#HelpUsHelpOthers

 Welcome to the website for Our Lady of Grace Conference, Society of St. Vincent de Paul! For easy NAVIGATION of this website, please use the TABS at the top of the page or any of the LINKS along the right side of the page.  Be sure to SCROLL DOWN to find lots of helpful information.

For current events and information about the Vincentian Family here and abroad,
please click on the poster below:

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Images of Poverty

OLG SVDP Homeless Ministry feeds the hungry during the holidays (photo collage courtesy of Mary Dempsey (C) 2014)

Vincentian Stations of the Cross

Walking the Road to Calvary with the Poor

Bicentennial of Blessed Frederic

Learn more

Friends of the Poor Walk 2013

Get ready to roll! (click the logo)

The Apostle in the Top Hat

Bl. Rosalie

Today, February 7, marks the feast day of Bl. Rosalie Rendu, who was beatified just 10 years ago.  Why is she important to the Society of St. Vincent de Paul?  Read more here.

National Friends of the Poor Walk

 

The Shirt

Conferences of St. James, Davis, Our Lady of Grace, West Sacramento, Holy Cross, West Sacramento, and St. Joesph's, Clarksburg joined with hundreds of SVDP conferences across the United States in the annual Friends of the Poor Walk on September 29.  The Walk encourages Vincentian spirituality, builds fellowship, and serves as a major fundraiser for many conferences.

Daughters of Charity

March 14. St. Louise de Marillac was born August 12, 1591. She married Antoine LeGras on February 5, 1613, had a son named Michel, and was widowed when Antoine died on December 21, 1625. St. Vincent de Paul then became her spiritual director, and under his guidance she became very active in caring for the poor and in visiting the Confraternities of Charity. With Vincent, Louise co-founded the Daughters of Charity on November 29, 1633. She died March 15, 1660, and was canonized in 1934. In 1960, Pope John XXIII proclaimed her the patron saint of all Christian social workers.  (Vincentian Feast Days.)

Sacramentum Caritatis

 

The Diocese of Sacramento has published its strategic plan for the diocese and, with it, a call to action to Catholics in Northern California.  Read the strategic plan here.

Of particular interest for Vincentians is the renewed focus on charity and social justice, with the foundation of both being Jesus Christ in the mystery of the Holy Eucharist.  In the document, this concept is called, Sacramentum Caritatis - The Sacrament of Charity.

Two excerpts from the strategic plan's discussion under Sacramentum Caritatas explain the concept:

The Sacrifice of the Mass is where the charity of the Church begins.

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In the Diocese of Sacramento, we will make explicit the relationship between the Eucharistic mystery of the Mass and our commitment to serve society with the truth and beauty of the Gospel.

The Way Out (of Poverty)

Serving in Hope.  Charity and Social Justice are the two aims of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul.   They are not exclusive concepts, but work together as responses to "the cry of the poor."  The Society is concerned with serving in hope--and bringing hope in Christ to those we serve.  Helping the poor to find "the way out" of poverty requires new attitudes, new approaches, new actions.  "Systemic change" is one way to describe this new approach.  National President Sheila Gilbert describes the new direction in this short video message.

Blessed Rosalie

Today, February 7, we celebrate the feast day of Bl. Rosalie Rendu, mentrix and spiritual guide to the original Society of St. Vincent de Paul.

Our Miraculous Medal

As we celebrate the Feast of Christ the King at the close of the Church's liturgical year, we also recall
Saint Catherine Laboure' and the events of the Miraculous Medal.  In these events, we are reminded of the closeness of Mary to her son and her role as Co-Mediatrix.

Vincentians have a special devotion to the Miraculous Medal.

Catholic Involvement in Public Life

reprinted from California Catholic Conference

Faithful Citizenship, the U.S. Bishops’ instruction on Catholics’ moral and ethical involvement in public life, is traditionally re-written every four years. This year, however, the Bishops have reissued the document which was overwhelming approved by them in 2007. They changed only the introduction saying that the issues faced by the nation in 2007 still challenge us:

“We urge our Catholic pastors and people to continue to use this important statement to help them form their consciences, to contribute to civil and respectful public dialogue, and to shape their choices in the coming election in the light of Catholic teaching,” they write. “It (Faithful Citizenship) does not offer a voter’s guide, scorecard of issues or direction on how to vote. It applies Catholic moral principles to a range of important issues and warns against misguided appeals to ‘conscience’ to ignore fundamental moral claims, to reduce Catholic moral concerns to one or two matters, or to justify choices simply to advance partisan, ideological or personal interests.”

The Introductory Note does not modify or interpret the document itself and emphasizes the importance of religious freedom. It raises six “current and fundamental problems, some involving opposition to intrinsic evils and others raising serious moral questions.” These are: abortion and threats to the lives and dignity of the vulnerable, sick or unwanted; threats to Catholic ministries, including health care, education and social services, to violate their consciences or stop serving those in need; intensifying efforts to redefine marriage; unemployment, poverty and debt; immigration; and wars, terror and violence, particularly in the Middle East.

The entire document, with the new Introductory Note, can be found on the USCCB page.

New Food Law Helps Poor

reprinted from the California Catholic Conference:

Since 2003, the California Catholic Conference has made food security a top priority for Catholic Advocacy (Lobby) Day and thousands of you have added your voice through the Network, phone calls and visits. Yesterday, Governor Brown signed AB 6 CalWORKs and CalFresh (Fuentes, D-Los Angeles) helping to fight hunger, especially for children, in the Golden State. Well done!

AB 6 will simplify the reporting process and eliminate the fingerprinting requirement that impedes low-income Californians from getting federally funded assistance. The Governor also signed AB 69, which will help low-income seniors access nutrition.

The CalFresh program is a critical component of the safety net for Californians, providing modest nutritional aid that helps avert hunger for families living below or near the poverty line. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has also shown that for every dollar of expenditure, CalFresh generates $1.79 of economic activity in local communities. Thank you to all Network members who became engaged in this issue over the years by emailing or speaking to their representative.

Bundle Sunday - September 24-25

BUNDLE SUNDAY

Saturday, September 24, noon to 6 PM
Sunday, September 25, 8 AM to 2 PM

HELP US HELP FAMILIES IN NEED

On September 24-25, the St. Vincent de Paul Donation Truck will be at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, 911 Park Blvd., West Sacramento. We accept donations of new and used items.

Household Items to Donate* Beds, rugs, chairs, furniture of all types, blankets, clothing, shoes, lamps, cookware, utensils, plates, towels, linens, home decorating items, sleeping bags, sporting goods, lawn furniture, toys, other useable goods

WE CANNOT ACCEPT *large appliances *built in appliances *lighting with direct connection *console or projection TVs *office desks *paint or any toxic materials *carpeting (area rugs OK) *exercise equipment *furniture with missing parts, rips, stains, animal hair or detectable smoke smell *king size beds *mattresses with rips, stains or tears *mattresses or box springs separately (bedding must be matching sets) *office copiers *cribs, playpens, high chairs or car seats *hospital-type beds *firearms or any weapons *encyclopedias or large volume reference books *computers, monitors, keyboards, mouse, CPUs

*FOR PICK UP OF LARGE, HEAVY ITEMS,

PLEASE CALL THE SVDP STORE DIRECTLY AT (916) 972-1212

Thank you for helping us to help others.

Call for Sponsors: Join Our "Circle of Angels"

On September 24, 2011, Our Lady of Grace Conference, Society of Saint Vincent de Paul, will join with hundreds of other Vincentians and friends across the United States as we take our first steps in the Friends of the Poor ® Walk to raise awareness in our community about the poor and funds to support our works of charity. Walkers will take donation pledges to help the poor. We also need a “Circle of Angels” to sponsor this event and its costs. Can you or someone you know help?

West Sacramento Partners

Our Lady of Grace Conference is affiliated with the newly formed West Sacramento Partners.

Japan Relief Efforts (News from National)

Dear Vincentians,


After a disaster occurs there are three phases- Rescue, Recovery, and Relief. In Japan, the critical and current Rescue phase is also being impacted by the Nuclear Power Plant crisis. The protocol for International Disasters is that the Council General issues an appeal for funds to the National Councils around the globe. Until that appeal is issued we do not send out an appeal to Councils and Conferences from the National Office. We are not first responders and we will probably be involved in relief efforts. We do have a small presence in Japan in particular in the area of the epicenter. At this point prayers and patience are what is most needed.

As an update on our relief efforts in Haiti- we have two staff working on the ground in Haiti. We have sent funds to help with the Cholera outbreak and we are expecting to begin approving micro finance loans either this week or next. Hopefully by the end of this month we will be approving scholarship funds for several schools.

Your continued financial support for Haiti Relief will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks and God Bless

Roger Playwin
National Executive Director
Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Bundle Sunday March 5-6



Let's fill the truck!

BUNDLE SUNDAY

Saturday, March 5, noon to 6 PM

Sunday, March 6, 8 AM to 2 PM

HELP US HELP FAMILIES IN NEED

On March 5-6, the St. Vincent de Paul Donation Truck will be at Our Lady of Grace Catholic Church, 911 Park Blvd., West Sacramento. We accept donations of new and used items.

Household Items to Donate* Beds, rugs, chairs, furniture of all types, blankets, clothing, shoes, lamps, cookware, utensils, plates, towels, linens, home decorating items, sleeping bags, sporting goods, lawn furniture, toys, other useable goods

WE CANNOT ACCEPT *large appliances *built in appliances *lighting with direct connection *console or projection TVs *office desks *paint or any toxic materials *carpeting (area rugs OK) *exercise equipment *furniture with missing parts, rips, stains, animal hair or detectable smoke smell *king size beds *mattresses with rips, stains or tears *mattresses or box springs separately (bedding must be matching sets) *office copiers *cribs, playpens, high chairs or car seats *hospital-type beds *firearms or any weapons *encyclopedias or large volume reference books *computers, monitors, keyboards, mouse, CPUs

*FOR PICK UP OF LARGE, HEAVY ITEMS,
PLEASE CALL THE SVDP STORE DIRECTLY AT (916) 972-1212

Thank you for helping us to help others.