Be a Voice for the Poor
By Steve Uram, National Director of Poverty Programs
When you think about “calls to action” you may think about SVdP’s national advocacy committee, Voice for the Poor.
For over 23 years, the Voice For the Poor Committee has been the advocacy arm of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, identifying issues that are critical to those living in poverty and need, and bringing attention to the issue to reduce or eliminate poverty.
“Before joining Voice for the Poor, I would be discouraged and powerless when we see the needs increasing – with lack of food for children, lack of housing for families, and the homelessness crisis,” said Dorothy (Dot) O’Connor, Voice for the Poor, West Region. “But now that I’m engaged with Voice for the Poor and learning to trust in God, I’ve seen firsthand that we really can make a difference, and I’m engaging in ways that I wouldn’t have had the courage to engage in…I believe that the people who make decisions at the local, state, and federal levels will remember our stories, and feel confident the work of Voice of the Poor will bring change.”
For nearly 20 years, Vincentians across the country have utilized our E-Advocacy platform to write letters to their federal legislators. Our platform allows Vincentians to communicate easily with their elected officials on policies that affect, and hopefully transform, the situations of our neighbors in need. The platform can also be leveraged for Councils and Archdiocesan Councils to conduct advocacy campaigns at the state level. Recently, Illinois, Georgia, Michigan and Kentucky have conducted state advocacy campaigns. You can take part in our current campaign asking Congress to prioritize families in poverty when crafting the federal budget. Take action at https://ssvpusa.org/take-action.
The SVdP USA National Council also works in concert with other national Catholic organizations such as the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Catholic Charities, Catholic Rural Life, and other faith-based organizations to send letters to Congress and the president to support issues such as funding for SNAP, housing, child tax credits, and FEMA funding. Your advocacy is as important as the rent or utility assistance you provide to your neighbor.
“Collaboration takes a lot of work, but it’s often worth the effort. We can do more with others than we can do alone,” said Bobby Kinkela, Voice for the Poor, National Committee Chair.
Adding our collective Vincentian voice to others amplifies our ability to advocate for our neighbors. Their expertise and new ideas are great to share with other Vincentians.
The Voice for the Poor committee, along with several National Council staff and Board members, attended the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering (CSMG) in Washington D.C. Jan 25-29, 2025.
At CSMG, SVdP National President John Berry gave a keynote address to the audience, saying the time was right to take a bold approach to highlighting the causes of homelessness and the steps that can be taken to reduce the number of people who are unhoused. Several Voice for the Poor members also led breakout sessions on human trafficking and homelessness prevention and sat on expert panel discussions throughout the 4-day gathering.
Hear what Voice for the Poor members said about their experience at CSMG:
Dorothy (Dot) O’Connor, Voice for the Poor, West Region, said this: “My faith has increased exponentially. In my experience in the last 9 months, I have had the opportunity to be a part of a team that lives the Vincentians’ hallmark of the sanctification of its members. As a first-time attendee, I was in awe of the CSMG conference. I was inspired by my colleagues, who were there to advocate for people in need. And I also had the honor of advocating in the Capitol, which was exhilarating. I saw the compassion and kindness of the people there, and I was inspired. It was an emotional event, and I don’t think I will forget what I saw. With more than 500 people in attendance, each speaker was a powerful, positive force of good. I experienced a level of spiritual connection with the people around me that I’ve never encountered before. I met interesting people all doing work to help those we serve, learned new things, and I feel grateful to have been a part of it.”
Michael J Sylvester, Voice for the Poor, North Central Region said this: “I had a very good experience at CSMG. The liturgies were really uplifting and reminded me of the universality of our Church that can accommodate the many cultural influences we have from the music of the Taize’ community to music rooted in the African-American experience. They nourished my spirituality, and growing in holiness is the primary objective of our Vincentian vocation. The presentations were thoughtful and filled with useful information. I hope they will help me to better see Christ in others as I try, sometimes unsuccessfully, to be Christ to others. I particularly enjoyed the presentation by Bishop Joseph J. Tyson of the Diocese of Yakima, who delivered an inspiring message of hope. Finally, it was great to be able to exercise our advocacy skills with staff from the offices of my U.S. Senators and U.S. Representative. As an added benefit, I was able to connect with participants from a parish within my diocese whose members are primarily Hispanic who want to organize a St. Vincent de Paul Conference. Our diocesan Council is reaching out to further explore their interest.”
Matthew St. John Harris, Voice for the Poor, Mountain Region, said this: “I had a great experience. The two people with whom I went to the Halls of Congress were a monsignor and a gentleman from Catholic Charities. The monsignor had multiple generational ties to the state of Colorado though he was a pastor in the DMV so it was great to learn his take on things as a fellow Coloradan. The gentleman from Catholic Charities was originally from Puerto Rico and had worked with the previous Representative of the Commonwealth. As a result of pairing with him I was able to visit the Commonwealth’s House of Representative office. We attempted to visit both Senate and all House of Representative offices for Colorado to drop off CSMG packets which was rather rewarding. Meeting staff gives one an opportunity to express what he or she believes. I hope to do this again.”
Bobby Kinkela, Voice for the Poor, National Committee Chair said this: “As part of the planning committee for Catholic Social Ministry Gathering, it was great to see the Holy Spirit bring it all together and have affects I did not intend. I knew it was important to tell Voice for the Poor Vincentians to attend and the benefits, what I didn’t know is a regional vice president would tell everyone about it at their regional meeting during national assembly and get a group of college aged Vincentians to attend! I knew that it was important to network with other Catholics, I didn’t know that I would find a large number who already have DC offices and are willing to help network with us as we build our own DC office! I knew we were opening a DC office, but I didn’t know the DC office announcement would coincide with CSMG! I knew we were doing lots of breakout sessions with Vincentians; I didn’t know how those networks would help us later or the effect it would have on people! I knew John Berry would be at CSMG; I didn’t know he would speak and give an electric charged call to change our world with courage and hope! The Holy Spirit is certainly alive and well and active at the Catholic Social Ministry Gathering and it was an honor to be part of it all.”
If you would like to get involved in the Voice for the Poor committee and learn how to advocate for the voiceless in your community, or leverage our E-advocacy website for state or local issues, please reach out to Steve Uram with the National Council.
SVdP Poverty Programs consist of the Homelessness Prevention Committee, the Poverty Action Committee, the Voice for the Poor and the following shared interest groups: Reentry, Workforce Development, Housing, and Getting Ahead.
