Society of St Vincent de Paul

November 20, 2005

It was in 1833, that Frederic Ozanam, a student in Paris, took up the challenge of a fellow student to actually do something for the poor. Ozanam formed a group which came to be known as the Society of Vincent de Paul, after the 16th century Saint. The purpose was simple: as a small group of friends, they would become servants of the poor in Paris.

It was to have huge repercussions. Today the SVP is a charity numbering over one million voluntary members spread across 132 countries, and is as diverse in its membership as it is in the work that it carries out. Catholic in origin and character, it is dedicated to helping anyone in need, with no differentiation on the grounds of creed, age, gender, ethnicity or nationality. The concept of need is broadly based, so visiting the sick, the lonely, the addicted and those suffering from disabilities form a large portion of the Society's work.

The Society is made up of a network of Conferences, local and regional groups which report to the National Council. Conferences work for the most part in their area, visiting the elderly or sick, working with the homeless and supporting local charitable initiatives. Depending on the size of the Conference, there may be other initiatives such as 'Soup Runs', providing food and clothing for the homeless, or specific projects such as giving individuals money and support to cover the 'poverty trap', that period when someone is taken off the street, re-enters employment, but has any benefits halted the moment work is started. This can often be where help is most needed. There might also be individual foreign projects; here we recently supported an orphanage in Guatemala. Anything is possible given a willing volunteer base. Conferences tend to meet fortnightly to review work and to discuss future plans. At Farm Street we are privileged to have a Chaplain, who offers some words of reflection on a spiritual text at the beginning of the meeting. In all cases before closing, there is a "secret collection".

The National Council, funded in part by the local Conferences, is responsible for more financially demanding initiatives such as hostels, holiday schemes, summer camps for children, Drop in Centres and charity shops. It also deals with the international side of the charity. Groups in the developing world are "twinned" with groups in the more affluent countries. Support is provided in the form of correspondence, and regular financial contributions, student sponsorship, specific projects such as community farm schemes, and a "disaster fund" to help the local Conference cope with disasters in its own country, hi the case of the recent tsunami, financial aid was channelled to local Conferences, thus ensuring that the cash was used as effectively as possible.

It is hoped that following today's appeal you will be moved to help support the SVP practically and/or financially so that we can continue to build on the existing work that we do here at Farm Street.

Dominic Berry , Farm Street SVP