An Act of Charity
y t i R a h C f o t c An A Written and Designed by: David Lim
David Lim
In dedication to my family, who have always been there for me.
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Table of Contents Dedication . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Table of Contents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Foreword . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Chapter 1 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Chapter 2 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Chapter 3 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Conclusion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Works Cited . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 5
Foreword I became interested in the St. Vincent de Paul Society after I had volunteered there for 5 years. I wanted to learn more about the organization and this project was the perfect opportunity for me to delve deeper into what it actually was. The purpose of writing this book is to educate others on the Society and how they can get involved with the organization themselves. There are many social services and a place for everyone to help. I organized the book by first presenting the goals of the Society, then the issues it came across when working towards its goal. “No Act of Charity is Foreign to the Society.� For my final chapter, I included the requirements to get involved. The research I found most helpful were the informational websites on the organization, and the members of the Society who I interviewed. I had quite a few scheduling issues, but everything ironed out itself in the end. The most interesting discovery I found was the size and the impact the Society has on society, and how cosmopolitan it truly is. With headquarters in France, and a plethora of others in foreign countries, the local organization was part of a giant web of volunteers working together to achieve a common goal. For such a large amount of people to work together just to help others was astounding to me. My greatest challenges were getting information regarding the specific food closet, which I got by contacting actual volunteers. I learned how to be a proper interviewer and how to interact with the volunteers. My questions were written beforehand in order to get the best answers and go more in depth about the Society. This project has really opened my eyes in ways I had not expected.
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Introduction Nestled between the towering shadow of a church and a prestigious private school lay a quaint little door. For many of the people who attend the church or the school, they would never notice the door, let alone give it any importance in their lives. However, for many others, that little door is the difference between an empty stomach and the ability to provide for their family. Behind the rotting wood, is the necessity of all life, namely, food. With a magical paper card, local citizens of Mountain View can, no matter their income, history or religion, get the necessary ingredients for a proper meal. Saint Vincent De Paul is a food closet located in Mountain View that first set out to assist the local community with financial issues by providing food and other services. Although since then there have been many changes and obstacles along the way, it has not fallen from its original goal and continues to succeed to this day. Despite being created by a religious organization, Saint Vincent De Paul holds no prejudices against people of any religion, and always has an open door for anyone in need of assistance. Quite often, the line is packed with lots of folks who are dressed well, driving expensive vehicles and ultimately look like the type of people that would not be expected to seek financial assistance. However, looks can be misleading, and everyone who is in line at Saint Vincent De Paul has a hidden story of some sort. To most people, Saint Vincent De Paul is a life saver, whether they have hit a rough patch in their careers, or are just starting to get back on track. And those who eventually get their lives back together, often donate to Saint Vincent De Paul to give back. There are over thirty thousand dollars donated every year by individuals and religious organizations alone.
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Chapter 1
T
he Saint Vincent De Paul food closet has spent its past few years working relentlessly towards helping the local community. For one entire hour, the food closet opens its doors to anyone who lives in Mountain View and allows them to choose what food they wish to bring home for that week. Customers are allowed to visit once a week, and their visits are compiled on a computer in order to prevent them from breaking the rules, or check whether their families qualify for certain special programs. “(The food) ranges from tin can vegetables, to cereals, to spaghetti, to eggs, to fresh food.” There are a large variety of choices, and no lack of nutritional content for anyone and everyone trying to have a proper meal. In fact “In (Saint Vincent De Paul) food closet, a hundred and twenty five thousand pounds (of food was distributed), in the year of 2013” (Barnes). What is more amazing is
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that everything is completely run by volunteers, from those who distribute the food to the chairman board of the organization, which ultimately “take(s) care of about 350 families a month, which would represent between 1100-1200 individuals” (Barnes). Though Saint Vincent De Paul specializes in food distribution, it also aids those with issues not exclusive to food. They “offer a lifeline to those in want of food and clothing, rent assistance, medical aid, help with addiction or incarceration, employment and shelter” (St. Vincent De Paul). On Thursday afternoons, the agency interviews people with temporary problems, for example, inability to pay for rent, lack of resources to hire movers or other financial issues. However, this is not the sole special program for other needs. During Christmas Time, Saint Vincent De Paul collaborates with the next-door parish for the annual Christmas Giving Tree Program.
Customers of Saint Vincent De Paul bring in their children to write what they want for Christmas on an ornament. Afterwards, it is hung in a tree in the church, where churchgoers can choose an ornament from the tree, and buy the requested presents. A few days before Christmas, all of the gifts will be loaded into the Parish Hall, and then distributed to all of the children. Those who cannot make it have their gifts dropped off at their address. There is also a Thanksgiving Turkey Drive which is exclusive to those who are eligible. It requires more than a specified amount of visits to Saint Vincent De Paul, and varying on the size of a family, customers are given a box filled with all the necessary components for an authentic American Thanksgiving meal. For those with large families, they are given gift cards that can solely be used to redeem Turkeys at the local Safeway. Quite often at such events, recipients are overcome with such
“Offer a lifeline to those in want of food and clothing, rent assistance, medical aid, help with addiction or incarceration, employment and shelter� - Saint Vincent De Paul USA
joy and gratitude that they break into tears. But at times, customers come with issues that are not in Saint Vincent De Paul’s resources or expertise to assist them. What does Saint Vincent De Paul do to help? In situations like this, John Barnes replies, “we would refer them to who we thought the agencies would best help them. It might be Community Services, it might be Family Care.” They will do everything and anything in their power to assist those who are in need. In fact, the motto of Saint Vincent De Paul Society has always been “no act of charity is foreign to the Society” (Society of St. Vincent De Paul Council of Los Angeles). For many people, Saint Vincent De Paul is not just helpful, but the difference between starving for a week and being able to fill the stomachs of their families and themselves.
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Chapter 2
D
espite Saint Vincent De the biggest issue is people who don’t is only one of the two food closets Paul’s overwhelming suc- know when to stop taking food. in the entire county, there are many cess the past few years, They’ll just keep taking how much mouths to feed and at times an unthere have been and still are many they want and not what they should certain food supply. Specifically in obstacles that hold the society back be getting. And sometimes it’s hard the Winter seasons, the food closet from further achieving their goal. to stop them because I’m quite shy does run out of food, and the individuals who U n f o r t u n a t e l y, there are still in“We would like to think of a family took more food than allotted dividuals who as being a mother and father and two, have comprochoose to abuse the system. “We startthree to six kids. But often times a mised the meals of other customed out by using family is four adults living togethers. However, grocery bags, staner. Should we treat them different- Saint Vincent dard sized grocery De Paul has also bags, and on that ly from each other? It’s a measure admitted that basis any family we’re discussing, right now” it may be parwith members 6 or tially at fault for more had two bags - John Barnes unfair food disand any family has 5 or less has one bag. That’s still the and inward and don’t know how to tribution. “In terms of fairness, standard, a big family gets two bags talk. So uh” (Huang). Some even perhaps, we could do a better job and a small family gets one bag, bypass the card system by register- of what we defined to be a family. however the definition of bag has ing as multiple users at once. This We would like to think of a family changed” (Barnes). A few individu- drains resources from Saint Vincent as being a mother and father and als bring extremely large bags and De Paul which could have gone to two, three to six kids. But often fill it with everything, regardless of others who are also in need. Espe- times a family is four adults living whether they need it or not. “I guess cially since Saint Vincent De Paul together. Should we treat them dif-
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ferently from each other? It’s a measure we’re discussing, right now” (Barnes). This does not apply solely to food distribution, but other services such as the Christmas Giving Tree and the Thanksgiving Turkey Drive referred to in Chapter 1. Occasionally there are issues between volunteers and customers, however, “no more than in a normal society in a very crowded space. One being the giver, and the other one being 18
the taker. So no more than that” (Barnes). This brings up one of the largest issues, the size and conditions of the food closet. “It’s a very small closet, a bigger area would be nice. Because when you have five volunteers and forty people come in. It’s very cramped together and very humid, and hard to work sometimes” (Huang). Although this seems to be the root of most of the problems that arise from interac-
tion between the customers and the volunteers, another large factor is miscommunication. “Sometimes the customers don’t speak English, so we have a hard time communicating with the customers.” (Wang). “We have a large Chinese population and unfortunately we don’t have many Chinese volunteers. And we do have some miscommunication when it comes to things other than the food closet. I think there
erybody knows what to expect, and outside of that small window there are some small issues we’ve had to take care of ” (Barnes). These problems become larger issues especially when these customers apply for special programs like the Christmas Giving Tree and the Thanksgiving Turkey Drive. For example, failure to understand the proper dates or
Saint Vincent De Paul and has chosen not to share the combinations with the society. This means that at times old or decomposing food is left in the trash inside the food closet, which combined with humidity and a small area, makes work conditions quite rancid, unpleasant for both the customers and volunteers. But perhaps the largest impediment
“It’s a very small closet, a bigger area would be nice. Because when you have five volunteers and forty people come in. It’s very cramped together and very humid, and hard to work sometimes.” - Jae-son Huang
requirements to apply have led to challenges in the past. What’s more, conflicts are not exclusive to interactions between customers and volunteers. The neighboring school, Waldorf School of the Arts, holds the key combinations for the two large dumpsters. Often times, the school forgets to unlock them for 20
to Saint Vincent De Paul’s growth is the lack of resources. This includes food, supplies, manpower and monetary donations, all of which are necessary to keep Saint Vincent De Paul food closet running. For this reason, Second Harvest Food Bank is a lifesaver.
Chapter 3 The Saint Vincent De Paul Society is so beneficial to the local community, and is not alone. The Saint Vincent De Paul Conference of Mountain View is a part of the Saint Vincent De Paul District Council of the Bay Area, which includes other large cities such as Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, Santa Clara, San Mateo and Sonoma. All of these societies throughout California are a part of the Saint Vincent De Paul (Arch) Diocesan Councils. In turn, they report to the USA National Society of St. Vincent De Paul, which hosts its national headquarters in St. Louis, Missouri, where the first American Saint Vincent De Paul chapter was established. This national society umbrellas all of the societies within the United States of America, which have around 172,000 members in 4,600 communities. However, there are even more Saint Vincent De Paul Societies worldwide, which all report the the International Coun24
cil, in Paris, France. “One of the oldest and most successful charitable organizations in the world, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a Catholic lay organization of approximately 777,000 men and women throughout the world who volunteer to seek out and provide person-to-person aid to the poor and needy in 144 countries on five continents (Saint Vincent De Paul Sonoma).” Members of the Society identify themselves as Vincentians, after the patron saint of the organization, St. Vincent de Paul. According the the National Council of the United States of St. Vincent de Paul. There are various requirements that come with being part of the Society. In the United States, there are three types of membership in SVdP: Active Member, Associate Member, and Contributing Member.
Society, be accepted as an Active Member by a Conference and be enrolled in it. In addition, they need to take part in the life of the Conference to which they belong. Participation implies a reasonable degree of involvement in SVdP meetings, charitable activities, and religious observances.
2. Associate Members, like the Active Member, are affiliated with the Society by formal action of the Conference or Council with which the member will be joined. Associate Members include those who sincerely and publicly accept the Society’s basic principles but may or may not belong to the Catholic Church. Associate Members are kept informed of the developments and activities of their immediate groupings, as well as the general progress of the Society, particularly 1. Active Members must belong in the local area or diocese. Assoto the Catholic Church, accept the ciate members are invited to attend Basic Principles or Charter of the the general meetings and special
“One of the oldest and most successful charitable organizations in the world, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a Catholic lay organization of approximately 777,000 men and women throughout the world who volunteer to seek out and provide person-to-person aid to the poor and needy in 144 countries on five continents.� - Saint Vincent De Paul USA
tive Member, Associate Member, who sincerely and publicly accept the Society’s basic principles and Contributing Member. but may or may not belong to the Active Members must belong Catholic Church. Associate Memto the Catholic Church, accept bers are kept informed of the dethe Basic Principles or Charter of velopments and activities of their the Society, be accepted as an Ac- immediate groupings, as well as tive Member by a Conference and the general progress of the Society, be enrolled in it. In addition, they particularly in the local area or dioneed to take part in the life of the cese. Associate members are invited Conference to which they belong. to attend the general meetings and
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tributors. Contributors are invited to be present at general and special meetings. Despite such large connections throughout the country, local Saint Vincent De Paul Societies rely largely on other local organizations or donors for their food. Second Harvest Food Bank is vital in supplying the local Saint Vincent De
“End Poverty Through Systematic Change.” - Church of the Ressurection
Participation implies a reasonable degree of involvement in SVdP meetings, charitable activities, and religious observances.
special observances of the Society. They participate, as they are able, in the charitable activism of the Society in their area.
Paul Society of Mountain View as well as other stores like Safeway and local bakeries. The Society is intertwined and works with so many different organizations and communiAssociate Members, like the Contribution Members re- ties who are all working towards Active Member, are affiliated quire no formal action for en- the same goal, provide aid for those with the Society by formal action rollment. Recognition of such sta- in need, and ultimately, “End Povof the Conference or Council with tus is simply granted by the Society erty Through Systematic Change which the member will be joined. in acknowledging the financial do- (Church of the Ressurection).” Associate Members include those nations of generous or regular con-
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3.
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Conclusion The local Saint Vincent De Paul has worked towards helping anyone in need within the community. They “offer a lifeline to those in want of food and clothing, rent assistance, medical aid, help with addiction or incarceration, employment and shelter.” Despite the obstacles that have held them back from achieving their goal, which include lack of bilingual speakers, food deficits and flaws within the system, Saint Vincent De Paul has nonetheless continued to thrive as the life-changing organization it is today. Furthermore, the food closet is not alone, with more than 777,000 Vincentians worldwide who volunteer to assist in their own Saint Vincent De Paul Societies. However, there are still many areas around the planet where Saint Vincent De Paul has not yet been able to reach out and provide help to those in need. Every year new chapters of Saint Vincent De Paul are being opened in new areas and countries to satisfy those who are still in need. The Society will not stop helping any individual who is seeking help, until it eradicates this need. Ultimately, they will grow and spread until they achieve their goal, to “End Poverty Through Systematic Change.” With so many people working towards the betterment of society, everyone can pitch in whether or not they are religious or themselves are in need. In order for a change and a push to end poverty throughout the world, there are many needs and roles that must be fulfilled whether that is a volunteer who hands out food, or a translator to help communicate with customers or even a organizer to help get everyone on track. There will always be a place for everyone to help Saint Vincent De Paul, and the world.
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Works Cited Barnes, John. Personal interview. 21 Feb. 2014. “Church of the Resurrection - SVDP.” Church of the Resurrection. N.p., n.d. Web. 25 Feb. 2014. Huang, Jae-son. Personal interview. 28 Feb. 2014. “Membership Information.” National Council of the United States Society of St. Vincent de Paul. N.p., n.d. Web. 20 Mar. 2014. “Society of St. Vincent De Paul Council of Los Angeles.” St. Vincent De Paul. N.p., n.d. Web. 03 Mar. 2014. “St. Vincent De Paul Organization.” St Vincent De Paul Sonoma. N.p., n.d. Web. 23 Feb. 2014. “St. Vincent De Paul Bay Area.” St. Vincent De Paul Bay Area. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. Wang, Jeffrey. Personal interview. 26 Feb. 2014. 31
An Act of Charity
y t i R a h C f o t c A An Written and Designed by: David Lim
David Lim