St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store funds a variety of programs. The sales help pay for the utilities at their centers, buy food for the homeless outreach and so much more. Thousands of dollars worth of goods go out without charge to those in need, whether it’s a bed, linens, clothing, or shoes.
On Saturday, December 2nd, from 9 am to noon, St. Vincent de Paul will partner with Knights of Columbus with a coat giveaway. While Knights of Columbus will be supplying coats for children, St. Vincent de Paul will have a couple of racks out to help the adults who may need coats as well.
They also assist with the Christmas dinner with a food box consisting of everything needed for a full dinner, including the meat and all the sides. If you would like to help with this program, you can pick up a menu that is stapled to a sack, fill it with the requested items, and return it. Envelopes are also attached in case you prefer to donate cash. Items that tend to run low on this project are olives, yams, and cranberries.
A giving tree is available for those who wish to help fulfill a child’s wish by selecting a tag from the tree.
The Angel Center is a drop-in center for the homeless, which brings in 50 – 90 people a day. Here the homeless can come in and take showers and wash clothes, which always brings the need for laundry detergent pods, shampoo, lotion, and feminine products.
Grace Home is a program that is about 6 years old and provides transitional housing for homeless male veterans. “We’re getting ready to open Grace Haven, which is a brand-new program,” explained Deb Kottel. “This will be for unhoused female veterans and their children, the sister program to Grace Home.” This new program will need remodeling of the building and plenty of setup, so any assistance is greatly appreciated.
The food bank and senior commodity program sends out about 50,000 pounds of food a month into the community, all without charge.
“We’re getting ready to open our fresh rescue community kitchen in two weeks, which is at 513 2nd Ave. South,” Explained Deb Kottel. “We will be able to process surplus produce. This will allow us to make the bananas into banana bread. Things that we rescue from Albertson’s and Walmart, which are two stores that donate to us. And then because we’re a certified community kitchen, under federal law, we’ll be able to pick up prepared unserved food. Local restaurants and institutions like hospitals and the University, all dump food at the end of the day, that’s been prepared but unserved. They put their heart and soul into cooking this food, why shouldn’t it go to people in need?”
If you are in need of any assistance that these programs may help with, or you would like to donate items, money, or your time to help out the community, call St. Vincent de Paul at (406) 761-0870.
Author: Karen Anderson
Karen is the Editor-in-Chief overseeing all news operations at Foxys Publishing Co. She also loves photography and spending time with her dogs.
