Experts teach about systemic challenges
Members of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul — Madison gathered on April 22 to learn from a panel of experts about the challenges faced by people who are incarcerated and those who are re-entering the community after incarceration. Consisting of conference member volunteers, staff and panelists, the group discussed how they might help people individually within their parish conferences or whether the Society of St. Vincent de Paul — Madison might consider developing a program of support.
Panel experts and discussion topics included:
- Retired Dane County Sheriff Dave Mahoney talked about the difference between jail and prison and the correlation between a mental health diagnosis and/or addiction and incarceration.
- Peter Moreno, Odyssey Beyond Bars Program Director, shared about the value and need for education for those who are incarcerated to promote successful re-entry.
- Leann Moberly, Correctional Field Supervisor, talked about the role of probation and parole to support re-entry and associated challenges.
- Captain Jason Mentzel and Sergeant Craig Bruesewitz from Oakhill Correctional Institution talked about the need for productive work experiences for incarcerated people and those re-entering the community to support their success.
- Cecilia Klingele, UW Law School Associate Professor and system reform advocate, talked about the disparities in the criminal justice system due to race, ethnicity and poverty. She also discussed the need for reform and advocacy for recognizing the humanity of those affected by the criminal justice system.
- Craig Sussex, advocate for reform and formerly incarcerated, talked about his experience of incarceration and what it takes to successfully re-enter the community.
After hearing from the panelists, participants engaged in small-group discussions.
After hearing from the panelists, participants engaged in small-group discussions about what they had learned, how they might help people, and barriers to becoming involved. Society of St. Vincent de Paul – Madison Associate Executive Director, Amy Overby, facilitated the training and gathered reflections from participants.
“Our conference member volunteers want to better understand the challenges faced by our neighbors leaving incarceration so that we can better walk alongside them. This discussion will guide further steps in this area to address the Vincentian question that shapes all our work “what must be done?” Amy Overby shared.
In tandem with efforts of the Diocese of Madison and other local agencies, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul – Madison will continue exploring challenges faced by people who are incarcerated and those re-entering the community.
A lifelong volunteer and health care professional, Kathy moved to Madison after nursing school. She spent the bulk of her working career in the NICU at St. Mary’s Hospital. She retired in 2013 and began volunteering at the St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy.
“I knew about the stores,” Kathy said. “I first started in the food pantry and volunteered there for about six months. Then someone told me there was a pharmacy downstairs. So, I came down and stopped going upstairs,” Kathy laughed.
Above and beyond volunteer service
When she began volunteering, Kathy was the “welcome window lady.” She checked patients into the pharmacy and confirmed their prescriptions were ready for pickup. She continues this role now with the curbside process and fields questions from people about the certification process or the pharmacy in general.
Kathy always goes above and beyond her duties as a volunteer. She sees a problem and works to fix it.
For example, she regularly answers calls from people interested in donating items to the pharmacy. For medications the pharmacy can accept, she supplies the needed information for folks to do so. For medical supplies, the pharmacy cannot accept she coordinates with a friend, Mary Dowling, at Sharing Resources Worldwide to donate supplies to medical missions in Honduras.
A while ago, Kathy noticed the supply of expired donated medicines that the pharmacy couldn’t use. Kathy worked out an agreement with Officer Barret R. Erwin at the UW-Madison Police Department to safely dispose of the medications. Thanks to Officer Barret, the station accepts and disposes of the medications for free rather than having the pharmacy pay to dispose of them.
“I just had this thought; UW Police isn’t too far away,” Kathy recalls. “Since we’re a nonprofit, they’ll take the medications for free. I collect the unused medications and coordinate a time to drop them off. If there’s a simple way to take care of something that’s not terribly out of my way, I can do that.”
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The best aspects of volunteering
Kathy is grateful the pharmacy accommodates her flexible schedule and that she doesn’t have to find a substitute when she is sick or on vacation. She is grateful for expanding her network, and the best aspects of volunteer have been the people and patients.
“It’s the people. The people you get to know,” Kathy said. “The patients who know your name, especially when they came to the window. They have all been very nice and generous. We laugh a lot.”
“My idea of retirement is that you work or you volunteer at a place so you can expand the group of people that you know,” Kathy continued. “ You have to keep active in retirement. Find your niche and volunteer to share your skills. Find what you want to do and find where you can be helpful.”
A heart to help people
If the pharmacy didn’t exist, it would be a daily struggle for patients with diabetes to find regular medications and more people would end up in the Emergency Room, Kathy said. The care that the pharmacy volunteers and staff provide helps lower patients’ stress.
“I think St. Vincent de Paul is a good organization that works with people who need help,” Kathy said. “Everyone involved is committed to improving the community and helping others. All of the places I volunteer help people with low incomes.”
Besides her longtime commitment to the St. Vincent de Paul Charitable Pharmacy Kathy has volunteered at Specialty Care Free Clinic in Madison since 2011. As the only free specialty clinic for uninsured patients in the state, the clinic sends numerous patients to the pharmacy for their prescriptions. She also volunteers at the Lacy Food Pantry Garden where she helps plant, grow and harvest produce for distribution at the pantry. She is an avid sewer and donates her handmade quilts to Open Doors for Refugees.
For Dan Millmann, volunteering has always been on his radar.
After retiring from a 37-year career as a CPA, he volunteers at several places throughout town: the Catholic Multicultural Center, Queen of Peace Parish, Madison Children’s Museum. He’s the president of Madison South Rotary and joined the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry team last fall.
“In my mind, I always knew that I would work and once I was done I would volunteer and give back,” Dan said.
Growing up in Wauwatosa, Dan’s father modeled volunteering. Dan also credits the Catholic education he received from kindergarten through high school for instilling the value of volunteering in him. He said it’s a shared mission to help our neighbors.
“Through high school, there was always something [volunteering] there,” Dan said. “My dad was active in the church and as a family, we would volunteer. It’s always been in my mind that you do things like that and I’m just wired that way.”
Volunteering is something Dan has modeled now for his kids, both graduating this year; one from high school, one from college. He acknowledges young adults and young professionals are often strained for time, as he was early in his career. Volunteering can fall down the priority list after raising a family, managing a home, or working full-time.
Yet, he’s impressed by the number of college students volunteering at the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry today.
Camaraderie
His awareness of the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry began at his church on the west side of Madison and grew after a tour of the pantry several years ago. Looking for a volunteer opportunity close to home, he contacted the pantry and called to see how he could help. He didn’t have any specific idea what we wanted to do, how he could help, or all that was going on, but the staff put him right to work!
As a table loader now for the outdoor, drive-through pantry, Dan gets to do an active role and connect with new people. He values the camaraderie of a diverse volunteer team.
“I was looking for something to itch the social side of me and connect with people,” Dan said. “What I do now does both of those things. This gives me the opportunity to give back. It makes me feel productive and I get to talk with a bunch of interesting people I never would have met. We’re all people looking to give back and it’s fun to be a part of and associated with this group of people.”
Helping people get food
Dan is passionate about helping people get food. He found that volunteering at the pantry was a natural and organized way to do that.
“Access to food and food insecurity – covering basic needs for families – were some things that were important to me personally,” Dan said “So giving people what they need so they don’t go hungry and have access to food. I wanted to do whatever I could to help with that.”
The need for food is great, Dan continued, and it’s everywhere. Just about every town across the county has a small pantry of its own, he’s learned. The work of the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry and all of the pantries in the area is so important; they’re filling a huge need.
“I don’t know what we would do without pantries like this,” Dan said. “I can’t imagine a country like ours having people who didn’t want to take care of their community.”
Join the volunteer team! Click here or contact Zoe Lavender, Volunteer Coordinator, at zlavender@svdpmadison.org or (608) 442-7200 x71 to help.
The Feast of St. Isadore, patron saint of farmers, saw St. Vincent de Paul — Madison volunteers and staff come together for the annual blessing of Lacy Garden, a member of Madison Area Food Pantry Gardens. 
Msgr. Larry Bakke led the blessing, which included a reminder from the book of Genesis that God has called us to be stewards of his creation. The gathered group prayed for a bountiful harvest to provide food for families coping with food insecurity in our community. Msgr. Bakke, pastor of Our Lady Queen of Peace Parish in Madison, reflected that God’s work began in a garden and continued in a garden after Christ’s resurrection.
Tom Lacy, carrying on the tradition established by his late parents, invites volunteers to use 1.25 acres of the family farmland each year. In the garden’s 23rd year, planting began in early May, and harvesting will happen into October.
In a typical year, the Lacy Garden provides about 20,000 pounds of vegetables for distribution to people at the St. Vincent de Paul Food Pantry. Crops grown at the garden include asparagus, cabbage, broccoli, green beans, tomatoes, sweet corn, melons, squash and more. 
This year, for the first time, a summer intern, Becks Gatewood, will learn and support the work of garden volunteers: individuals, families, corporate groups and youth group members. These workers are crucial to a successful harvest. Getting involved is rewarding. No previous gardening experience is necessary. Regular work sessions are held on Monday and Thursday evenings, 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. You can find more information about the Lacy Garden and volunteer registration here.
What is a conference? Who are members?
In 1925, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul began serving in Madison at St. Bernard Catholic Church and Holy Redeemer Church. Each parish formed a conference of members dedicated to providing help to people in need. Ninety-seven years later, the Society continues to serve in Dane County with 18 member conferences which together make up the District Council of Madison. Today, each conference is located at a Catholic church.
“I wanted some hands-on work to help people, not just talking about helping people,” Ed Emmenegger, Blessed Sacrament (Madison) conference member, said, “It lets me put what’s in my heart into action.”
One way Society members provide relational care and support is by visiting people in their homes. A person in need calls for help and two conference members go to their home to hear their story and learn what assistance they need. “I like how respectful home visits are,” Jeanne Bauhs, Our Lady Queen of Peace (Madison) conference member, said, “We’re just showing someone that people care when they are down and out.” Often, the conference will help with rent, utility bills, or other financial needs, and direct that person to additional resources that may provide support, including the District Council and its programs of assistance.
In 1941, the church conferences established what is now the District Council, to operate larger programs than any conference could manage on its own. The “Special Works” of the District Council include all our programs and resources you know about today! These include our customer choice Food Pantry, Charitable Pharmacy for uninsured adults, housing programs for men, women and children, Vinny’s Lockers long-term goods storage, and our seven St. Vinny’s Thrift Stores. The District Council may also provide additional funds to help people whose needs exceed a conference’s ability to help.
“It’s great to have real assistance as part of an organization,” Mike Meehan, St. Thomas Aquinas (Madison) conference member, said, “We couldn’t do all this as an individual or a church, but we can do big things as part of a larger group.” Beyond home visits, conference members provide volunteer service at various St. Vincent de Paul — Madison events throughout the year, run food drives, help with our Recycle the Warmth blanket drive and more!
“I encourage others to get involved in whatever way they can,” Brenda Welhoefer, Saint Ann (Stoughton) conference member, said, “Even if you can’t be a home visitor, you can donate, you can raise money, you can volunteer, you can donate things you no longer need. It’s all done by local people for local people.”
Are you interested in becoming a member? Email Membership Director Gayle Westfahl at gwestfahl@svdpmadison.org.
Alejandro Vergara serves as a current pharmacy volunteer, Board of Directors member and long-time friend of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.
His involvement and dedication to the organization is felt by clients, staff and fellow volunteers. As a Spanish interpreter, his communication with patients is essential. Alejandro remembers growing up in Columbia where his father was an active member in the Society of St. Vincent de Paul. His father visited people struggling with poverty on the outskirts of town. He provided clothing and food vouchers, among other items. When Alejandro moved to Madison in 1992, he wanted to reconnect with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul and found fellow Vincentians at St. Bernard Catholic Church in Middleton.
Alejandro dove deeper into the organization through his involvement on the Board of Directors and as a pharmacy volunteer. Speaking on his involvement with pharmacy patients, “It’s a relationship,” Alejandro said. “It is a chance to interact directly with people needing help. It is more than just giving medications.”
Since April 2017, Alejandro has volunteered over 590 hours in the pharmacy!
“The reward I receive is unbelievable. I feel so good and want to inspire others to help. The more you give, the more you receive,” Alejandro said.
Alejandro remarks that the best way to encourage others is to look around you. While we are all accustomed to our routines, he suggests taking a moment to truly look at the people around you— your coworkers, the person behind you in the grocery store, your neighbor. “The first step in helping is recognizing your own talents and that you are so privileged to be able to share and give back,” Alejandro said.
We are extremely fortunate to have Alejandro as a volunteer and supporter!