Harnessing the power of community and partnerships, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVdP) feeds, clothes, houses, and heals individuals and families who have nowhere else to turn for help.
John Berry is President of the National Council of the United States, Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA. He shares how the new Independent Sector member’s work reflects the belief that everyone deserves a fair chance at a bright future, regardless of income or life circumstances.
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul came to be in the midst of the political, social, religious, and economic turmoil of early 19th century France. How did it become established in the United States?
You’re quite right that our global ministry emerged from the despair that so many people in early 19th century France experienced. In 1833, our founder Blessed Antoine Frederic Ozanam, who was just 20 years old, sought to do something about it by organizing a group of five other Parisian students to help the poor.
12 years later, in 1846, the United States Society of St. Vincent de Paul was established in St. Louis at the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France. Our founders in the U.S., which included priests and lay people, were motivated by zeal and a Gospel-fueled commitment to alleviate suffering and improve the lives of our neighbors.
Today, our over 90,000 Vincentian volunteers serve their communities through 4,100 parish-based conferences from coast to coast. While the needs of the poor and the means to help them changed, our core activity of face-to-face Encounters, in which Vincentians visit the homes of those they serve, remains the same.
As we celebrate our 180th anniversary this year, I’m proud to say that our mission remains as true and vibrant today as it was at the founding.
Vincentians are primarily volunteers who dedicate their time to serve more than 5 million people annually in rural, suburban, and urban communities across the U.S. How have you been able to sustain the organization over all of these decades?
The answer to that question can be found in the Encounters themselves. So many charities in this country do excellent work to alleviate economic suffering. Their work is vital and to be commended. But few, if any, walk side-by-side with those who need not only financial help, but respect, love, and often, someone who will pray with them. When you’re sitting with a new friend at their kitchen table and hearing not just their immediate needs but their personal stories and inner-most struggles and desires, you realize that those in poverty are not “them.” They’re us. They’re your friends and family members. They’re veterans, seniors, single moms, kids and yes, people with degrees and decades of work experience.
It is the power of these Encounters that fuels our volunteers. We like to say that we get far more out of these Encounters than the people we’re helping, and I’ve always found that to be very true. Yes, the people we serve need our help. But they often need a friend even more.
Give us more details about the services your organization provides in communities.
We’ve talked about the Encounters, but it’s worth being a little more specific. These home meetings often reveal a person’s immediate needs and how we might fix them — whether it’s writing a check to pay the rent, keep the lights on, or put tires on their car so they can get to work.”
Often, a simple act like that can be the difference between keeping a person, or a family, housed. We also connect people to government agencies that can provide help that we can’t offer. In addition, our parish-based conferences operate thrift stores, food pantries, shelters for the unhoused, charitable pharmacies, prison re-entry programs, disaster relief programs and much more.
Our Vincentians are not just committed, they’re amazingly resourceful and creative in finding new ways to serve based on the changing needs of people in their local communities. I’m in awe, not only at their commitment, but also their resourcefulness.
Advocating on behalf of the nonprofit sector and the communities we serve is an important component of your work. Tell us about some of your efforts to educate elected officials on issues critical to those in poverty and need.
Historically, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul did not see advocacy as a primary goal, but it has become increasingly clear that charity, alone is not enough. If meaningful progress is to be made, we must engage with federal and state government to seek meaningful and lasting improvements to the social safety net in this country.
With the recent budget cuts, there seems to be an expectation that charities will pick up the slack. That is simply an option. We must have public policies that prevent or limit poverty and homelessness in the first place. And I believe that no organization has greater standing than SVdP to make this case, given our reputation and our reach.
So, in 2025, we established an advocacy office in Washington D.C. and hired Ingrid Delgado as National Director of Public Policy and Advocacy. We now have a seat at the table when it comes to issues like cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition and Assistance Program (SNAP) and other issues of vital importance to millions of people. A big part of our advocacy effort is education, and who better to educate national policy makers than an organization that has reach into every congressional district in the United States?
What do you look forward to most as a new Independent Sector member?
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA National President/Chair of the Board of Directors John Berry
The heart of Independent Sector’s mission is to bring charities together for the purpose of collaboration, education, and friendship. As the 45th ranked charity among Forbes’ list of the Top 100 Charities in 2025, we believe we have a lot to offer to Independent Sector and its members. But more importantly, we have a lot to learn. Certainly, the deep and authoritative resources and research that Independent Sector offers will be utilized by the SVdP team. But we’re most energized by the opportunity to meet and collaborate with so many talented, like-minded, and passionate people from around the country. We can’t wait to get started.
John Berry is National President/Chair of the Board of Directors, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA.
