St. Vincent de Paul Society Celebrates 175th Anniversary

The largest lay Catholic charitable organization in the world was founded 175 years ago by a French college student named Frederic Ozanam.  Ozanam founded the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in 1833, so that he and his fellow students could put their faith into action through service to the poor. The St. Vincent de Paul Society today has more than 690,000 members operating in 142 countries.

St. Vincent de Paul of Baltimore is the local affiliate of the National Society of St. Vincent de Paul.  Founded in 1865 as an independent, faith-based, nonprofit organization it is one of Maryland’s oldest charitable organizations as well as a pioneer in the development of social programs.


2nd Annual Empty Bowls event attracted 850 guests!

If you missed going to the Empty Bowls fundraiser on March 15 at the College of Notre Dame, you were one of the few!  The 2nd annual event, to benefit Beans & Bread and Sarah’s Hope, hosted 850 people!  The event was so well-attended that organizers had to open up another room to accommodate the overflow!

The guests feasted on soups provided by: Amicci’s, Carrabbas, Kelsey’s Pub, Nacho Mama’s, and Soups On, chose a handcrafted ceramic bowl made by artists and students, bid on silent auction items and listened to live music.  Nearly $38,000 was raised (net).   

The event will be held at the College of Notre Dame again next year.  We will let you know as soon as the date is chosen.  Thank you to all who made this event such a success!

Housing Program Receives $1.2 million

St Vincent de Paul of Baltimore has been awarded nearly $1.2million from the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), to expand a second Home Connections program that will provide permanent housing to 32 chronically homeless individuals.