Blessed Sacrament SVP Report

(Summer 2009)

The main work of the St Vincent Depaul Society is to befriend and assist individuals and families in need on a person to person basis (the majority of our visits are to the elderly and sick, we also have families referred to us by the schools, Social Services and other agencies). This involves visiting them in their own homes, care homes or hospitals etc. There is also the more practical side to our work such as shopping, providing transport or financial help when possible.

Our parish has 6 regular members and one who attends when work commitments allow, we meet in the convent in Beaconsfield road once a fortnight on a Tuesday evening at 7pm.

There is an SVP warehouse in Rhyl which has been very useful in providing furniture and other household goods to individuals or families in desperate need and our conference in the Blessed Sacrament parish has often provided financial help to such people.

In the Autumn we organise a day out which includes lunch for those who find it difficult to get out and about, and in December the St. Richard Gwyn school arrange a Mass followed by refreshments and entertainment provided by the pupils and teachers, this again is for the elderly and less mobile who look forward to it every year.

Although individual cases are treated with confidentiality our work is not secretive and is not confined to helping only Catholics, we try to help everyone who is referred to us or who we know is in need and we rely on the community to tell us if they know of anyone who may need a visit.