FROM THE
Dear Reader,
President
FROM THE
Corner Office
As you read this report of our Society of St. Vincent DePaul activities for the past year, I hope you will remember that these amazing and powerful statistics represent the individual and collective actions of thousands of committed Vincentians throughout the United States. Each Vincentian member, parish conference and council (local, regional and national) works at their own level and in response to their calling from the Holy Spirit to bring comfort, material, emotional and spiritual support, and, often, transformation to those being assisted. These statistics also represent the lives, hopes and dreams of the thousands of people helped each year. Unfortunately, poverty in the United States is growing and, as a nation, our elected officials are not working or “playing well together.” The poorest and most vulnerable among us suffer most from this impasse. The Society of St. Vincent DePaul, however, remains determined to bring about needed change in the lives of individuals, our local communities and our nation. We do this one person, one neighborhood, one community at a time, collaborating to find and implement solutions with all those who share our belief in the human dignity of every person. We work at the national level to identify and address the root causes of poverty, to remove institutional and governmental barriers to the transition out of poverty, and to provide avenues for those who are walking their own journey out of poverty each day. In the coming year we invite you to join us in our effort to End Poverty Through Systemic Change. All of us, together with those who suffer most, can transform lives and bring hope for a better future. In Christ and our Founder, Blessed Frédéric,
Last year at this time I wrote about being a doer of the word, not just someone who hears it, reads it and mouths it. St. Francis put it this way: “Spread the good news of the gospel and sometimes even use words.” My message in last year’s Annual Report went on to say the best example of Scripture and caring for those living in poverty is summed up clearly in Matthew 25, in which salvation is described as a commitment to directly help those who live in poverty. This past year our members gave 11,502,603 hours of service to those in need, and made more than 627,000 home visits, 27,000 prison visits, 84,000 hospital visits, 127,000 eldercare visits and 760,000 other visits. These “doers of the word” helped more than 2,500 individuals find a job and assisted 81,311 s ?[?Y ?]?[\??[?XYH
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