Home Visits and Prayer
The core of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul is the home visit. During a home visit, two SVDP members meet with the friend in need to just talk with them and discuss their needs and to pray with them. Many people report that this is the essence of SVDP. We visited 160 families during this past year.
Food
We provided over $89,000 worth of food to about 500 households (over 1,600 individuals) during this period. The food was donated by Holy Spirit parishioners and the Southeastern Virginia Food Bank. Volunteers from the Holy Spirit Men's Club picked up and delivered the food items from the Southeastern Virginia Food Bank.
Grocery Store Gift Cards
In addition to food items, SVDP gave over $14,800 in gift/gas cards to Food Lion and Kroger grocery stores.
Utilities
During this period, SVDP was able to assist over 70 of our neighbors in need with over $42,000 in rental assistance and utility bills. This enabled many families to avoid a disconnect notice of vital electricity and water services.
Clothing
The SVDP Clothes Closet gives people an opportunity to select gently used adult clothing that is donated by parishioners of Holy Spirit Catholic Church. About 160 individuals selected several hundred items of clothing from the clothes closet last year.
Furniture
The SVDP also provided free beds to 5 families last year.