Society of St. Vincent de Paul: Mission, History & Programs

Introduction

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is an international Catholic organization best known in the United States for its non-profit thrift stores, where individuals can donate goods for a tax write-off or simply to clear space in their homes. These thrift stores, commonly known simply as "St. Vincent's," accept all manner of items, from clothing and kitchenware to televisions, books, games, and much more. St. Vincent's then sells these donated items at bargain prices to people who typically cannot afford to purchase merchandise at retail stores or malls. The modest profit on each item is given back to the community in the form of vouchers or small incentives that help people in various ways: some are helped with rent payments, others are provided with food and shelter — it all depends on the needs of the individuals who apply for aid.

Thus, the Society has a long history of helping underprivileged persons around the world, and its thrift store centers are just one of the ways in which it provides this service to communities.

History of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul was started in France in 1833 as the "Conference of Charity" ("The Beginnings of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul"). The aim of this Conference was to assist the poor in France, a movement driven by Frédéric Ozanam. From France, the movement spread to the United States, where in St. Louis it was founded just twelve years after Ozanam started his conference across the Atlantic. So great was the need — and the awareness among members of the Church of the obligation to help the poor — that the organization grew rapidly. The Society took as its patron St. Vincent de Paul, who lived from 1580 to 1660, because he was known as the "Apostle of Charity" (O'Donnell 13). Vincent was a leader of communities and a trainer of priests who looked out for the poor and dedicated their lives to serving that portion of society. This is the reason Vincent was chosen as the patron of the organization.

From its humble beginnings in St. Louis, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul grew steadily, helping families in the new age of industrialization as many migrant workers came to urban areas in America seeking employment. They lived impoverished lives with little pay and cramped housing, clearly in need of assistance in an era that seemed to value production more than human welfare. For this reason, the Society became even more active in the twentieth century as it sought to provide the necessities of life to ease families' burdens. As Robert Mathisen states, "It was in this atmosphere of increased labor activity and a mounting call for reform that Catholics began to evaluate their response to the new social order brought on by industrialization. For the majority, the answer seemed very clear: more charity" (377).

St. Vincent's helped to provide adequate housing for new immigrants in America who came to participate in industrialization, to find work, and to build something for themselves and their families. The pursuit of the so-called American Dream was not always as bright and straightforward as Benjamin Franklin portrayed it in his Autobiography: sometimes what was required was more than hard work and talent — sometimes people needed charity and a helping hand. Even Franklin himself acknowledged in his Autobiography that he could not have succeeded without some monetary assistance or the extension of credit at various points. With this in mind, it is no wonder that the Society of St. Vincent de Paul flourished in America. With so many people sacrificing in pursuit of the American Dream, there was an even greater need for others to sacrifice in order to help them along the way.

Today, St. Vincent's operates somewhat differently from how it did in the nineteenth century. It is now incorporated as a non-profit organization, which means it can take advantage of tax laws in the U.S. that allow non-profits to accept donations in exchange for receipts that donors can use for tax write-offs at year's end. This is a significant incentive for donors, as they can write off thousands of dollars' worth of goods, which can substantially reduce their tax burden when it comes time to file their annual taxes.

Conclusion

The non-profit organization St. Vincent de Paul began as an organization in the nineteenth century to help poor people in France and soon spread to the United States, where it grew to help immigrant workers and their families laboring during the era of industrialization. Over the course of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, more and more people turned to St. Vincent de Paul for economic, social, and spiritual support in confronting the demands of the modern world. Since that time, St. Vincent's has evolved into a non-profit best known for its thrift store outlets and voucher programs that help low-income families obtain the goods they need for their material comfort and health. These thrift stores are located throughout the country and accept donations of all kinds, providing donors with receipts usable as tax write-offs at the end of the year. In this way, everyone benefits from working with St. Vincent's.