The Society of St Vincent de Paul
St Edward’s Conference

MEMBERS: Hazel Cooper (President); Cliff Stevenson (Vice President); Kenny McGovern (Treasurer); “Jock” Cooper (Secretary); Sister Patricia Mulhall (Spiritual Advisor); Sue Furney; Beata Fernandes; Tom Hinds; Pat McGill; Maureen Payne; Tony Quirke; Karen Salter; Andrew Spence plus associate members, drivers and other helpers

During Last year (2008-09):

• We made 418 visits to lonely people (Catholics and non-Catholics), shopping for many of them or taking them shopping themselves as a rare treat.
• We help them in various other ways— pruning trees, organising regular “dog walking” etc.
• We visited people in their own homes, in residential homes, in nursing homes and hospitals, etc.

Please tell us if you know anyone else who would like us to visit them.

• We helped a family to obtain “indefinite leave to remain” in the UK (giving access to benefits)
• SVP members and helpers gave a total of 225 lifts to hospital clinics, doctors and dentists, visits to friends, lifts to Mass etc.

We urgently need more people on our list of volunteer drivers, especially for trips to and from the 6.00pm Mass on Saturdays.

On Christmas Day, we put on Christmas Lunch for nearly fifty people, who would otherwise have been alone.
We were also able to invite a few homeless people to join us.
As well as a good lunch, there was a “pub quiz” and a selection of comic songs with everyone having a really good time.
We felt it was one of the best Christmases some of us had ever had!

If you would like to help this Christmas, please get in touch with Hazel or any of our members.

• We support our twin, the St Peter’s conference, New Halfa, in the Sudan.

During This year:

• As well as visiting, shopping etc., we have arranged holidays for five deprived families who had not been away for four years or more.
• We have already held a very successful Easter afternoon tea for lonely people, and are starting to prepare for this year’s Christmas Lunch.

How can you help?

Please let us know if there is anyone who needs the sort of help we can offer, or if someone would like a hospital visit or a visit after a bereavement — check with them first.

What else can you do?

We would welcome more members, associate members, drivers, etc. You decide how much time you can spare and when, and then let us know.

Contact: Hazel Cooper: telephone: 01753 867752, e-mail hazelm.cooper@ukonline.co.uk, or talk to Father Michael

Our grateful thanks are due to the following: Sara Lee U.K. Ltd. ; Berkshire Community Foundation; Edith Turner Foundation; Charlotte Marshall Charitable Trust; C.L. Lloyd Charitable Trust; Michael Shanley Charitable Trust; Colin & Anna Frizzell Charitable Trust; Sir Harold Hood Charitable Trust.

More information can be obtained from the Society's website: www.svp.org.uk

We also need more helpers, so please contact if you would like to join us.