SVdP - What we do ...
The St. Gerard St. Vincent DePaul Society (SVdP ) Conference was formed in 1958 and assists the needy in the St. Gerard Parish area. The Conference is a member of the National Council of the United States of the Society of St. Vincent DePaul, Inc. The Conferences’ goals and objectives are those of the National SVdP Council: The vocation of the Conference members is to follow Christ through service to those in need and so bear witness to His compassionate and liberating love. All members are volunteers who donate their time, and the use of their vehicles and fuel, to the work of the conference. Members show their commitment through person to person contact. No work of charity is foreign to the Conference. The Conference’s work includes any form of help that alleviates suffering or deprivation and promotes human dignity and personal integrity in all their dimensions. The Conference serves those in need regardless of creed, ethnic or social background, health, gender or political opinions. The Conference, composed of 26 active members meets weekly on Wednesdays to review the requests received on our phone voice mail. All requests are answered, with a face to face meeting before assistance is provided. The Conference then delivers groceries to the homes of the needy. Our weekly work volume is delivering groceries to the homes of 20-30 families. To help as many different families as possible, the Conference limits each family to one grocery delivery per month. As funding allows, we also provide assistance with rent to avoid foreclosure, payment of utility bills to avoid shut offs and clothing and furniture. We provide food baskets at Thanksgiving and Christmas, and children’s gifts at Christmas.
Conference funding comes mainly from St. Gerard Parishioners. The Parish holds an in kind grocery donation for the Conference every third weekend of the month. These donations are picked up and stored in our pantry. The Conference also shops the local stores as sales are held to supplement these donations. Monetary funding comes from the Parish through a yearly collection on Thanksgiving and during the year through the collection boxes located from the Parish through a specific collection on Thanksgiving and the collection boxes in the Church. In December, Christmas gifts (toys, books, hats and mittens) are collected from the Parish through the Giving Tree Program for the needy children in our area.
Our latest report, for fiscal year ending October 1, 2009 documented that 1,314 home visits were made through 2,412 hours of volunteer time and approximately 13,100 miles of travel. The value of the groceries and assistance delivered was $63,986. At Thanksgiving and Christmas, 338 families received either Holiday food baskets or vouchers which fed 1324 people and 234 children received Christmas gift bags.
The Conference has held several fund raisers to supplement the Parish assistance. The Annual Charity Classic Car Show and Cruise is the latest. We hope that everyone will have a good time at the Show while providing additional funds for the Conference.