The Society of St Vincent de Paul...
...is a Catholic charitable organization dedicated to the service of the poor regardless of
personal beliefs, was founded by Blessed Antoine Frederic Ozanan in 1833 in the slums of
Paris. The society came to the Untied States in 1845 to St. Louis where the first Conference
was formed. Here at MHC we are dedicated to helping those in our community in need of
assistance. We are always looking for people who feel called to help with this ministry. Along
with providing assistance to the needy we are also aware of the spiritual needs of our
members. Time is spent at meetings in reflection to remind us of why we are doing what we do
and helping us to see Christ in our Clients.
Meeting the Need
SVdP shelter case managers were able to locate a place in Fairborn Senior Apartments for an 87-year-old woman who had been
in shelter for nearly a year. Our Conference met with her shortly after she moved in and were able to provide contacts,
advice, food, furniture, and household items to enable her to set up housekeeping in her own place. She is now receiving
Meals on Wheels, being signed up for Medicaid and provided rental assistance by Greene Met housing.
In another instance, our Conference furniture lead placed two lift chairs in neighbors’ apartments. Even though they were
not working 100%, he was able to reach out to a retired furniture store person who was able to return these two lift chairs
to good working order. This is an example of our faith in action and God’s grace meeting the need through the efforts of His people.
Opportunities to get involved
We are looking for people who want to experience the joy of giving back to those in need. We
need call takers, delivery people, pantry support, furniture distribution, Panera Bread donation pick up and
members who would want to be involved with our Conference.
Call takers are very dedicated volunteers who hear the problems of our neighbors in the
community. They listen to those needing help and truly see Christ in each and every person asking for help.
These are people who have 2 days to give, consecutively, to take calls, usually every 3 or 4 weeks. Training
will be provided and you can do the call taking from your home. St. Vincent has its own computer that travels
from call taker to call taker. When we receive a call from one of our neighbors we listen to their concern and
try to help them find a solution, they may need utility, rent, furniture or food assistance and we help them
if we can. We have guidelines to help determine the amount of financial assistance we can give. We also have
our own pantry for food assistance. If you are able, please consider this important ministry and step forward
to help our conference make a difference in the lives of individuals and families in our Fairborn community.
Many of our clients are elderly, have no means of transportation or find it difficult to arrange
transportation. They are still hungry and need our assistance. Once the “call taker” has taken a request for food
the “call taker” calls a delivery volunteer, tells us the need and gives us a phone number and address if necessary.
They let us know if the client can come to the pantry or needs delivery. We then call the client and arrange for a
time for the pick up or delivery. In just two hours you can reach out to approximately 2 families in our community who need help.
Training will be available until you are comfortable by yourself. You can volunteer as just a “pantry person”, or a “delivery
person” or both.
If you would like to join us in this ministry and find out more about the spiritualty of the
St. Vincent de Paul Society please email
Adam Horvath-Smith,
President or
Jeanne Duell, Vice President.
July 2024 Update
During the month of July we responded to 305 calls for assistance. We assisted 72 families with utilities, medicine, rent/ rent
deposits, household goods and furniture. We also provided food for 129 families (253 adults and 212 children).
Fiscal Year Update
Over the course of our last fiscal year (Oct. 2022-Sept. 2023), our 29 conference members helped a total of 5,079 people. We
distributed over $48,000 worth of donated goods (food and furniture) from our generous parishioners. Thank you for supporting our work!
Thank You!
St. Vincent de Paul would like to thank the parishioners for their support. Your generosity regarding
financial and in-kind donations enables us to continue to provide monetary and food donations month-to-month. For this, we
are truely grateful. We are not able to provide this assistance without your committed, generous and faithful support! Thank you!
