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The St Vincent de Paul Society
The St Vincent de Paul Society is an international Christian organisation. Catholic in origin
and character it is dedicated to helping anyone in need with no discrimination on the grounds of creed, gender,
age, ethnicity or sexual orientation.
The Society exists in about 140 countries with nearly one million members. In England and Wales, its 10,000 volunteers
carry out around one million recorded visits each year. The essential work of the Society is person to person contact,
and as this is a fundamental part of the Society's ethos: it does not make donations to any work in which members
are not personally involved.
The Society operates in small groups, called "Conferences", based on local parishes or schools. They
meet regularly to review their work as well as allocating future work in a spirit of prayer and mutual support.
The work of a Conference is usually concentrated on local visiting. However, other activities may include "special
works", which serve people in a wider area or give more specialised help in a certain aspect of the work,
such as furniture stores, hostels, holiday schemes, children's summer camps and Drop-In Centres.
Internationally, groups in the developing world are "Twinned" with groups in more affluent countries,
supporting each other with correspondence and mutual prayer. Financial support is also provided in the form of
regular contributions, student sponsorship, specific projects and there is a "disaster fund" to help
the local Society cope with disasters in their own country. The SVP in England & Wales is twinned with conferences
in India, Sudan, Guyana and Grenada.
Membership is open to men and women, young and old, of any denomination. The SVP only asks that members accept
fully the Christian ethos of the Society, and are committed to express their love of God through personal service
to their neighbour. The SVP respects religious liberty and values all people.
SVP Home Page
Version: 23rd April 2006
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