being served and the program was taken under St. Vincent de Paul’s wings. New programs about health, mental health and recovery were added. The center now also helps clients find housing and keeps in touch with clients to ensure they don’t become homeless again. A career center, where clients can receive help with résumés and applying for jobs, is in the beginning stages.

“It’s a work in progress,” Schiavone said, as he led the tour through the facility, which moved to its current location on Bond Street in 1992 and has gone through several expansions and renovations.

“We are similar in terms of the issues involved,” said Mark Gaetani, the national president of the Australian chapter of St. Vincent de Paul Society. “What I particularly like about it is the follow up.”

“I think this is fantastic,” said Elaine Heyworth, third vice-president general deputy of SSVP and national president of the United Kingdom, who appreciated how all the resources were under one roof.

Juan Manuel Buergo Gómez, president general of the international confederation of the St. Vincent de Society board, of Spain, who spoke through his interpreter Isabel Garzo, executive assistant to the president, also was impressed with the programs at Beans & Bread and at Good Harvest, which the group visited prior to Beans & Bread.

“It is a very professional organization,” Gómez said. “It is working more as a company.”

Gómez, according to Garzo, thinks it would be even better “if the spiritual line was stronger,” suggesting that religious images such as crucifixes or of the founder of the St. Vincent de Paul Society might be added to walls of Baltimore outreach centers.

Gómez found the involvement of students – earlier Schiavone had spoken about a partnership with students and staff from Loyola University Maryland in Baltimore – interesting, noting the importance of good training and formation for both employees and volunteers “to establish a good relationship” to serve others better.

After lunch, the group had a tour of the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Baltimore and met with Archbishop William E. Lori. They visited Sarah’s Hope Family Shelter in Baltimore and then had dinner at the Rusty Scupper before returning to Bethesda.

Founded in Paris in 1833, the society is the largest Catholic organization in the world, with 800,000 members in more than 150 countries with 1.5 million volunteers. On the group’s final day, they celebrated the grand opening of the St. Vincent de Paul USA Washington, D.C., office with a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

“I am very proud of what we do,” Berry said.

Cardinal Christophe Pierre, papal nuncio to the United States, was set to bless the Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA’s new Washington office on April 4.

The office will be led by Ingrid Delgado, the society’s first national director of Public Policy and Advocacy and former associate director of Government Relations at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The society hopes that establishing a permanent presence in Washington will strengthen its efforts to highlight key issues related to homelessness and advocate for those affected by poverty to policymakers.

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Papal nuncio blesses new St. Vincent de Paul Society advocacy office on Capitol Hill
Papal nuncio blesses new St. Vincent de Paul Society advocacy office on Capitol Hill 1600 1065 SVDP USA

Papal nuncio blesses new St. Vincent de Paul Society advocacy office on Capitol Hill

Published in Catholic News Agency Apr 5, 2025 

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA (SVdP) celebrated the opening of its brand-new advocacy office on Capitol Hill on Friday afternoon.

Cardinal Christophe Pierre, apostolic nuncio to the United States, attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony and blessed the new office, calling on the Holy Spirit to “ignite the talents and gifts of everyone present” for the purpose of serving the poor.

“Compassionate God, may your peace always stay in this office, making it a place where we can each grow in friendship with you, with one another, and with all guests who gather with us in this place. Give us grateful hearts so that we will always be mindful of generosity and goodness to us,” the nuncio said during the blessing.

“May our new office always be a source of healing and hope to those who need your mercy and kindness,” he continued. “Give us the grace to live the mission and values of the society so that we will be worthy to bear the name of our patron St. Vincent de Paul. This we ask in the name of your son, Jesus Christ.”

The organization announced earlier this year during the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering that it would open a second national office, which is located on Maryland Avenue, as a part of its efforts to “raise the profile of key issues related to homelessness” to politicians on Capitol Hill.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA served over 5 million people across the country last year, distributing more than $1.4 billion in aid, including $60 million in emergency financial assistance to prevent evictions and ensure people are able to remain housed.

Ingrid Delgado will head the D.C. office as SVdP USA’s new director of public policy and advocacy. Prior to taking on her new position this month, Delgado served for four years as associate director of government relations for the U.S Conference of Catholic Bishops.

“In January during the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering [SVdP USA President John Berry] announced the opening of this office, [and] I was so excited,” Delgado told CNA. “Little did I know that I would soon be here in this position.”

“For the last 12 years, I’ve been doing public policy for the Catholic bishops, which has been just really an honor and a privilege, to do authentically nonpartisan policy for our faith,” she continued. “But to now do it for this organization that is in direct service and relationship with our most vulnerable brothers and sisters is just, for me personally, a really exciting opportunity.”

Delgado said she believes now is “a really crucial time” to bring the stories of poor and vulnerable communities that SVdP USA serves before members of Congress, especially as conversations surrounding budget cuts to social services like SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) and Medicaid continue.

“I am hoping to bring the stories of people that Vincentians serve and the experiences of the Vincentians of what that means for our communities if those critical services are cut,” Delgado said.

“My hope is that we will build a reputation with all of our elected officials as just a resource for our elected officials so that when they just need to know information about their constituencies, about people who are struggling and who are in need in their districts, that they will come to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul as a trusted resource and partner,” she said.

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Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA opens advocacy office in Washington D.C.
Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA opens advocacy office in Washington D.C. 1600 1065 SVDP USA

Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA opens advocacy office in Washington D.C.

On Friday, April 4, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA (SVdP) officially opened its new office in Washington D.C. as it seeks to ramp up efforts to advocate for those on the margins. As one of the largest lay Catholic organizations in the nation, SVdP hopes having a permanent presence in Washington D.C. will help its efforts to raise the profile of key issues related to poverty, while advocating to policymakers on behalf of those who experience its daily effects.

The office will be led by Ingrid Delgado, SVdP’s first National Director of Public Policy and Advocacy and formerly the Associate Director of Government Relations at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

The Grand Opening Ceremonies began with Mass celebrated by Cardinal Wilton Gregory at the Vincentian Chapel at the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception.

Then the ribbon cutting ceremony was held at the new office space at 110 Maryland Avenue, NE Suite 506, Washington DC 20002, which is located just steps away from the United States Supreme Court. National President John Berry provided some opening remarks, and introduced special guests to the event, before the ribbon cutting to mark the opening of the office.

In attendance was International SSVP President Papal Nuncio, Archbishop Andrew Bellissario, National CEO Michael Acaldo, new National Director of Public Policy and Advocacy Ingrid Delgado, the SVdP USA Board of Directors, and the SSVP-CGI International Board of Directors.

Last year, SVdP USA served more than 5 million people across the U.S. and provided more than $1.7 billion in aid, including $60 million in emergency financial assistance to prevent evictions and keep people housed. Often known for the thrift stores in cities and towns around the country, SVdP offers programs that are tailored to the specific needs of the communities it serves. Learn more about joining in our work at svdpusa.org.

 

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Op-Ed: Why the next homelessness crisis is so perilous — and how we must respond
Op-Ed: Why the next homelessness crisis is so perilous — and how we must respond 1080 1080 SVDP USA

Op-Ed Published in the Dayton Daily News 3/26/2025. Submitted by John Berry, National President of Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA

After a decades-long decline in poverty among elderly populations, there has been a sharp uptick in recent years. This dangerous trend particularly affects older women. According to a recent government report, the number of older women classified as impoverished rose to 15% in 2023 from 11.7%. Today, one in six American women 65 years old or older live in poverty. Among Black, Latina, and Indigenous populations, the poverty rate is closer to one in five.

Many who work with homeless populations report early signs of a “gray wave”, as more older Americans, often living on a fixed income, become homeless due to increasing rents and costs of living.

The story of a Dayton, Ohio, woman named Patricia is illustrative. For most of her life, Patricia’s living situation had been the picture of stability: She lived for 51 years in the same home, before moving to an apartment across town, where she spent another decade. But in 2021, a property management company controlling Patricia’s apartment started hiking her rent and then refused to work with a rental assistance program. Before long, she was forced out.

As the baby boomer generation ages, the number of elderly homeless is expected to triple by decade’s end. To understand why this trend is so dangerous, consider the situation of older women like Patricia. It can be difficult for anyone to get back on their feet once they’ve become unhoused. The fees and fines, the black marks on your record, the acute difficulties of finding or holding a job without a place to live—these troubles afflict even those who are relatively young and healthy. Elderly people face greater physical limitations and have fewer technology skills for finding help.

That’s why homelessness prevention is so important. At the Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA, we care for those who live on the brink of homelessness, knowing that “an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” But you don’t need any special expertise to recognize how terribly vulnerable elderly populations are—or how quickly a temporary stint of homelessness can become a terminal condition for people in declining health.

Consider the stories of two more women who, like Patricia, came to the Dayton SVdP for help when their housing precarity reached a crisis point.

For a woman named Brenda, disaster struck when she woke up one morning and couldn’t feel her right leg. It took doctors months before they ordered an MRI that showed she had scoliosis, arthritis, and a compressed spine. In the meantime, Brenda ran out of PTO, sick leave, and FMLA benefits. She lost her job, could no longer pay her rent, and received an eviction notice.

In Evelyn’s case, she already couldn’t work because of advanced emphysema. To make the most of her supplemental security income, she shared an apartment with roommates. But when her roommates stopped paying their share of the rent, she was evicted alongside them. She’s on oxygen, and had to live out of her car.

For older women living in poverty, homelessness prevention doesn’t mean the same thing as it does for those whose precarity stems from unemployment, substance use, or mental health issues. Job training, counseling, or rehabilitation isn’t usually what they need.

What women like Patricia, Brenda, and Evelyn need is affordable housing — something in increasingly short supply around the country. With mounting health concerns and diminishing employment prospects on the horizon in their sunset years, older women in poverty acutely need the stability and dignity of a place to call their own.

They also need support tailored to their particular needs: assistance in finding and applying for programs and resources, greater access to health workers, in addition to facilities and services accommodating of people with limited mobility.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul helped these women stabilize their situation and seek out long-term housing, and I’m proud of that. But the impending “gray wave” of homelessness is a problem that demands collective action — from local non-profits and affordable housing initiatives to state and federal programs.

I think all of us can agree that we want a world in which older women aren’t forced out onto the street because of limited income or poor health. But as the costs of housing, food, and health care continue to rise, that shared goal is going to require significant, concerted effort. Let’s begin now.

 

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SVdP National President John Berry Statement on US Department of Agriculture Cuts
SVdP National President John Berry Statement on US Department of Agriculture Cuts 1920 1920 SVDP USA

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) sudden decision to eliminate $1.5 billion in food purchase programs for schools and food banks is a troubling step backward for our country. This move directly harms families and individuals, especially at a time when food prices remain high and food insecurity is rising.

While we recognize the Administration’s authority to address wasteful government spending, these programs were anything but wasteful. A review may be reasonable, but total elimination is devastating. These initiatives put food on dining tables, ensured low-income children were fed, and kept food pantry shelves stocked for those in need — across both red and blue states, alike.

The elimination of the Emergency Food Assistance Program, the Local Food Purchase Assistance Cooperative Agreement Program, and the Local Food for Schools Cooperative Agreement Program will create a massive gap that nonprofit organizations on the front lines of the nation’s food insecurity crisis cannot possibly fill.

Some may argue that these programs — initially launched in response to the COVID-19 pandemic — are no longer necessary. However, food insecurity has not recovered from the economic shocks of 2020 – 21 and the ongoing impacts of inflation on working American families. In fact, the problem continues to worsen, leaving more people struggling to access the food they need.

The USDA’s own data paints a stark picture of the nation’s food insecurity crisis. From 2020 to 2024, the all-food Consumer Price Index rose by 23.6% — a reality all too familiar to families struggling to put food on the table. In 2023, more than 18 million households were classified as food insecure, according to the latest USDA Household Food Security Report. This represented 13.5% of U.S. households, a sharp increase from 12.8% in 2022 and 10.2% in 2021.

At the Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA (SVdP), we have deep expertise in addressing food insecurity and the way it can lead to homelessness. Ranked by Forbes magazine as the 59th largest nonprofit in the U.S. as ranked by Forbes Magazine, we provided $1.7 billion in services last year to more than five million people.

As a leader in the fight to prevent homelessness and to care for our most vulnerable populations, we urge the USDA to convene a gathering of organizations to provide our perspective and to seek solutions that work to keep people fed. We come with open minds, compassionate hearts and a commitment to collaboration to seek solutions, and we trust the USDA will act in similar good faith to alleviate the suffering of those living on the margins.

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Devastating Wildfires Heighten Importance of Homelessness Prevention in California
Devastating Wildfires Heighten Importance of Homelessness Prevention in California 2048 1536 SVDP USA
by David Garcia, Executive Director, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul Los Angeles

The wildfires that devastated Los Angeles and surrounding communities have brought the threat of homelessness ever closer to countless doorsteps.

I’m not just talking about the tens of thousands who were displaced by the fires, many of whom face the awful challenge of finding a place to live and rebuilding their lives after their home was destroyed. All sorts of establishments were also destroyed — offices and shops, restaurants and schools, parks and recreation centers. According to Morgan Stanley, an estimated 20,000-40,000 jobs were lost from the fires — another devastating and long-term impact. For many Californians, this job loss and profound disruption pushes them closer to the brink of homelessness.

Make no mistake: Even before the fires, California residents have been struggling. The average median rent in California is already $2,763 — 38% higher than the national average, according to Zillow — and that was before the housing supply in Los Angeles took a catastrophic hit. Many Californians need to find a new job, a new home, or both – when they were already struggling to keep up with rent and feed their families. That situation puts far too many California families far too close to the edge of homelessness.

Responding to this situation effectively means responding to it proactively. While many homelessness services organizations focus on what happens after someone becomes homeless, homelessness prevention is at once far more effective and humane. It involves identifying and supporting people who are on the verge of losing their homes – assessing their underlying threats to homelessness and taking preventative measures that will keep them housed.

This is our approach at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. We administer Home Visits to those seeking assistance to meet them where they are and learn the best ways, tailored to their specific situation, to help keep them in stable housing and off the streets.

Since the fires broke out, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Conferences in the neighborhoods that were affected by the fires have been tirelessly active in addressing the critical needs of their communities. Conferences and the Los Angeles Council have hosted fire relief distributions. Items given out include shoes, clothing, food, water, towels, pet supplies, and baby essentials. In addition, gift cards were distributed, and immediate financial assistance was offered. We continue to work with the fire victims once they move into new housing by providing move-in assistance and home furnishings through St. Vincent de Paul’s National Disaster Services Corp’s House in a Box program.

According to a recent study conducted by Notre Dame’s Lab for Economic Opportunities (LEO), persons who received an average of $2,000 in emergency financial assistance were 81% less likely to become homeless within six months of enrollment and 73% less likely within 12 months.

The state of California has spent $24 billion on homelessness in the past five years. Granting that much of that money is well spent, consider how acute the crisis remains. How much farther could that spending go if we invested some of it in preventing homelessness rather than ameliorating its worst effects? As we look to help those who lost their livelihoods in the fires, it’s time to find out just how effective prevention can be. I am confident it will alleviate a much higher long-term housing crisis in the future.

Homelessness isn’t going away in California. The aftermath of the wildfires in Los Angeles is a stark reminder of that. There is a pressing need to step in and intervene now, before the demand for affordable housing becomes too great and more families are forced out of their homes. By turning our attention to prevention, we can work together to stop the future scourge of homelessness in Los Angeles.

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Loving Our Homeless Men: We Have Succeeded and Failed
Loving Our Homeless Men: We Have Succeeded and Failed 2560 1707 SVDP USA
by Michael Vanderburgh, Executive Director, Dayton District Council

Dayton, Ohio is nationally known for a lot of things: invention, innovation, military heft, a massive water supply — and the largest homeless shelters anyone has ever seen.

For the past 40 years, we have succeeded in providing shelter, food, and clothing. But we have also failed. We have failed to solve homelessness.

Sure, I can tell you success stories of individuals who have triumphed over adversity out of homelessness. Some of them work with me at SVdP Dayton. But the City of Dayton and Montgomery County are beset with stories of suffering met by a ballooning human services industrial complex, growing since the Great Society, launched in 1964 by President Lyndon Johnson. No program, and no amount of money spent, addresses the root cause of chronic homelessness: ruptured relationships in a culture that does not encourage us to love one another.

In 1984 there was an evident need in Dayton for emergency shelter. SVdP sometimes allowed men to stay the night in our downtown thrift store during extreme weather. Led by Tony Staub and Jim Butler, we came up with the idea of a “hotel” for homeless men. The City of Dayton formed a committee, and in 1985 a former fire station at 212 W. Fifth Street was designated. Many Dayton residents were against the project, but as then-City Commissioner Pat Roach said, “If we don’t have [St. Vincent de Paul] doing this, we’ll end up having to do it ourselves.”

On December 15, 1985, SVdP Dayton began its focused ministry of emergency shelter for men, which was later expanded to include women and children.

That first year, we sheltered an average of 60 people per night at a cost of $300,000 for the year. Only 1% of that $300,000 came from the government — 99% was from private funding. Within a few years, shelter was already operating at or near capacity.

In July 2005, SVdP Dayton closed the Fifth Street shelter and opened the Midtown Apple Street shelter out of a former furniture warehouse location. In December 2009, pressure from Midtown neighbors led SVdP Dayton to open the Gettysburg Shelter for Men in the long-shuttered City of Dayton prison (euphemistically known as The Workhouse). It sits on Prison Road, surrounded by prisons, near Dayton’s Waste Management Landfill and wastewater treatment plant — not a place any person can reasonably expect to heal, recover, or feel valued as a human being.

Recently, SVdP Dayton announced that we will cease operating the Gettysburg Shelter on June 30, 2025, a decision driven by the reality that we can no longer afford it. But the hard truth is that our homeless men deserve a better environment of care.

In 40 years, our sheltered homeless population has increased nearly 1,000%, and our costs to serve them have increased over 2,200%, even though the overall population of Montgomery County has decreased over that time.

The good news is that for the past 15 years we have always had “room at the inn” for our homeless brothers and sisters; we have managed to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter everyone from frigid wind and searing heat. The bad news is that all these years we have been alleviating symptoms of an ever-growing problem without addressing its primary causes: separation, division, resentment, bitterness, unforgiveness, selfishness.

Yes, the choices that you and I make in pursuit of our own pleasure and individual desires are the same choices others struggle to manage to the point of homelessness.

What can you and I do? We need to love one another at some basic level. A level that shows dignity for each other, respect for humanity as a social enterprise, and honor for the social fabric that makes us human — not objects of each other’s desires. Listen to a chronically homeless person, and you will hear a story of unwillingness or inability to love relatives and friends through suffering, theirs and ours.

Show up. Love your family members. Accompany them through their sufferings, and yours. Reconcile. Kindly acknowledge a stranger. And join with nearly 90,000 Americans in more than 4,000 communities who are part of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul to love your homeless neighbors. Love one another.

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