Going to Those in Need Since 1871. Faith in Action Winter 2015 Feeding the Community SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 1
Spirit We are the Simple Instruments of God. It is urgently necessary to find new forms and new ways to ensure that God s grace may touch the heart of every man and of every woman and lead them to Him. We are all simple but important instruments of His; we have not received the gift of faith to keep it hidden but rather to spread it so that it can illuminate a great many of our brethren on their journey. Pope Francis No act of charity is foreign to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, and yet, sometimes, we can lose sight of the fact that the mission of the Society is not only to help the poor, but to remember the WHY in what we do. We grow in our own spirituality through person to person service, in the hope that we see the face of Christ in those we serve, and they in us. We can be as guilty as anyone if, from time to time, we become poor in spirit and need rejuvenating and reinvigorated to this dual purpose. Worn down by the cycle of helping those in need, and the dog days of summer, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Conference at St. Martha Church in Kingwood took a day to grow in spirituality and reenergize. That Conference was joined by their fellow Vincentians at St. Philip the Apostle and St. Martin de Porres in a Vincentian Day of Reflection. Twenty six Vincentians celebrated Mass and followed it with spiritual reflections, presentations and discussion about the lives of our patron St. Vincent and founder Blessed Frederic Ozanam. With their spirits renewed, these three Conferences returned to serving the poor, and were again open to seeing the face of Christ in them. Visit us online at svdphouston.org SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 2
Donate Donate to a Big Blue Bin! The holidays can be a difficult time of year for our friends in need, but thanks to generous and loving members of our community, our friends rested a little easier. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul was blessed with many collections during the holiday season. CHI St. Luke s Health collected 1,196 pounds of non-perishable food items ultimately providing enough for 996 meals! The food benefited our Vincentian Services Center, an area characterized by a high level of poverty and food insecurity. Their generosity did not end there. St. Luke s employees also donated gift cards to supplement this collection. There is a special dignity to giving someone the opportunity to shop for themselves, and these benevolent members of our community provided just that in spades. Holiday Cheer As temperatures dropped and coats flew off the shelves of our two resale shops, God s Providence shined down on the Society in the form of Christ the Redeemer Catholic Church. Wrap Yourself in Love was Christ the Redeemer s parish wide coat drive. More than 450 coats were donated to the Society through this one collection. The coats were moved to our stores and given to the poor and the homeless to keep them warm as fall turned to winter. We cannot thank Christ the Redeemer enough for all that they did. Their efforts ensured that we could carry out our works of mercy and live by the tenants we were founded on in Matthew 25:36. What are you passionate about? Your passion could enhance the Society in unexpected ways and bring unbridled joy to countless people in the Galveston-Houston area. SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 3
Volunteer When asked What s your Favorite part about volunteering with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul? It was great getting to know that there are groups that help around the community. Houston Baptist University student Noticing how important and great it is to help others in need. Our Lady of Mount Carmel Youth Group That I help people in need. YES Prep Northside student We should assist the poor in every way and do it both by ourselves and by enlisting the help of others. St. Vincent de Paul Are you looking for an organization that you can be proud to volunteer with? We are looking for volunteers that can help in our resale shops, pantry and donation and distribution ministry. Individuals, corporate and youth groups are all welcome! For more information contact volunteer@svdphouston.org SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 4
Spotlight Volunteer Meet Our Volunteers! Rachel Rachel loves volunteering at the Resale Shop and has been helping for over eleven years. She says the staff and the customers are wonderful. I am proud to be a part of the good work and services that SVdP provides. Thank you Ms. Rachel for your help! Kathy After working as a registered nurse for 40 years, retirement to the house just wasn t fulfilling enough. Working at SVdP resale shop on the Gulf Freeway brings me such joy. The team here is caring and concerned about me as a person. The work is demanding enough to be challenging and it allows my creative side to bloom, says Kathy. We would love to have more volunteers on our team! SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 5
Impact Did you know? Last year we filled 1,232 clothing vouchers representing 6,160 changes of clothing and provided 234 beds all free of charge! Voucher Ministry The dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Catholic Social Teaching There is a certain dignity that comes with being able to sit at a table and do homework. For many of the children we see on our home visits, this dignity does not, and has never, existed. This is where our Voucher Ministry steps in to create that dignity. Our Voucher Ministry brings so many things to so many families. Our ministry can provide everything from a bed to sleep on, a table in which to share a meal and even a desk to bring a sense of pride to one s studies. The Voucher Ministry is driven entirely by the donations of the community, and in the last year we had more than 2000 donations. 60% of our donations are dropped at one of our two resale shops. Clothing can then be given to a family to fill a clothes closet and household items can help furnish a home. Our trucks drove 35,000 miles in support of our ministry programs. We picked up furniture donations, corporate collections and delivered furniture! Thanks to those donations, we were able to help 581 people through our Voucher Ministry and bring an unspoken dignity to even the humblest of work. We will pick up large donations from you! Call us 713-862-2605 SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 6
Stories More than just a Home Visit A young mother contacted the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in 2010 asking for help to run a water line to a small travel trailer she, her husband, and 9 month old baby lived in. This was a very basic trailer with no running water. She was 19 at the time, a U.S. citizen and her husband was 25, a Mexican citizen. Plans were laid to build their life together in the United States. They began constructing their own home on land left to them by her late father, purchasing the building materials piece by piece on their modest budget. The Society came to their aid, providing the family with furniture and building materials on separate occasions. As time passed, their family grew, and so did their plans. The father continued the arduous process of applying for a green card. This was a very long, drawn out, expensive process, but they saved enough money to do it and never gave up. When the paperwork portion of the father s visa was completed, the family was told they would have to travel to Mexico to finish the immigration process. At that time, the mother and the children did not have passports and she was 7 months pregnant with their fourth child. The Society aided them again, feeling this was a chance to make a meaningful difference, and paid for the passports. The family left for his parents home in Central Mexico. The children were left with their grandmother and the parents took a bus back to Juarez to complete the immigration process, which lasted six months. The father now has his green card and has applied for several better jobs than his previous position at a saw mill. The mother has been accepted to nursing school at the local community college. This is the story of a family who worked hard and truly desired to make a better life for themselves and how privileged we felt to be a part of their journey. Let s be courageous! Let s go wherever God may call us. He will be our provider, let s not fear anything. St. Vincent de Paul SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 7
2403 Holcombe Boulevard Houston, TX 77021 Learn: The key to solving a problem? Understanding it. Connect: It takes all of us together to make a difference. Change happens when people come together helping others to help themselves, and by promoting programs that help break the cycle of poverty. Join Us: January 29th 2015 Poverty Summit at University of St. Thomas Visit svdphouston.org to download a copy of the Poverty Awareness calendar in English & Spanish, get additional links to join the Summit and other ways to make a difference. SVDP_WInter_NwsLtr_011315.indd 8