The society of St. Vincent de Paul is an international organisation in the Catholic Church for the sanctification of its members by personal service to the poor.
The members of St. Vincent de Paul of Aquem offer service to the poor irrespective of caste and creed. It undertakes welfare projects for the betterment of the poor.
The lady apostolate of the Western India Region had organized a two day seminar on the 4th & 5th November at the St. Benedi
ct Monastery, Bangalore. Four lady representatives from Goa including myself attended this Seminar.
The topic of the seminar was ‘Warning signs of severe mental stress and Vincentian support with awareness’. Fr. Felix Victor, vice-principal of St. Joseph College, Bangalore in his inaugural address conveyed that ‘Women are called the fair sex’. They educate one child, they educate a family. Indian society is still backward in protecting the rights of women. The government has passed several acts to protect & empower women. Vincentians all over India are working to uplift women. Therefore “as Vincentians, keep the fire burning, for you are the beacon”, was the clarion call from Fr. Felix Victor. The main resource person was Sr. Ida Lobo of Holy Spirit Convent Bangalore. Sr. Ida had a fruitful session. She got a feedback from every state on the problems women faced.
The Society of St. Vincent De Paul is an International Organisation started by blessed Frederic Ozanan. St. Vincent dedicated himself to the poor and is known as the ‘Great apostle of Charity’. In St. Sebastian’s Church this Conference of SSVP was started in the year 1997. Presently there are 18 members in the Conference.
I would like to place before you some of the activities carried out by our members. We visit St. Joseph’s Home at Quepem, Jyoti Bhavan at Balli, both run by Mother Teresa’s nuns. Sometimes some benefactors donate some money in remembrance of their deceased family members and ask us to give food for the inmates. So we give lunch for these inmates.