District 2 Conference Updates
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Vincentian Service Throughout North Texas
St. Pius X Conference
The St. Pius X SVdP Conference was started about 40 years ago when Msgr. Thomas Weinzapfel asked a handful of parishioners to volunteer to serve the poor in our area. In fact, two of our current volunteers, Darwin & Debbie Hutchison, were among those charter members! Today, our conference consists of 25 active and associate members who work tirelessly to serve the diverse neighbors in our parish boundaries and beyond.
Some of our ongoing projects include parish food drives to stock our pantry, collaborations with the school children and families for summer and holiday food and gift donations, our parish-wide SVDP Christmas Giving Tree, the staffing of the monthly CCD mobile food pantry and the quarterly SVDP Thrift Store Giving Drive. Several of our members have worked diligently with the Mini-Loan Program since its inception. In addition, we participate in several collaborations with other agencies in our community, including Dallas Area Interfaith, Ferguson Road Initiative, Dallas College Eastfield and Owenwood Farm & Neighbor Space. Most recently we were fortunate to host the SVDP retreat led by Bishop Quinn on our campus, welcoming SVDP staff and members from across the North Texas Region.
We have been blessed over the years with supportive Pastors and parishioners, generous benefactors and dedicated volunteers.”
The St. Patrick Conference is a busy group – working together to support our neighbors in need.
They maintain a regular office that is open each weekday morning. Neighbors come to secure needed groceries, and they also distribute toiletries and other personal items. Other ways that they help are by providing gift cards that assist our neighbors purchase what they need. They also provide bus passes to allow families without transportation to get about. They also partner with the SVdP Thrift Store to provide Clothing Vouchers, so that our neighbors can shop at the Thrift Store.
All of this activity comes out of the shared Vincentian Spirituality – to experience God’s love and then to share it with our neighbors in need.
St. Patrick Conference
St. Thomas Aquinas Conference
The St. Thomas Aquinas Conference has been very busy the last few months, and in April they put on an Invitation to Serve. They had over 80 people express interest in our group, and 40 people showed up for the informational meeting with 25 signing up that day to join the Society! They have been diligently working through getting each of them Safe Environment cleared as well and look forward to the new ideas and new energy to enhance their conference. They also held Ozanam Orientation in May. They are also very fortunate to have an attorney in their group, Mike Regitz, who works tirelessly to help our neighbors who find themselves needing counsel in court for evictions.
More recently, they lost one of their dearest Vincentians – Jim Apken, 89. Jim ran and worked in the pantry for over 12 years. He shopped, stocked and met our neighbors to make sure they had food. Anytime he heard someone needed help he would try and figure out what we could do for them. He epitomized service to our neighbor. He was kind, giving and oh so loving. They miss him dearly but know Jim will be in their hearts as they continue to help those in need, just as Jim wanted us all to.
