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Community breakfast raises funds for St. Vincent de Paul
By Andrew Junker, ajunker@catholicsun.org
November 20, 2008
SCOTTSDALE — The support and services offered by the Society of St. Vincent de Paul are myriad in the Valley.
From food boxes and rent assistance to dining rooms and thrift stores, transitional shelter for the homeless and free medical and dental clinics — the society fights poverty and desperation on the front lines.
More than 1,000 men and women learned more about the society’s good works at a Nov. 6 community breakfast at the JW Marriott Camelback Inn. They also heard that the need for St. Vincent de Paul has never been greater.
“More people than ever are sleeping in the streets, as even the human services campus is full beyond capacity. Unemployed homeless men and women are giving up, as the prospect of finding a job in today’s economic crisis is nonexistent,” said Steve Zabilski, executive director of St. Vincent de Paul.
“It is tougher today than I have ever seen,” he said.
This year’s community breakfast is a new direction for the society’s fundraising efforts. It used to be that they would host two community breakfasts a year, each one focusing on selected services provided by St. Vincent de Paul.
With this month’s breakfast, they’ve moved to hosting the event once a year and highlighting as many of their good works as they can.
“Our goal was to provide an overview of the comprehensive services that we provide,” said Susan de Queljoe, director of community relations. “People who had never been to the breakfast before were, I think, really overwhelmed at what they were seeing.”
De Queljoe listed the different aspects of the society that help the poor. First, there are the more than 5,000 Vincentian members who work in their parish conferences. They visit the poor in their area with food and monetary assistance. These personal visits bring a level of dignity and privacy to the needy.
“This is the hidden work that we do. They’re our unsung heroes,” she said.
Their work is augmented by the thousands who shop at St. Vincent de Paul thrift stores, volunteer at its dining rooms or donate food to their processing center.
“I think that St. Vincent de Paul is a quality organization and people recognize that,” said Leslie Zchokke, annual giving and events manager. “They know that by supporting us, the money will go where we say it will go and will be effectively used.”
Organizers hoped that this year’s breakfast — which featured presentations by Victor Trastek, chief executive officer of Mayo Clinic, and former and current clients of the society — will encourage the community to dig deep during these hard times.
“It’s truly amazing,” Zabilski said, “that a few dollars can often mean the difference between a place to live and life in the back of a truck or the back of a dumpster.”
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