Society of St. Vincent De Paul
Help Us Help Others

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVDP) is a worldwide Christian community. It was founded in Paris in 1833 and dedicated to serving the poor. The Society has 700,000 members in 142 countries. The vocation of the Society members, called Vincentians, is to follow Christ through service to those in need. No act of charity is foreign to the Society. Vincentians show their commitment through person-to-person contact often by making home visits. SVDP serves those in need regardless of creed, ethnic or religious background. Locally we have four (4) conferences which make up the District Council of Charlotte County Florida. They are:

San Antonio located at 24445 Rampart Blvd., Port Charlotte, phone (941) 235-1254, Ann Shelly
Sacred Heart located at 25200 Airport Rd., Punta Gorda, phone (941) 575-0767, Evelyn Cotyk
St. Charles located at 21505 Augusta Ave., Port Charlotte, phone (941) 625-9784, Tarrah Nunes
St. Maximilian located at 1441 Spear St., Port Charlotte, phone (941) 258-3398, Clara Peters

All four are 100% volunteer organizations. Throughout the year, more than 400 members work tirelessly in numerous ministries providing various types of assistance, including food, clothing, home furnishings, household goods and financial assistance to thousands of needy individuals and families in Charlotte County. The value of in-kind goods and monetary help totaled $1.5 million last year. The only requirement to receive assistance is to reside in Charlotte County. In addition, Vincentians visited prisons, hospitals, nursing homes and veterans groups. These are a form of home visits which are a cornerstone of Vincentian service. We serve God's people in a special way. Rather than just have people come to us, we often go to their homes to get to know them in a different way.

Our Walk is designed to highlight the tremendous need that surrounds us. Unfortunately, many of the people in our larger community do not know firsthand of this need. Our Walk is a public display of the growing need for help. In the last two years, after the worst economic crisis since the Depression, we have seen demand for help skyrocket. The demand for food has increased by 238%, for clothing by 227%. Probably the best overall indicator, the number of people we served has gone up 248%1 The face of those we serve continues to change. Last year, more than 1 in 6 families came to us for the first time.

This is why your participation is so critical. On behalf of your Walk committee, the conferences and its members, I want to extend our heartfelt appreciation and thanks for joining us today. A special thank you to our sponsors.

Serving in Hope,
Joe Sabatino, President
941-639-0608
SVDP District Council of
Charlotte County Florida Inc.
and its 400+ members.