A Towering Success

St. Vincent de Paul’s Family Evening Meal is a “hotbed” of activities this Summer (if you’ll pardon the Arizona dry humor!). Our manager of Family Programs, Allison Ghan, has put together an update for us, including a monthly calendar, to let you know how easy it us to join us or support us by stopping by for a visit, finding items on our wish list, or volunteering with our families. We hope to see you in our “cool” dining room!

To keep you updated on the many events and activities we have going on this month, we would love to show you our monthly calendar in hopes that you will stop in for a slice of pizza (June 17^th), join our guests in a Zumba class (every Monday!), schedule a time to volunteer (contact Khawkes@svdp-phx-az.org), or simply keep our families in mind as the weather starts to heat up.

Something new and exciting… Although school is out for the kids in the dining room, we are in the middle of an essay contest! One of our corporate partners, Freeport McMoRan, is giving away four bikes to four deserving young kids who are currently writing about who they think deserves a bike.

Volunteers are the center of attention

Winners will travel with their families to a special ceremony where they will receive recognition and their brand new bike! Following that essay contest is another one about energy sponsored by one of our regular volunteers who we believe is secretly trying to get all of the kids to become engineers. Thanks, Charlie!

Wish list:

Essay question for July, and a sponsor willing to donate a couple prizes

Family DVDs for cartoon/movie nights in the dining room

Birthday presents for older children (we have lots of toys, not as many ‘cool’ gifts for ages 10+)

Bingo prizes (anything fun!)

Storytellers spark kids' imagination

Thank you for all of your support for the work we do and people we serve. Take care!

The Family Dining Room Team

Vincentian Fresh Perspectives

A lot has been happening at St. Vincent de Paul, even in our supposedly “slow” season.

New programs, noteworthy visitors, great new relationships, and new ways of engaging with our supporters. We’ve been posting lovely photo albums, producing moving videos, and writing informative blog posts. But you may have missed something in an area that interests you, so I’ve compiled a little digest, by subject area, of things you can learn more about via our blog, Facebook page, and YouTube channel.

Let me know if I’ve missed anything – we can always add more. If you’d like to save this digest to…um…digest later, or to forward it to friends (hint, hint) its permanent URL is http://www.helpingthepoor.org/digests/digest05-11-fb-yt-bl. By the way, all of the events and activities below have happened in the last 30 days.

Feeding the Hungry

Blog post about a volunteer who is giving our homeless dining room guests (all 800 of them) a name tag on the day he volunteers.

Flowers that Feed Why give cut flowers when your loved one can have Flowers that Feed?

Easter Party in the Family Dining Room thanks to St. Joseph’s Hospital and Sodexo.

Health Care

Banner Health teaches kids about healthy eating

Homelessness

What are your thoughts about homeless individuals owning pets?

Homeless guest at main St. Vincent de Paul dining room sings the national anthem at an Arizona Diamondbacks game.

Open House at Ozanam Manor transitional shelter.

Volunteerism

SVdP Volunteer Profile series. Videos produced and narrated by Mary Jo West. Featured below are on Facebook page, others will be moving over soon, so that we can all write and read comments about these wonderful volunteers. For a sneak peak at others, see our YouTube channel.

• Andy Andreano
• Anita Tabcharani
• Ellen Lagerman

A Personnel Perspective, a series of short videos of staff members and volunteers telling little stories about their work at St. Vincent:

• Ed Dubiel
• Patricia Metrick
• Cassidy Zoellner

Blog post about a volunteer who is giving our homeless dining room guests (all 800 of them) a name tag on the day he volunteers.

Angels who make Curtains for Vincentian Fresh Perspectives home makeovers.

Corporate volunteers love making SVdP Tees, which raise money to fund our homeless programs.

Hearts and Hands Day of family volunteering

SVdP volunteer Dick Warren wins Governor’s volunteerism award.

Home Makeovers

A Collection of Vincentian Fresh Perspectives Home Makeovers

Cesar’s New Bed Six year old gets his own bunk to recover from kidney surgery.

The Lemon Tree Mayo Clinic paints the house a disabled vet and his wife have lived in for over 50 years.

The Ice Cream Truck and the Girls Four girls who share a small room get their own beds.

Angels who make Curtains for Vincentian Fresh Perspectives home makeovers.

Thank You Nana A grandmother caring for her four granddaughters gets her house painted by a team of volunteers.

Events & Visitors

SVdP International President visits Phoenix for Western Regional Meeting

• Story
• Photos

Golf for Charity event, organized by the Our Lady of Joy Knights of Columbus, raises money for St. Vincent de Paul and has become one of the top charity events in the area.

Hearts and Hands Day of family volunteering

Land of Ahhs honors new SVdP program, Vincentian Fresh Perspectives.

A Shred-A-Thon for Earth Day.

SVdP volunteer Dick Warren wins Governor’s volunteerism award.

Open House at Ozanam Manor transitional shelter.

Volunteer Appreciation Luncheon. Video honoring a group of fabulous volunteers is in two parts:

• Part One
• Part Two

Thrift Stores

Video describes new Volunteer-run thrift store in Cottonwood, AZ.

A Shred-A-Thon for Earth Day.

Ozzie’s Furnishings grand re-opening.

Thought Provoking

Should a food box be handed to anyone who asks for it?

What are your thoughts on restricting restroom access to “customers only,” in public establishments?

What are your thoughts about homeless individuals owning pets?

Who from your childhood has had the greatest positive effect on the kind of person you are today?

Activities for Needy Families

Family Evening Meal calendar – May

Banner Health teaches kids about healthy eating

Easter Party in the Family Dining Room thanks to St. Joseph’s Hospital and Sodexo.

Engaging our Supporters

SVdP “Friend-Raising” Campaign to meet new Facebook Fans

Liliana’s Birthday Wish

Hearts and Hands Day of family volunteering

Flowers that Feed Why give cut flowers when your loved one can have Flowers that Feed?

Hungry for more? There’s lots more great news, photos, and videos on St. Vincent de Paul’s website, Facebook page, Twitter feed, blog, and YouTube channel.

Media Contact: Mary Chou-Thompson, St. Vincent de Paul, 602-339-5902, mthompson@svdp-phx-az.org

PHOENIX – Valley First Watch restaurant locations will host Free Omelette Day Wednesday, Oct. 6 from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. in an effort to help raise money and awareness of homelessness and hunger issues in Phoenix and throughout Arizona.

The annual event, which is in its 22nd year, will benefit the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, Phoenix which provides assistance to the homeless and hungry in central and northern Arizona. Diners of Free Omelette Day are encouraged to give a donation to support St. Vincent de Paul.

First Watch will offer free omelettes at its Scottsdale and three Phoenix locations:

• 16455 N. Scottsdale Road, Scottsdale
• 61 W. Thomas Road, Phoenix
• 9645 N. Black Canyon Highway, Phoenix
• 1 N. First Street, Phoenix

Free Omelet Day is October 6th

For more information about how you can help or to make a donation, please visit www.stvincentdepaul.net.

About the Society of St. Vincent de Paul
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is an international non-profit organization dedicated to serving the poor and providing others with the opportunity to serve. The Phoenix Diocesan Council has been assisting central and northern Arizona families since 1946. Programs include services for the homeless, medical and dental care for the working poor, charity dining rooms, thrift stores, a transitional housing shelter and general assistance for individuals in need. For more information about St. Vincent de Paul, please visit www.stvincentdepaul.net.
About First Watch in Arizona
First Watch started in Arizona in 1986 with the opening of their first restaurant at 3rd Avenue and Thomas Rd. It was started on the simple premise of “providing a valuable experience to our customers” distinguished by our good food and service. With over 4 valley locations we continue to build on the success of our philosophy “if we can we will”. First Watch offers an appetizing assortment of menu items, from traditional breakfast and lunch favorites—from eggs, pancakes, soups, salads and sandwiches, to our own irresistible specialties, such as the Chickichanga®, Crepeggs™ and classic BLTE® sandwich. Health conscious since our inception, our “Healthier Side” features a variety of delicious options, including egg white omelettes, fresh fruit crepes and our signature Power Wrap™. When you arrive, we welcome you with a pot—not just a cup—of our Sunrise Select™ Premium Blend coffee, along with complimentary newspapers and WiFi Internet access. We want to provide every customer with an extraordinary dining experience. It’s all part of our “YOU FIRST℠” service philosophy—doing whatever it takes to make your visit memorable

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix is one of 80 organizations throughout the country competing for a fruit tree orchard grant as part of the Communities Take Root program, sponsored by Dreyer’s Fruit Bars and the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE TODAY!

The fruit orchard would replace some existing shrubs and trees near our main entrance to help beautify the premises, improve air quality and provide a fresh fruit source for our Family Evening Meal program and emergency food boxes. The orchard would also provide an educational opportunity for our Family Evening Meal guests to reinforce the “5 A Day” message and improve family health.

Five winners will be selected on the first of each month, May 1 through Sept. 1. Voting began March 15 and will continue through Aug. 31. Participants can vote one time each day.

St. Vincent de Paul is the only Phoenix-area organization competing in the Communities Take Root competition.

CLICK HERE TO VOTE FOR ST. VINCENT DE PAUL TODAY!

On December 29th, St. Vincent de Paul was flooded with Feed The Children staff and volunteers to help serve over 300 families with food boxes and personal hygiene items. And as families lined up to receive their boxes, they were greeted by none other than Phoenix Suns guard Leandro Barbosa (and the Gorilla, of course!).

To this day, I am amazed at the immense generosity of our Phoenix Suns team. Fresh off a big win from the L.A. Lakers, they were eager to roll up their sleeves and lend a helping hand. And as a great basketball player as Leandro is in the NBA, I believe he is an even better man. He is a terrific volunteer and role model for our community, and we were very blessed to have him participate in our Feed The Children event.

I invite you to take a look at this exclusive video of Leandro and share with your family and friends. A very special thank you to everyone who assisted St. Vincent de Paul that day in ensuring a successful event for Feed The Children, and providing much-needed relief to families in need.

Leandro Barbosa teams up with St. Vincent de Paul

Click to play the Leandro Barbosa teams up with St. Vincent de Paul video

Eighth grade boys don’t usually cry. Especially a tall, handsome soccer player, who says math is his favorite subject in school.

Anthony lives with his mother, and three other siblings – Israel, a 4th grader, Vanessa, age 3, and Andrea, 18 months old, in a small, tidy house not far from the Arizona State Capital. Like other working poor families in the neighborhood, they struggle to make ends meet.

I learned about this family because they had received help from the St. Vincent de Paul conference in the area. I was so taken by the four children when I met them – their politeness and especially how warmly they responded to my presence.

SVdP has helped keep this family together over a period of years. During a rough patch four years ago, we supplied mattresses so the mother and her then 9- and 5-year-old sons wouldn’t have to sleep on the hard floor in the one-bedroom apartment the mother managed to rent. Another time, we helped with a rent payment that kept the family from eviction. Several months ago, the mother found a new job at a call center. A voucher for our thrift store allowed her to obtain suitable work clothes.

Recently, we have been supplying the family with monthly food boxes to help supplement the small salary the mother receives. With two hungry, active boys and two children in daycare, her salary can’t quite cover all their needs.

So what made Anthony cry? When it came time for school this year, Anthony’s one school uniform no longer fit him and was very worn after a year of wear and washings. He wouldn’t go to school without a uniform that fit him.

His mother told me that we provided clothing vouchers in August so that both boys could have new school uniforms.

When I asked Anthony what that meant to him, tears ran down his face. Those tears said everything.

I wanted to cry, too. For him, for his pride and for knowing how such little help can mean so much.

Communicator with social work roots comes full circle

“Phoenix is a perfect place to live and work,” exclaims Susan de Queljoe, St. Vincent de Paul’s Director of Community Relations & Business Strategies, while sharing stories about her well-traveled communications career. “There is a vibrant and somewhat undiscovered business community here with tremendous and diverse talent. Many people in our business and public relations communities could easily work at big firms in Chicago or New York, but they make the lifestyle choice to be here.”

Susan herself is among these talented communicators, having earned an M.B.A. in Marketing from New York University and a B.A. in Communications from Michigan State University. During her career she has shared her skills in some interesting geographies. Several years ago she returned to Phoenix, having been born here but raised in Detroit.

“My mother was a social worker and had a Masters degree, which was unusual for a woman at that time. She had aspirations of my being the same, but I loved working at the college radio station so I majored in TV and radio production. I told my mother I could always be a social worker later.”

“After working a while in the broadcasting, I became fascinated with the advertising end of things and ended up with a Communications degree. After graduation, I worked first for a Chicago ad agency, then one in New York, and later in Jakarta, Indonesia.

Her knowledge of poverty over time formed the spirit of compassion and approach she brings to working with St. Vincent de Paul volunteers and donors.

In high school, a friend volunteered with an inner-city Detroit woman who baked bread and took it to poor families. Susan joined in and learned first-hand how challenging seemingly simple things like putting food on the table could be.

She also traveled with a mission to Appalachia during high school, and in the backwoods of Kentucky encountered more vivid imagery.

“I saw broken down cars, litter outside of very small homes, kids with dirty tee shirts… there were such contrasts between inner city and rural poverty. However, the worst situations I’ve ever witnessed were in Indonesia.”

While living in Asia during the mid-nineties, Susan participated in an adventurous boat trip through the Indonesian islands. “Rugged places, off the beaten path,” she describes.

“In Agats (Irian Jaya), there were many children with red hair, which is a sign of malnutrition, and people with swollen bellies and body sores. Nevertheless, these people were so welcoming and willing to share what little they had with visitors. I’ve never been in such a devastatingly poor place, and I’ve never felt so out of place. Being there made me feel too fortunate. I realized I had to do more.”

So after that trip she met the Catholic Bishop of Agats who needed funds to send children overseas for schooling. She quickly helped him raise $150,000.

Fast forwarding to present day finds Susan immersed in community relations activities for the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in Phoenix. Her talent for building relationships with local media and businesses helps promote the work of SVdP so people can better understand what the organization does and become more involved.

“It dawned on me only recently that I’ve come full circle,” she says. “What I do now with St. Vincent de Paul is a perfect pairing of my communication skills and desire to honor my mother’s social work.”

Susan also directs the Society’s eight Valley thrift stores, overseeing call center, shipping and warehouse processes that bring in goods for sale. Her continuing challenge with the stores is to keep making them more profitable because revenues support SVdP programs and services.

She explains that there is no other organization like SVdP in Phoenix that provides so many different services, to so many people, through so many volunteers; 16,000 volunteers in all.

“Every month we help keep thousands of families from becoming homeless in some big and equally important small ways.”

Take St. Vincent de Paul’s dental clinic, for example. It sees over a hundred children each month.

“These kids are in such pain they can’t even focus on their school work,” Susan explains. “Imagine being in second grade trying to learn something when you have constant pain in your mouth. Our dental and medical clinics provide services for people who otherwise would not have any health care. We’re grateful to the volunteers, doctors, dentists, donors and employees who help people become healthier day in and day out.”

Susan also suggests that there are many small, yet important ways that St. Vincent de Paul makes a difference in the lives of homeless people and working poor families.

“It’s unfortunate that too many families have to live right on the edge,” she continues. “Imagine a father working two jobs to support his family. He gets a flat tire and doesn’t have enough money to fix it, so he misses work, loses one or both of his jobs, and now instead of barely paying the rent he can’t even come close to covering it.”

“A new tire would mitigate this whole mess. We see clients experiencing the chain reaction of poverty and misfortune every day, and we keep finding ways to help with items like auto repair so they can remain focused on moving to economic stability.”

St. Vincent de Paul charity dining rooms also contribute significantly to the community. Working poor families stretch their budgets by having meals in the dining halls and retaining their money for other essentials like clothes, rent and utilities. For homeless individuals, these meals are often their only hot meal for the day.

For Susan, families in the dining rooms, children in the dental clinic, shoppers in the thrift stores, and volunteers keeping it all running, with the gracious aid of donor funds is a daily occurrence. She feels fortunate to be an integral part of St. Vincent de Paul, no matter what new situation each day brings.

“Sometimes we’re just the spare tire that gets a father to work, but whatever the need, big or small, it’s heartening to see people join together to serve others.”

FRAC describes seven strategies essential to meeting President Obama’s goal

Washington, D.C. – The Food Research and Action Center (FRAC) today released a new  report setting out the seven strategies it deems essential for the nation to meet President Obama’s important goal of ending childhood hunger in America by the year 2015.

The strategies focus both on improving and expanding the nation’s nutrition programs, including SNAP/Food Stamps, WIC and the school meals and summer, afterschool and child care nutrition programs, and bolstering the economy and strengthening supports for working families in order to move more out of poverty, the root cause of hunger in this country.

This report is the first in-depth look at a comprehensive strategy to achieve President Obama’s goal. Read the full FRAC report.

Child Hunger Doesn’t Take a Vacation: Summer Nutrition Status Report 2009, annual look at participation in the Summer Nutrition Programs. The report, which gives data for all states and looks at national trends, finds that the Summer Nutrition Programs continue to fall short in reaching eligible low-income children. Download the full report.The Summer Nutrition Status Report page contains tools and information that can help you use the report to inform Senators, Congressional representatives, and other advocates or the critical need for summer food and other child nutrition programs. With the upcoming Child Nutrition and WIC Act Reauthorization, it’s imperative that elected officials understand the fact that millions of children go hungry every day, and how federal nutrition programs help.

The Arizona Partnership to End Childhood Hunger is a collaborative effort between families, state and local government and community based organizations, volunteers and anti-hunger professionals. The Partnership’s steering committe is the Arizona Department of Economic Security’s Hunger Advisory Council.  The primary function of the Hunger Advisory Council to advise the Director of Arizona’s Department of Economic Security on food security issues within Arizona.   Any funds gathered on behalf of the Partnership will be dispersed under the supervision of the Arizona Department of Economic Security Hunger Advisory Council and the Arizona Department of Economic Security Hunger Relief Coordinator.   The Partnership’s fudiciary is the Association of Arizona Food Banks.

Listing of organizations funded through the Arizona Partnership to End Childhood Hunger.

Learn more about how you can help End Child Hunger..this is a unique gift children will benefit from and it is just a click away.