News
"ST.
VINCENT DE PAUL SOCIETY - 150 YEARS OF SERVICE IN THE U.S."
Reprinted
from the Catholic Voice, Volume 41 Number 15 Written By
Barbara Erickson, Associate Editor
The Society
of St. Vincent de Paul is an international charitable organization
founded in 1833 by Blessed Frederic Ozanam, who was then a
university student living in Paris. Ozanam aimed to
help the poor and to improve the spiritual lives of young
people through service to the needy.
The group
took as its patron St. Vincent de Paul, a French priest of
the 17th century who founded the Daughters of Charity and
served the poor with love and care.
Soon after its birth in France,
the Society spread throughout Europe, and by 1845 it had come
to the U.S. The fundamental unit of the organization is a
conference, a group of lay women and men who serve those in
need on a person-to-person basis.
More than
4,500 conferences are active in the U.S. today with some 70,000
members. The Society distributes more than $200 million
in direct aid to the needy in the U.S. annually. Worldwide
the organization includes more than 600,000 members in more
than 130 countries.
In the Diocese
of Oakland two district councils, Alameda County and Contra
Costa County, oversee the society's work. Both council
maintain thrift stores, and the Alameda County council also
runs a dining room and centers for both men and women in downtown
Oakland. There are 23 parish conferences in Contra Costa
County and 38 in Alameda County.
IN the present
economic climate, both councils are in serious need of financial
support. Monetary donations as well as gifts of furniture,
clothing and other articles are welcome. For information
on household donations, call a local thrift store.
The Alameda
County council has asked donors to send checks directly to
their office at 9235 San Leandro St., Oakland, CA 94603, or
to donated on-line at www.svdp-alameda.org/donate/Index.asp.
Those interested in setting up a charitable trust annuity
program are asked to call Jeffery Nordin at Bank of the West,
(415) 597-5126.
Monetary
donations to the Contra Costa council should be mailed to
22100 Gladstone Dr., Pittsburg, CA 94565. Auto, truck,
RV and boat donations can be made by calling (800) 937-7837.
For more
information call the Alameda County council at (510) 638-7600
or the Contra Costa County council at (925) 439-5060.
Diocese of Oakland
September 8, 2003
