Stories Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Society of St. Vincent de Paul

Read how your care, compassion and encouragement help neighbors in need. Current edition: Lent 2024

Increasing food prices mean higher client numbers at our Food Pantry, and people come however they can.

As he loaded cans of soup, a bag of apples and oranges, frozen meat, cheese, yogurt containers and a gallon of milk onto his bike, Geoff* explained how much the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry means to him. “It’s a huge blessing. A blessing of food which goes a long way,” Geoff said. “All of these people out here to help, it’s amazing!”

It is a cold, cold “Wisconsin spring” day. It’s windy outdoors in the parking lot. A mix of snow and rain falls heavily. Still, staff and volunteers at the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry are loading vehicles with food and personal-care items as they have, regardless of the weather, for the past two years. Cars frequently begin lining up 45 minutes before the pantry opens. Once they reach the front of the line, it takes just minutes for staff and volunteers to load trunks or backseats with boxes of food. Clients make special requests – no meat, skip the bread, just produce this week – but most take the full 75-pound allotment.

Most people coming through our Food Pantry receive about 75 lbs. of food (right). Your gift will help Geoff and other clients get the food they need, donate here today. Thank you!

Since the beginning of April, our food pantry has averaged 104 households per pantry day. The current record-high number of households in one day for this year is 158. These are numbers more typically seen around Thanksgiving and Christmas times. Staff and volunteers load a vehicle every minute and a half on the busiest days.

Vehicles aren’t the only way people retrieve their groceries and come through our outdoor drive-through service. Geoff, a pantry client this past year, rides his bike to and from our pantry. Other pantry users ride the bus, using backpacks or shopping bags to carry their food home. A friend referred Geoff to St. Vincent de Paul. He’s been a regular at the pantry for the last year. Especially due to the pandemic and inflation, access to free food has helped him pay other expenses and bills.

Inflation means food and other goods are expensive. Everyone feels this. Those who lack transportation face an added burden. Geoff cannot drive but manages the best he can by using a bike carrier to get his groceries home. Heavy items go on the bottom, bread on the top and anything else he can carry in two backpacks on his back. A supply of toilet paper, toothpaste and other personal-care items hang from his bike’s handlebars.

“God blessed us with this food and with this pantry. It’s amazing with such nice volunteers and staff,” Geoff said. “Food is expensive, rent is expensive, and this helps to cover other expenses like my rent and utilities. I can’t thank you enough.”

*Name changed for privacy

St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy staff continue to provide health information to patients on receiving their COVID-19 vaccines

St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy staff and volunteers provide COVID-19 vaccines and health information to “hard-to-reach” people who have been hesitant to receive a vaccine. Staff pharmacists Becky Mann and Yolanda Tolson- Eveans share stories of patients they have talked with and educated about the importance of receiving their COVID-19 shots. In some cases, folks were current pharmacy patients and asked if they would like to receive a vaccine and initially said no. After explaining the benefits, talking about their concerns and sharing information, several patients received their vaccine with a resounding, “Yes, please!”

Pharmacist giving patient a vaccine

In one instance, a patient accompanied a family member while he received his vaccine. Several weeks later, that patient decided to follow up with our pharmacy and came to receive his own vaccine. In another case, staff offered a patient a COVID-19 shot and discussed his concerns. At that time, the patient declined, but several months later when the opportunity arose, he had re-considered due to the positive conversation and helpful information our staff shared.

Many of our patients face barriers to receiving healthcare: transportation, information only provided in English and lack of internet to access resources. Our pharmacy consistently helps patients overcome these barriers. Through Uber Health, we can offer patients a free ride to and from our pharmacy. Our volunteer interpreters allow staff to engage with Spanish-speaking patients. We offer a variety of ways to sign up for an appointment and retrieve medications. We advertise our standing as a free public resource on several platforms.

Our vaccination clinics have increased awareness of our pharmacy. As the only free-standing charitable pharmacy in Wisconsin, we are not connected to or supported by any single healthcare organization. The more people who are aware of us, the more patients we can help and the healthier our community can become.

If health care assistance is important to you, please consider supporting our pharmacy with a financial donation. Reach out to Eric Fleming, Director of Development, at (608) 442-7200 x34 to discuss how an individual or business can assist with our pharmacy needs.

Jill* found our food pantry one year ago while driving through town. She uses our new online food-ordering system, Pantry Pal, to select and pick-up her canned goods, meat, fresh produce, dairy and bakery.

“The online ordering system is less wasteful than receiving items I might not be able to use,” Jill said. “I can chose exactly what I want.” Jill also brings food to an elderly neighbor.

Pantry Pal was developed by Laura Mendyk and Julie Eichhorn. The current system is an online form, but the pair is developing a mobile app for food pantries. “Pantry Pal is incredibly honored to partner with St. Vincent de Paul to trial and build a platform that will simultaneously make acquiring food easier for those who need it and support the operations of the pantry. We appreciate the support of Chris Kane, Jenni Troia and Josh Hittesdorf (pantry staff) and their willingness to collaborate and engage in this journey with us,” Mendyk said.

“The food ordering system allows me to spend my work money on other bills and not have to worry about food. A lot of people feel shame asking for help, but sometimes you just need help. I am not afraid to ask,” Jill said.

*Name changed for privacy

Moises and Rosa have been long-time St. Vincent de Paul—Madison clients. On one September afternoon, the couple visited the Food Pantry and Charitable Pharmacy using our newest service, a free Uber ride!

Thanks to a partnership with Project Finish Line, our Charitable Pharmacy is proud to offer patients free rides to and from their COVID-19 vaccinations. As transportation is a common barrier to receiving healthcare, offering free rides increases the pharmacy’s accessibility.

The couple’s afternoon began with a phone call from a pharmacy volunteer in their preferred language, Spanish. The volunteer confirmed the plans that Uber would pick up the couple and bring them to St. Vincent de Paul. Upon arrival, the car first accessed the drive-through Food Pantry and was loaded with fresh produce, bakery, meat, eggs and pantry staples.

Talking with a volunteer pharmacist, the couple checked into the pharmacy and awaited Moises’ prescriptions. After discussing his current health, Moises received his flu vaccine. In previous weeks, the couple were one of dozens of patients to receive their first and second doses of a COVID-19 vaccine through our pharmacy.

In talking with the couple, volunteers heard that their granddaughter had been sleeping on the floor. Was the couple aware St. Vincent de Paul provides furniture vouchers? Staff contacted the couple the next morning to connect them with a furniture voucher so their granddaughter could receive an air mattress.

Throughout the afternoon a pharmacy volunteer provided Spanish translation for the couple to ensure they received the correct information. Another pharmacy volunteer brought Moises his prescriptions. With photos and diagrams, she explained each medication and any new changes. The bottles contained instructional stickers in Spanish and clear patient guidelines.

After receiving a flu vaccine, after loading the car full of pantry staples, after receiving essential medications, after talking with staff and volunteers about their current situation, the couple went back into the Uber to head home.

Since May, the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry has delivered free, renal-diet-friendly foods monthly for 50+ patients, who have failing kidneys.

Berkley French identified a need. She reached out to St. Vincent de Paul — Madison who helped her and Fresenius Kidney Care find a solution for dialysis patients at their Fitchburg clinic.

“Many of our patients face barriers ranging from fatigue (12+ hours of treatment every week), transportation and physical mobility difficulties, limited diets. Most do not have jobs,” Berkley said. “The St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry is able to provide foods that support healthy kidneys and deliver it right to our patients at the clinic.”

“When Berkley reached out, we said, ‘Absolutely, let’s make this happen,’” said Chris Kane, St. Vincent de Paul — Madison Director of Client Services. “This is a great way to literally help our neighbors in need.”

“This has been awesome to see and very impactful,” Berkley added. “Hopefully, we can continue to learn our patients’ needs and also expand to our sister clinic in the future.”

Goods storage for people experiencing homelessness returns after fire last fall

Vinny’s Lockers 2 opened in July, following a building remodel project to replace the original Vinny’s Lockers, which was lost to fire last November. This program, the only one of its kind in Dane County, provides long-term storage of goods for people experiencing homelessness.

Volunteers helping clients move items into Vinny’s Lockers 2 on opening day!

The original Vinny’s Lockers building was demolished and removed after the fire. St. Vincent de Paul facilities staff spent months remodeling a building on the same site to suit the needs of the program.

Clients using Vinny’s Lockers often store items such as off-season clothing, tools or household goods. People who lost goods in the fire last fall received St. Vinny’s Thrift Store vouchers and box store gift cards to replace their belongings.

“It was a great relief to have a place to store my things when I was homeless and jobless,” said Marco*, who had made use of Vinny’s Lockers. “It allowed me to save some important documents and was a safe place to save some of my valuable items. Vinny’s Lockers helped me a lot.”

To learn more, please visit: Vinny’s Lockers

Volunteer-run Lacy Garden fosters community, promotes healthy living

St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry shopper Donna delighted in the variety and freshness of vegetables she received during a recent pantry visit. “My family loves the tomatoes best,” Donna noted. “And it’s fresher than what I could get at the grocery store!”

Fresh is correct. Cabbages, broccoli, beans, tomatoes and more are grown at the Lacy Food Pantry Garden in Fitchburg. The vegetables arrive at the pantry the evening of their harvest and are distributed to clients within a day or two. The Lacy Garden, one of several food pantry gardens in Dane County, produces an average of about 18,000 pounds of fresh vegetables for the food pantry each year. It is the only pantry garden that provides produce exclusively to the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry.

The Lacy Garden is run entirely by volunteers, with hundreds of individuals planting, weeding, watering and harvesting each year from April through October. Some volunteer as individuals or family groups; others come from area businesses or schools to work together for a good cause.

“My affiliation with Lacy Garden has been deeply satisfying,” said Peg O’Donoghue, Volunteer Coordinator for Lacy Garden. “It is a story of ingenuity, generosity and community.”

“Co-founders Ken Witte and Emmett Schulte devised a way of bringing nutritious produce to local food pantries nearly 25 years ago. Generosity from Phil and Winnie Lacy who donated farm acreage for cultivation 22 years ago, continuing to today. And it is community-built by volunteers, those who have served for many years and those who are just finding the Lacy Garden,” said O’Donoghue.

“It is a privilege to witness God’s Blessing each year,” affirmed Tom Parslow, Garden Leader. “And to watch these small seeds emerge, grow and mature into nutrient filled produce is a true miracle.”

Scholarships propel students Kareena and Juan Carlos and their families to pursue shared dreams.

Juan Carlos graduated from Madison East High School in 2019. Kareena graduated from LaFollette High School this year. Both know that a college education could help them escape poverty and allow them to assist their families which remain in need. But could they achieve their dreams of becoming the first college graduates in their families?

Every academic year, the Youth Service Council (YSC) of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul—Madison provides post-high school scholarships to area students whose families have lower incomes. In addition, the family of each scholarship recipient receives material support in the form of rent aid and grocery store gift cards.

YSC scholar Juan Carlos

Catholic high school students across Dane County join the YSC to share faith, fellowship, and opportunities for service with other area teens. YSC members say that raising money to provide scholarships for students who would otherwise have difficulty attending college is their most meaningful project each year.

“Tonight mattered,” explained YSC member Peyton, describing the group’s review of each application to determine how to allocate the funds raised to students in need and their families. “We gave money in a way that is tailored to each family’s needs.”

Kareena and Juan Carlos attest to the importance of the assistance for their families in addition to the help with tuition.

“Since I could, I’ve worked to make money to help my family,” Kareena shared. “This scholarship will help my family have money for rent and for food. That makes it a lot easier for me to focus on my studies.”

Juan Carlos lives with his sister and her family. His father died when he was eight, and his mother lives in Mexico. He agrees the added support helps him stay in college.

“I knew that I wanted to do more studying after high school, and it was going to be hard. I don’t have my parents with me. It’s hard to pay for college – it’s really expensive. The extra money for my family allows me to focus more and keep my mind off of money problems.”

Juan Carlos will complete the liberal arts transfer program at Madison College this fall, then plans to finish his engineering studies at UW-Madison. Kareena starts at UW-Madison this fall and intends to pursue studies in health science.

Both students are grateful to St. Vincent de Paul and the wider community’s support. They look forward to a brighter future when they can help their families and community.

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