Grateful Hearts, Serving Hands:
A Season of Thanks and Service | I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving! As I reflected on this weekend, I have so much to be grateful for including my vocation with the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul and being able to help people in need. I am so thankful for the many wonderful Vincentians across the country who do great work carrying out our mission of helping those who need the most. | | Thanks to our spiritual advisor, Bishop Yvan Mathieu, I was invited to speak at the annual Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops (CCCB) meeting which took place in September in Montreal. The 15-minute talk I gave about affordable housing initiatives across the country with the support of bishops was well received by the 90 bishops present and planted the seed for their potential support when land becomes available within their Dioceses. It was great to see representation from oecumenical churches including the United Church of Canada, Anglican Church of Canada and Presbyterian Church in Canada, as well as several lay organizations including the Catholic Women’s League of Canada, Canadian Catholic Campus Ministry, Catholic Health Alliance of Canada and more. | | The Feast Day of Saint Vincent de Paul on September 27 was celebrated all across the country. I had the pleasure of attending a Retreat at the Basilica of Our Lady Immaculate in Guelph, and I learned about their great partnership with Stepping Stone, an organization who assists individuals living in local shelters. SSVP Conference members collaborate with Stepping Stone by providing meals, grocery vouchers, store vouchers and having various collection drives for items such as linens/towels, winter coats, shoes plus more. What a great partnership! | | Later in the day, I attended a Mass, Vincent/Ozanam dinner and recognition event at Annunciation of Our Lord Church in Hamilton organized by Hamilton Particular Council. Framed service certificates were handed out to Vincentians celebrating milestone anniversaries with SSVP from 10 years up to 55 years. Yes, that is correct, 2 Vincentians, Peter Burns and John Woolcott have been members with SSVP for 55 years! That is truly amazing! Congratulations Peter and John. Thank you to all members across Canada for all that you do! Linda Dollard, National President | | A New Home, A New Beginning in Halifax | Wonderful news from Halifax! Ozanam Place, the new affordable and supportive housing facility is opening its doors, offering safety, dignity, and hope to many neighbours in need. This inspiring project reminds us how compassion and community spirit can truly change lives. Take a moment to watch and read more about this beautiful initiative: | A Call for Action by Every Vincentian | The Advocacy Circle urges you to make your voice heard and give hope to the many thousands of people and families we all serve. Do not miss out this opportunity, sign this petition to ask members of the House of Common for their support for Guaranteed Basic Income (GBI). It calls upon the Government of Canada to: | | - Renew and strengthen federal participation in the PEI GBI Working Group;
- Work with the Government of PEI to implement the PEI GBI Demonstration Project, studying its impacts over 5 to 7 years, adjusting the program as necessary; and
- Use the evidence-based results of the PEI GBI Demonstration Project to reform Canada’s income security system by implementing a guaranteed basic income across Canada in consultation with provincial, territorial and Indigenous partners.
Please click to sign PEI / GBI Petition. And make sure to share this petition with your family, friends, neighbours and those you know. Danny Bourne, Advocacy Circle Chair | The Power of Saying THANK YOU! | We all get them, the instantaneous “thank you” emails after making an online donation. It may have your name at the top, and maybe a reference to the particular program you contributed to, but it’s not really all that personal. It is an important stewardship step, but how do we express our gratitude in a truly meaningful way? One good way is to just pick up the phone and call the donor. Just extend the thanks…that’s it. I try to start off my calls, after introducing myself, with “I’m just calling to say thank you”. Then let the donor lead: if they are interested in learning more about the Society, they will ask; if not, end the call graciously on a high note. Even leaving a voice message can work. I have had donors phone back to thank me for thanking them! And I had one donor tell me that despite making years of donations to various causes, I was the first person ever to phone and thank him personally. A personal call might not result an increased donation next time, but the SSVP will stay at the top of their list. READ MORE | | | | Home Visit changes a life In early June, our conference received a request for support from a senior in our community. She was requesting support for groceries as she found herself in need due to unexpected bills. Two of us arranged to meet at her home. When we arrived, she welcomed us but apologized that she could not have us into her home as there was nowhere to sit. She shared that it was very cluttered and messy and that she hadn’t been able to sit anywhere except her bedroom for many years. We had a lovely visit instead in the small common room down the hall. We determined she could use grocery cards to help her through the next month. She also had an unexpected bill related to her aging dog. She again apologized for not hosting us, but that she had not seen her table and chairs for years due to the clutter. We shared that when she was ready, we could help her to declutter and clean her place. She was quite taken aback by the offer but said she would consider it. READ MORE | | | | A Heartfelt Message from One of Our Neighbours A brief moment to share my deep gratitude. Finding the right words to express how immense the positive influence of your group is on the community - and therefore on my life - is not easy! Your efficiency and the exemplary way you dedicate yourselves provide the vital substance needed to create something better. Thanks to you, I have not only built connections and diversified my meals, but also (re)gained an unexpected sense of food dignity. For all these reasons, and many more that I hope to discuss with you all soon, believe me - your work is of exceptional quality. Thank you! P. W. - Beneficiary of the Saint-Philippe Food Distribution, SSVP Trois-Rivières QC | | | | | Chain of Solidarity between the SSVP and the Partage Vanier Food Bank Since October 2023, the Trinity Conference of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul has contributed $400 monthly to purchase milk for children in a chain of solidarity with the Partage Vanier Food Bank. This type of collaboration is welcomed and desired by the Partage Vanier Food Bank. "We benefit from this type of agreement of predictability, regularity, and quality with our clients who use the Partage Vanier Food Bank," said Jean-Michel Rousseau, Partage Vanier coordinator. READ MORE | | | | Christmas Cheer in Lindsay The St. Mary’s Conference has brought holiday joy to local families for over 20 years. What began as a few bags of food has grown into a program that now provides grocery gift cards, treats, and gifts for children and adults. This year, each family will receive $100 in grocery gift cards plus $25 for each family member. It’s a true community effort that makes the season brighter for everyone involved. Volunteers, schools, parishioners, and community partners — including the Kawartha Lakes Paramedic Service — work together to collect wish lists, wrap gifts, and deliver them just in time for Christmas. FULL PROGRAM DETAILS | | | Alain Talbot – Gatineau Central Council QC Alain is a Vincentian at the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul in Gatineau. His main goal is to help all those in need. His aim to modernize the SSVP clearly reflects his desire to expand the circle and to find the best legal ways to support people whose needs are constantly growing. Alain is deeply committed to finding ways for everyone to join hands and share the means to help the community. Together, we can achieve great things. | | We invite you to submit your nominations to recognize a Vincentian in our community whose work and dedication deserve to be celebrated. | Our Service, Our Gratitude And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him. (Colossians 3:17) The sense of gratitude is deeply practiced and experienced in our lives. REFLECTION | | The SSVP receives the Fundación MAPFRE Award for Best Organization for its Social Trajectory | The International Confederation of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul received, on 8 October, the Fundación MAPFRE Award for Best Organization for its Social Trajectory, an international distinction that underscores the organization’s work in combating poverty and social exclusion throughout its more than 192 years of history. READ MORE | | Question & Answer Why are police record checks necessary? | | The Society, as a charitable organization, has a moral, ethical and spiritual obligation to appropriately screen and educate its staff and members. It is not only the right thing to do, but it is also legally mandated under the principle of “Duty of Care”. In addition, screening of all full and auxiliary members is a requirement of liability insurance providers whose coverage our conferences and councils require to keep our members free from personal liability. The goal of implementing Screening and related Mandatory Abuse, Discrimination and Harassment Prevention procedures is to protect and safeguard those we serve and to provide protection to Society’s members and employees. For most members, obtaining a police record check is a simple process of filling out and submitting a form. In a few cases, fingerprints will be required if the authorities need to distinguish people with similar names or for other reasons. We recognize that screening requirements can sometimes seem onerous, intrusive and even unnecessary. However, the broader society we now live in requires assurances that volunteers have been properly screened and that vulnerable persons are adequately protected from abuse. Therefore, we ask all members to accept these requirements with charity and patience and recognize that it better enables us all to serve those who are in need. For more information on who the screening applies to please consult the Rule, Section 1.4.1 and the National Screening Guidelines in Section 8.3 of the National Operating Manual found here. | We regularly publish exciting facts about the SSVP. Visit our Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn frequently to find out more about the Society. To promote our publications, please like and share them. Links to our social media can be found at the bottom of this newsletter. We are always looking for Vincentian testimonials and conference/council activity stories. Send your stories to share with Vincentians across Canada to editor-editeur@ssvp.ca. If you received this from a friend, you can subscribe to receive our newsletter directly. SUBSCRIBE HERE | Connect with us on social media | | | | |
