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JUSTNews
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Sunday, September 26, 2021
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St. Vincent de Paul Society needs your prayers.
Thankfully, most of our neighbors’ needs are easy to understand, and, thanks to your generous financial support, we can address them with funds. But we also always pray with our neighbors, and they are so grateful that someone has listened to them and not “blown them off”.
Once in awhile, we encounter a situation that needs more than what our skill sets are capable of providing. When a neighbor is dealing with mental health issues, it is often difficult to know what to do…When we can see that a certain behavior is only leading to further problems, it is hard to say “No” to a neighbor. And when they resist getting help for themselves, it becomes frustrating.
So, our plea this week is for your prayers… for our troubled neighbors AND for our Vincentians who try very hard to be Christ-like messengers. Thanks so much.
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St. Vincent’s feast day is September 27.
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18 Months of Outreach in a Flash!
In the 18 months since we launched our remote Outreach program at the start of the pandemic, the Outreach volunteer team has made approximately 2,100 phone calls on Thursdays, with 1,800 of them resulting in neighbors being helped the day we called! Of the roughly 300 people who weren't helped the Thursday we called them, the majority had paid off their current utility bill and we helped them with their bill the next month.
Special thanks to John Sweitzer for the countless hours he has spent automating our guest database, generating statistics, and otherwise helping reduce the administrative load of Outreach!
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Sunday, September 19, 2021
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Giving Thanks! No Surge in Evictions
Our Outreach and SVdP teams are breathing a sigh of relief that we haven't seen the surge in evictions with the end of the eviction moratorium on September 1. Thankfully, two new safeguards are now in place:
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A requirement that landlords complete eviction prevention applications is in place
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The opportunity for landlords to help their tenants apply for rental assistance through the City of Austin or Texas Rent Relief.
Yet, despite those measures, the need for rental assistance remains high. Both our Outreach and SVdP programs receive many requests for rent help.
We appreciate the many gifts to our monthly Persons in Need collection. That giving lets us help keep vulnerable neighbors in their homes. The people we serve are very grateful! -
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Be a Vincentian ~
Our St. Vincent de Paul Society serves neighbors with rent, utilities, bus passes, and vouchers. Our faithful call dispatchers would love to have a few more folks on whom to rely for responding to neighbors in need.If you have been thinking that this Fall is a good time to venture into a new ministry, we’d be happy to have you! Our conference meets by Zoom these days. Our core mission of meeting neighbors in their homes remains "on hold." We carry on by phone to reach grateful folks in need. If you are interested, contact
Huddie Murray
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Sunday, September 12, 2021
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SVdP Rallies To Help a Vet
We received a call this week from a Navy Veteran who was living in his car until he could get enough money together to rent an apartment before starting school in October. Our ministry was able to donate money toward rent and get a voucher for a bed and mattress from the St. Vincent de Paul store. We were also able to collect sheets, towels, a table and chairs, lamps, dishes, utensils, blankets and much more. He was so happy to move into his apartment and will receive veterans school benefits in time to start school in October. We are also hoping to help him get a computer - if anyone has one to donate, please email Huddie Murray.
Volunteers are always welcome!
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Sunday, September 5, 2021
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On this PIN Sunday...
We ask your support for Persons in Need in our monthly second collection. In this story, we share the great good your giving does for those who come to us in great need.
Recently, our St. Vincent de Paul Society helped a young man who has never needed assistance before. He’d been self-employed in the video business - portraits, real estate video, photography - until Covid canceled events left and right. He decided to go back to school at Austin Community College but had lingering utility bills. Good News! Through our generous Plus 1 partnership with the City, we were able to take care of his Austin Energy bill, and, with our own funds, take care of his Texas Gas bill. More Good News! Then, he discovered that his new FAFSA application information allowed him to receive a Pell Grant. We discovered we even had enough to help pay part of his remaining fall tuition! It’s a whole new start for this fellow! Thanks for your generosity and support! Please don’t stop! -
Micah 6 Street Youth Sunday Hot meals
Did you know that several times a year each member of a small group of St. Austin parishioners prepare a dish that together creates a hot Sunday meal? Their combined efforts offer a healthy, delicious meal for young people living on the streets who visit Micah 6's weekly drop-in center.
Here's what our parishioner volunteers have to say about this ministry:-
I am blessed to be part of this long-standing, collaborative ministry serving street youth. The meal-preparers take such care in making the food, and the street youth receive it with deep appreciation. - Terese Wier
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I love helping to prepare the meals for Micah 6. Cooking for a couple hours - not even once a month - is such an easy way to help out. I hope that the young adults who join in the meal leave feeling well-fed and cared for. They’re definitely appreciative! I also recommend volunteering to help serve the meals, which is a great way to meet and talk with all kinds of interesting people. - Julie Frey
Learn more or sign up to volunteer for this ministry that truly makes a difference by emailing Kristen Dempseypasyk.
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Sunday, July 11, 2021
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Outreach volunteers gathered to say farewell to the spaces where we used to serve our guests in-person on Thursday mornings. Fr. Bruce blessed the lobby, St. Augustine room, OLG, and Hecker Hall where guests entered, gathered, and were served. The Outreach team shared stories full of laughter, sadness at leaving our old Outreach home, and a toast of gratitude. Everyone agreed that they have received far more than they have given by serving our neighbors in need!
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JUSTNews ~ The Archives
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Our St. Vincent de Paul Society continues to serve neighbors, on a regular basis, with rent, utilities, bus passes, and vouchers. Our faithful call dispatchers would love to have a few more folks on whom to rely to care for neighbors in need.Read More
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"I just wanted to thank you again for your help with my electric bill. I am now current with the bill, but I could not have done this without your help. Thank you, and may you all be blessed for the worthy charitable work that you do." Thank you Outreach team and to everyone who supports our charitable ministries through prayers and the monthly Persons in Need collection!Read More
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Next weekend we invite you to explore the programs offered by CCCTX on Catholic Charities Weekend, an awareness campaign for parishioners to learn how to access services if they are struggling, as well as how they might join Catholic Charities in serving our neighbors in need. On August 28 - 29, parishes across the Diocese of Austin will partner with us to distribute information about how to become a part of the Catholic Charities mission.Read More
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Monday's release of the latest grim assessment from the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change makes clear that global warming will continue to intensify over the coming decades and that, as a result of human inaction to curb greenhouse gas emissions, extreme weather events will continue to worsen.Read More
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Earlier this summer Pat Macy and Fr. Bruce Nieli shared their love and knowledge of Dorothy Day and her work with all types of people. We've heard from many of you that you wanted to participate but could not, and know that some of our participants had to miss a session from time to time. We recorded the series to share with you. We hope you'll find time to explore and enjoy these sessions. You'll find links to them on our website at ~ Dorothy DayRead More
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Like the St. Austin community moving mountains to prepare for the big move, Outreach is moving mountains to help our neighbors in need NOT to have to move or have their utilities disconnected! The City of Austin resumed utility disconnections last week. On August 1, the eviction moratorium will be lifted for the first time since the pandemic started. Outreach has responded by increasing our rental assistance to $350 per household and by paying as much as we can on utility bills - thanks to extra Austin Energy funds!Read More
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