From Fr. Steven - August 9th

Dear Immaculate Conception Community,

Fr. Steven has graciously allowed our Immaculate Conception St. Vincent de Paul Conference to address all of you this week to tell you about the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, the works of the I.C. St. Vincent de Paul Conference, and to invite you to participate in our annual Friends of the Poor® Walk, which will be held as a “virtual” walk this year.

Inspired by Gospel values, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul leads women and men to join together to grow spiritually by offering person-to-person service to those who are in need and suffering, in the tradition of its founder, Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, and patron, St. Vincent de Paul. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a world-wide organization composed of women and men who seek their personal holiness through works of charity. Our mission statement describes the Society as “A network of friends, inspired by Gospel values, growing in holiness and building a more just world through personal relationships with and service to people in need.”

The current Immaculate Conception St. Vincent de Paul Conference was formed in 2016. We meet twice a month for prayer and spiritual reflection, and to deepen our commitment to the Christian calling to seek and find the forgotten, the suffering, or the deprived so that we may bring them the love of Jesus. Our goal is to grow in holiness through service to those in need. The Society offers tangible assistance regardless of religion or background. The intent is to provide both emergency relief and a path to self-sufficiency. During our last fiscal year, the I.C. St. Vincent de Paul Conference has:

Made more than 120 personal home visits to assess needs and offer support. Provided approximately $66,000 in direct help for nearly 200 individuals and families. 2/3 of the funds went towards rent, with the rest towards utility bills, food, medicine, medical supplies, and other needs. Referred people to, or personally contacted, local agencies such as Marlborough Community Cupboard, Marlborough Human Services, SMOC, Recovery Connection, MetroWest Legal Services, and Fresh Start Furniture Bank. Distributed Christmas toys and provided Christmas dinners.

We are immensely grateful for the ongoing support of our faithful parishioners and generous sponsors who help make all this possible. Our only annual fund-raising event is the Friends of the Poor Walk, and we invite you to join this year’s “virtual” walk.

The Friends of the Poor Walk is an event held across the country by St. Vincent de Paul Conferences. Immaculate Conception has held a Friends of the Poor Walk the past 3 years the last Saturday in September, commemorating the feast day of St. Vincent de Paul, along the Assabet River Rail Trail. I. C. St. Vincent de Paul joins with the St. Vincent de Paul Conference from St. Matthias for this special event to raise funds for those helped by both Marlborough conferences. Due to COVID-19, this year’s walk will be a virtual walk held throughout the month of September; each walker can complete a walk on their own. Each walker is asked to solicit donations from family, friends, and co-workers to help our neighbors in Marlborough. 100% of all donations help those in need in our community.

Will you support the Friends of the Poor Walk? It’s easy! Simply go to the website: www.icfopwalk.org - there you can either register to walk or donate. To register to walk, click the “Register to Walk” button and fill in the information requested. Don’t forget to include your t-shirt size as all walkers registered by August 21 will receive a Friends of the Poor Walk t-shirt! To make a donation, you can either donate to your favorite walker by searching for that person’s name (bottom right of the page) OR if you don’t have a favorite walker you can search for the walker, “Immaculate Conception SVDP”. If you choose to “Donate to the Event” your donation will be split between Immaculate Conception SVDP and St. Matthias SVDP. If you have any questions about the walk, please do not hesitate to contact us by email at icfopwalk@gmail.com or leave a message on the I.C. St. Vincent de Paul phone, 978-763-0578, and someone will call you back.

​Thank you for your support of Immaculate Conception St. Vincent de Paul!