Keep it Real All Year Long

Wrap the presents, decorate the tree, bake the cookies, shop, get to the next party, write the cards, shop again...it seems like it never ends. And it seems like it starts earlier every year (I think I saw the first Christmas display in August this year - seriously!). It's so very easy to get caught up in all the business of Christmas, so my wish for you this holiday season is a peaceful Christmas full of the most important things.

I know that for me it is important to take a moment and make sure that I keep this holiday season a time of celebration and love. I try to not let Christmas become a chore. 

The beauty of the Christmas season can remind us of all the beauty in life that we take for granted; our family, our friends, and our faith.

So celebrate the simple things of great wonder - that special light in the eyes of a child as they behold the wonder of the Christmas tree or the dancing flames of the candles on the Hanukkah Menorah; the smiles of people we may not even know but who give us the simple gift of human dignity that a smile represents; the closeness of family and friends in this season. 

These are the true gifts of Christmas that gladden our souls and warm our hearts.  Long after the batteries are dead on the toys, the apps have been downloaded onto the new tablet, the book has been read, and the food has been eaten there remains three most important gifts that endure - faith, hope, and love; and the greatest of these is love.

Whether you celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ at Christmas; the two Hanukkah miracles of the great Jewish military victory and miraculous supply of oil for the Temple; the celebration of family, community and culture during Kwanzaa; or another, let us each commit that the good things of this season will stay with us and in us to grow throughout the year.

We at SVdP Atlanta wish all of you our best and thank you for your continued support this past year. 

Peace and God Bless,

John

With Time or Money...Change a Life Every Day

Note:  The following posting originally appeared as an Op-ed piece in the Atlanta Journal Constitution on November 27, 2010

It was recently reported that according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau data, Georgia's poverty rate was the third highest in the country, with more than 1.8 million residents counted among the poor; an increase of over 300,000 people. This information validated an increasing trend in dependency and need that we have been observing at the St. Vincent de Paul Society over the last 3 plus years. That trend has driven increases in requests for assistance across the board; for food, clothing, financial assistance, and help in finding employment.  Unfortunately it is a situation that we don't see getting better any time soon.

The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul has served people in need in 35 counties in north and middle Georgia since 1903; and we have seen dramatic increases in requests for help every one of them.  The volume of requests began increasing in 2009 after the economic downturn began and have steadily grown each year since.  The ‘hard’ numbers are sobering.  In 2009 we helped over 179,000 people with $13.5 million in financial, material, and educations assistance; in 2010 that number grew to 189,500 people and almost $17.0 million in assistance.   

One of the most striking things St. Vincent de Paul has seen over the past few years has been the change in the socioeconomic profile of those seeking our help. More people are being driven into dependency and situational poverty due to job loss, underemployment, illness without medical insurance support, or other factors. The jobs crisis has also left many without work for so long that they are no longer receiving unemployment benefits.

That change in need has had a financial impact on SVdP’s ability to help. There has been a distinct increase in the amount of money needed to meet the needs of those we serve. For example, instead of requests for $300-500 to help with rent payments, people need help with $1000 mortgage payments. Some who previously donated have become clients.

With so many hurting, how can you help? Of course every nonprofit can use monetary donations, but there are many other ways. Hold a food drive in your neighborhood. Use the buy-one-get-one-free coupons and donate the free item to your local food pantry. Brew your own coffee and donate the $3-5 you save daily. Volunteer with a nonprofit. But most of all – care and become involved.  Make a difference and change a life – every day. 

John Berry

CEO and Executive Director

SVdP Receives $5000 Award from CITGO

On Tuesday, October 18th SVdP Atlanta accepted a donation of $5000 from CITGO and SA White Oil Company for fuel for our trucks. This was part of the Citgo Fueling Good summer program.  The Citgo award stated "For its ongoing commitment to improving and enhancing the quality of life for families in need, SVdP was recognized by CITGO and S.A. White, a Marietta-based CITGO Marketer, with $5,000 in CITGO gift cards to help extend its ripple of good and the impact of its work."

Shown above, CEO and Executive Director John Berry receives the award from Tim Peabody, Senior Territory Manager for CITGO and Marvin Aiken, Vice President of S.A. White.

Courage, Success, and The "New Normal"

Many of us were saddened this week to hear of the death of Steve Jobs, the technology genius and innovator and co-founder of Apple.  He was only 56 years old and lost and long battle with pancreatic cancer.  He and I were born in the same month in the same year, so his untimely passing was something that caused me to pause and reflect maybe more deeply than just out of respect and admiration for his incredible accomplishments.

I reflected back a number of years ago when I had an opportunity to meet and spend some time with Steve.  I was running a technology business at the time and we met in California not long after he had made the commencement address at Stanford University.    That address, especially now, has become quite famous and oft-quoted, but at the time it was still relatively unknown outside of the tech community and people who were admirers of Steve.

When we spoke I noted he similarity, in my mind, between his advice to the graduates, quoted below, and advice from Jack Welch, another of the CEOs that I admired greatly and who I had worked for at GE.  In his address Steve had said the following…

“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.”

He made that statement in the context of his fight against cancer, and how facing death had directed his focus in a different way.  But what we talked about was a ‘rule’ that Welch talked about often with the GE management team that had a similar context; “Control your own destiny, or someone else will.”

So how does this fit in with SVdP Atlanta and our work. 

Well, I think first you have to know something else about Steve Jobs that you may or may not have heard over the last few days.  And that is that he was the adopted son of middle-class parents, that he dropped out of college after one semester because of the financial burden on his family, and that he got fired from his first CEO job at Apple; the company he had founded.  And yet, because of his intelligence, determination, focus, and drive he became one of the richest men in the world who has left a lasting influence on how we live our lives that will continue for generations to come.

How can we take that lesson and apply it to the people we serve?  How can we use that example to support those who are struggling?  The Steve Jobs story could have easily gone the other way any of number of times.  The number of ‘forks in the road’ that he faced – one leading to success, one to despair – were numerous.  Yet each time he ended up on the right one.  Why?  Maybe there was some luck, probably there was some timing, and definitely there was some determination and drive.

But ultimately the only one, the only one that mattered was determination and drive.  Steve Jobs wanted to succeed.  Steve Jobs refused to let himself fail.  And he won; big time.

When we deal with the people we serve we often can’t give them everything they need.  We can’t pay all their bills, we can’t get them a job, and we can’t fix broken relationship and bad life choices.  But what we CAN do is help them understand that they ultimately control their own destiny.  They can make the changes and commitments in their lives that will lead to success; success that is defined by their dreams and their aspirations and their abilities. 

I think that all too often we drown people’s dreams in our own definitions and aspirations of what we define as success.  And I don’t mean ‘we’ as individuals, I mean ‘we’ as society.  We define success as a college education and yet we have people with four year degrees and forty years’ worth of debt working for minimum wage at the gas station because they can’t apply their degree to the real work of the world; yet they have creative talent, craft skills, or labor skills that they would love to use and which would offer the opportunity for a good living and a shot at real success.  We have people living from paycheck to paycheck because we define success as a 3,000 square foot house in a gated community and a BMW in the driveway, We have people drowning in credit card debt at 29.99% interest because we define success as each of the kids having a car on their 16^th birthday and designer label clothes to wear to pre-school.

There is nothing wrong with success.  As long as it is something that is internally defined and internally driven.  During this re-creation of the economic reality of our day we are going to have to make sure that those we help (and we ourselves) understand that there is a 'new normal'.  And the new normal is that there is no more normal.  We will have to adapt and change to meet the changing world at a pace that is even more rapid than it has ever been.  So it becomes that much more critical that we make sure that we have the courage and the heart to do what we know is right for us.   

I’ll leave you with something else Steve Jobs said in 2005 at Stanford. 

"You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle."

John Berry

CEO and Executive Director

Feast Day of St. Vincent de Paul

"Extend mercy towards others, so that there can be no one in need whom you meet without helping. For what hope is there for us if God should withdraw His mercy from us?" St. Vincent de Paul

Today is the feast day of the Patron of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul.  Today is a day we should reflect upon the work that we and hundreds of thousands of others across the world do in the name of St. Vincent; and to ask for God's blessing on that work.

Frederic Ozanam, and the other founders, chose St. Vincent de Paul as the patron saint for the Society because of his commitment to serving the poor. Yet it is important to know that he actually entered the priesthood to make a good life for himself and his family.  It was his ministry that changed his heart to seek not his own welfare, but the welfare of the poor.  Today, St. Vincent has become known as "the Apostle of Charity" and "the Father of the Poor."     

    

St. Vincent once said "Let us love God my brothers, let us love God. But let it be with the strength of our arms and the sweat of our brow." 

So today, as every day, we ask God to continue to change our hearts so that we may serve our neighbors in need through the 'strength of our arms and the sweat of our brow' - and by doing this let us love God and one another.

  

Peace and God bless,

John Berry

Executive Director

Poverty News - It is a Call to Action

On Monday of last week the US Census Bureau released poverty statistics for the United States and the State of Georgia.  Those statistics made big news in the media the next day. 

Unfortunately they were old news to staff and volunteers of St. Vincent de Paul Atlanta and the many others who work with people in need every day.  Each of the agencies dealing with situations of poverty and need have faced an overwhelming number of clients over these past few years; especially since the start of the economic downturn in 2008.

It is our hope that the release of these sobering poverty numbers does not drive a sensationalism of the plight of the poor and disenfranchised, or create a tone of blame against those living on the margins. Instead we hope that they will create an atmosphere of compassion and understanding and a drive for solutions.

We must demand that our elected representatives at all levels refuse to use the plight of the needy as political footballs to be kicked back and forth until one party wins and the people loose. Those suffering in poverty and need are real people with real stories of how they got into trouble. They are real people who have a strong desire to get themselves out of their crisis. Despite what some would claim, no one wants to be poor; no one wants to be dependent.

We all know that some people in need got themselves into that situation because of bad choices they made. But the vast majority of the people we help didn't have a choice--they lost their job at the wrong time, got sick at the wrong time, got their hours cut at the wrong time, or bought a home at the wrong time. They may be our family, neighbors, or friends. Without a financial cushion, these people fell into need. They deserve our compassion. They need our support.  

Let’s use the sobering poverty statistics released this week as a call to action rather than a call to blame.  Let’s act, not talk. We can all be part of the solution. While we are waiting for the economy to improve, for jobs to be created and filled, for housing to recover, we need to volunteer in a food pantry, donate to a thrift store, serve food in a shelter, and give to a service organization.  Together, we can make a difference.

John Berry
CEO and Executive Director

Voice of the Poor Month

St. Vincent de Paul has declared September Voice of the Poor Month. Our advocacy committee, Voice of the Poor, will tell the stories about those we help, their situations and their solutions.

The most striking change we have seen over the past few years has been the exponential increase in the number of people experiencing situational poverty,  a period of poverty caused by situational factors, in contrast with generational poverty, which is a form of entrenched poverty which can encompass multiple generations of a family. There are a number of reasons for situational poverty to emerge, but some of the most common are: divorce, death of a spouse, unexpected health expenses, and the loss of a job. These uncontrollable events can cause a spiral of events which leads to a period of situational poverty.

We have seen people who used to be our donors become our clients.

 

Those experiencing situational poverty often possess a higher level of education than people who experience entrenched poverty. Situational poverty can be grueling, especially without a support network. For people who have worked hard all their lives, it can also be extremely depressing, as it may seem like everything is being taken away for no apparent reason. Situational poverty is a sobering lesson, as it can potentially strike anyone; many people in the middle classes, for example, are only a catastrophic accident, illness or job loss away from situational poverty.

Look over over website and the stories of clients working their way through the challenges of situational poverty. They offer that SVdP has been instrumental in helping them when they were unsure of where to turn for help. We are blessed and honored to have the ability to serve those who need us so much. You can help, too! 

Become part of the solution for so many who need just a little help to get back on track.

Poverty is Not Theater

Recently in the local Atlanta newspaper a national columnist suggested that that those in poverty in the US are taking welfare and social security funds so they can live large in other ways, like air conditioning, cars, color TVs, cableand satellite, VCRs, microwaves and big houses. He also suggested that overeating causes most of “the poor” to become obese. He calls compassion for the poor, “great political theater.”

This columnist seems to think a majority of people strive to remain poor so as to accept handouts from the government. Last year the Society of St. Vincent de Paul helped more than 189,000 people who could not make ends meet. That is the equivalent of the entire population of the city of Columbus, Georgia. The majority of the people were visited in their homes by a team of caseworkers. I can assure you and the author of this column that our caseworkers did not observe extravagance and opulence. The people we visited were scared and suffering. Most were reluctant to ask for help but turned to SVdP in desperation. No one dreams, wishes and hopes to be poor when they grow up.

We also are angered by the author’s assertion that compassion for the poor is “great political theater.” There is nothing theatrical about your family of four living in a car because they have been evicted.  There is nothing theatrical about feeding children carrot soup for three days because all that is left to eat is one carrot and water. There is nothing theatrical about having the electricity turned off when the temperatures are 90 to 100 degrees for weeks on end. The fear, shame, isolation and desperation of these circumstances may make for high drama, but there are no theatrics involved.

Every day we see real people living in extremely difficult circumstances in very tenuous economic times. Many of those who ask for help were previously employed. They were middle class, or working class people striving to get ahead, to provide for themselves;  but they lost their jobs and lost their homes through no fault of their own. The economic downturn has made victims of many who were previously self-sufficient. That is not political theater. That is reality; a reality we address every day in our 38 food pantries.

As a whole, the quality of life in the US is better than anywhere else in the world. Yet people living in our communities are still ill-clad, ill-housed and ill-nourished. We see it every day and we try every day to change it.  We have no political intent, no desire for theatrics and no need for political rhetoric.  We help people because we are compassionate and caring, and because it’s the right thing to do.   We ask for help in our work and thank you for your continued support.

Trio de Guitarras Domine

Last night St. Vincent de Paul Atlanta was honored to put on a benefit concert by a guitar trio from Buenos Aires, Argentina; Trio de Guitarras Domine.

Through the efforts of the Consulate General of Argentina, the trio performed at no cost to SVdP Atlanta.  They were in the United States on a concert tour and to do a TV special and offered to support the works of SVdP Atlanta by performing at this event.  The members of the group, and the Consul General of Argentina here in Atlanta were very familiar with the works of St. Vincent de Paul as a result of the work done by the Society in Argentina.

A wonderful evening was had by all and much needed funds were raised to help support people in need in Georgia.  In addition, each concert goer was asked to bring an item of non-perishable food to help stock our food pantries.

We thank everyone associated with this wonderful evening and pictures will be posted on our website www.svdpatl.org soon.

John

The Start of a New Week at SVdP Atlanta

Well it's Monday again and we're ready to start another week at SVdP Atlanta.  I thought that you might be interested in getting an idea of what the week ahead entails for us here.  So I'm going going to 'take you behind the curtain' and let you be part of our morning.

This morning we started the week with our weekly staff update.  Everyone gives each other an update on what's scheduled in each department so that we can each know how scheduled activity is going to impact us.  Usually it's safe to say that about half of what occurs during the week is proactive and half is reactive.  That's about normal and expected for an organization like ours.  The "fun" starts when that reactive percent climbs based on unanticipated issues and activities.

Our Stores Director Kevin reports that we just signed the new lease on Friday to expand our Kennesaw Thrift Store into a new 10,000 sq. ft. space.  Now that we've committed to the space there will be quite a bit of physical work on it before we actually move in.  Thankfully the majority of that work will be done by our "volunteer army" with support from local groups like the Knights of Columbus and Kennesaw State University (Go Owls!) students.  Exciting time ahead!

We've also got a new Thrift Store Manager for the Dallas, GA store starting training today.

Communications Programs Manager Caryn is getting ready for our benefit concert Wednesday night with the Argentinian group "Tres de Guitarras Domine" who will be performing at Transfiguration Catholic Church in Marietta.  This group, through the generous efforts of the Argentinian Consulate, is performing free to benefit the work of SVdP Atlanta.  In addition, Caryn is getting ready for the printing and mailing of invitations for our 5th Annual Evening for Hope on October 15th at the Marriott Marquis in Atlanta.

The Vincentian Support Department is operating without its Director, Brian, who is off on a well earned and deserved vacation in Florida with his family.  But Louise and Tiffany are stepping in to continue the work of that department including the delivery of our Vincentian University programs, including the Leadership Workshop this week.

The Finance and Development offices are deeply engaged in grant reporting and management and preparation for the anticipated release of over $100,000 in EFSP funding to us.  This funding will be used to directly support people in need with housing, uniltriy, and food assistance across North and Middle Georgia.

Client Support department efforts are focused on delivery of services at the four Family Support Centers, continuing growth and management of the Food Distribution Program (including the addition of a new partner this week) and process and procedures for monitoring of the EFSP funds mentioned above.

I have a busy week ahead of me, starting with a meeting tonight with the Governor and Mayor on transportation issues and then partner meetings the rest of the week.  On Wednesday night I'll be with the Argentine Counsel General at the concert in Marietta and o Thursday night I'll travel to Jasper, GA to bid farewell and offer my thanks to our District 8 President as he leaves us to move to Arizona.

So, I hope this gave you a little taste of what a week around here is like.  There's never a dull moment at SVdP Atlanta.

John

Kids and The Viscous Cycle of Poverty

The cheating scandal within the Atlanta Public School System has dominated the news for the last few weeks.  The scope of the scandal is breathtaking and it will be a long time until all the facts are unraveled and the damage assessed.  Unfortunately it will likely be an even longer time until the damage caused to the children of the school system can be corrected.

In all of the fallout from this tragic episode we must ensure that we do not lose sight of the fact that the impact of a failure to educate children today has longer term implications.  The viscous cycle of poverty and dependence that many find themselves in is, more often than not, directly tied to a lack of education or inadequate education.

The cycle of poverty is not difficult to understand.  Each of us lives within a socioeconomic system whose parts interact with each other.  If the system is working well it favors personal growth.  If not it thwarts growth and accelerates decline.  If, for example, I don’t have a job, I don’t earn money.  If I don’t earn money I can’t buy food for my family.  If my son or daughter doesn’t have sufficient food they suffer malnutrition.  If they suffer malnutrition they can’t study well. If he or she can’t study well they won’t graduate from school.  If he or she doesn’t graduate from school he/she may not get a decent job.  If they don’t get a decent job they won’t earn enough money to buy food.  And so the cycle begins again.

The Atlanta Journal Constitution, in an editorial on July 15, 2011, addressed this issue of education and poverty in the context of the APS cheating scandal.  While addressing the need for reform and change in the system they also made the case that it is only through a holistic approach to our school and communities that real progress can be made in helping our children. One memorable line in the editorial said: "Children’s horizons are heavily influenced by their surroundings, we all know that. Effective learning can’t occur until we find new ways to better counteract harsh outside-of-school realities facing thousands of students. "
The cycle of poverty cannot be broken at the school level unless effective learning can occur. And effective learning cannot occur when children are hungry, or living in rat infested hovels, or subject to daily exposure to violence and drugs, or unloved and un-nurtured.
 

St. Vincent de Paul, through the work we do every day in our community, strives to address the challenges associated with breaking that cycle by addressing the needs of the community.  In some cases those needs involve programs that drive a systemic change approach.  Other situations call for urgent, immediate help that can address need without going beyond basic support. 

We will continue to define, develop, and implement programs that can support our local community volunteer conferences in their efforts to help people in need.  These efforts include creation of partnerships and collaborative programs with other nonprofits, the business community, and others.  Because we know that you cannot Change Lives unless you change circumstances.

The APS cheating scandal is a tragedy.  Children caught in cycles of need and dependence are a greater tragedy.  We must work together to correct both.  Let's get to work.

John Berry

CEO and Executive Director

Ripples Turning to Waves

The American theologian and writer Frederick Buechner once said “The life I touch for good or ill will touch another life and that in turn another, until who knows where the trembling stops or in what far place my touch will be felt.” 

When I think about the work of St. Vincent de Paul in Georgia over the last 104 years in the context of that statement I am overwhelmed with thoughts of the number of people our work has touched; directly and indirectly.  I think about lives that have literally been saved by some work of charity and love from Vincentians unknown to us today.  I think about how many times hope filled a void because of the acts of Vincentians unknown to us today.  I think about children who live lives of fulfillment and happiness because their parents were touched by Vincentians unknown to us today.

St. Vincent de Paul has served those in need in Georgia for many years; and we will continue today and then again tomorrow and then again next week.  We continue to touch people’s lives, to change people’s lives, to improve people’s lives.  We go on the home visits and listen.  We go on the home visits and we care.  We go on the home visits and we try to develop solutions to problems.  Why?

I think it’s because we know, maybe not consciously but we still know, that the life we are touching at that moment in time is not an isolated life or an isolated fellow human being.  We know that our impact is far reaching and long lasting.  We know that providing hope, help, and love to one person today provides help, hope, and love to unknown numbers of others tomorrow.

 

And that touch from one of the thousands of SVdP volunteers will create a ‘tremble’ and an impact that will travel far and wide.  And its impact will be felt.  Like the stone thrown into the still waters of a pond it will create tiny ripples of hope that together with the tiny ripples of hope created by the thousands of other Vincentians who have touched lives in Georgia over the last 104 years will become waves of positive change for people known and unknown to us.

It is only through the support our many thousands of donors and volunteers that we are able to do this.  If you are one of those thousands then we thank you for it and we humbly ask for you to continue to honor and bless us with it.  If not, we invite you to join with us in helping 'Change Lives...One at a Time.'

John