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Dear Vincentians and Friends,

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul Chicago Council endorses the passing of Illinois HB 5840 and Illinois SB 4241. We are asking for your help to close the Pawnbroker Loophole in Illinois.

We are asking all Vincentians, their families, friends and co-workers to contact their State Representative and State Senator to let them know they support HB 5840 in the General Assembly and SB 4241 in the Senate. There is a very narrow window of opportunity, during the Veto Session, to make this happen.

The 240% APR charged by pawnbrokers should be illegal. Their business is based on draining money from people who are struggling. There are safer and better alternatives.  Many of these were developed to provide options for consumers who have been historically shut out of the financial mainstream.

Make your voice heard today and contact your state legislators now by emailing your

legislators directly through this link:  https://ssvpusa.org/take-action

To read the full context of Illinois HB 5840 from the Illinois General Assembly website, click HERE

To read the full context of Illinois SB 4241 from the Illinois General Assembly website, click HERE

Please forward and share this information with your family and friends and take a couple of minutes to email your State Representative and State Senator stressing to them that you support both Illinois HB 5840 and SB 4241.

God Bless and Thank You for Your Support,

Harry Ohde – Volunteer President/CEO, Society of St. Vincent de Paul Chicago-ADC

Dear Vincentians and Friends,

It is with a heavy heart that I inform you that a great Vincentian and friend has passed this morning, Jim Plepel. Jim was a mainstay of SVdP Chicago for many, many years and was the former District VIII President. He was also on the Spiritual Committee, Formation Committee, and an SVdP-ADC Disaster Services Representative.

Please join together in praying our St. Vincent de Paul Society prayer for Jim and his family during this difficult time.

Lord Jesus,

You who willed to become poor, give us eyes and a heart directed toward the poor, help us to recognize you in them – in their thirst, their hunger, their loneliness, and their misfortune.

Enkindle within our Vincentian Family unity, simplicity, humility, and the fire of love that burned in St. Vincent de Paul.

Strengthen us, so that, faithful to the practice of these virtues, we may contemplate you and serve you in the person of the poor, and may one day be united with you and them in your kingdom. Amen.

Visitation and funeral arrangements have been made for our dear friend Jim Plepel. Jim’s family and friends will be received at Conboy-Westchester Funeral Home, 10501 W. Cermak Rd. (two blocks west of Mannheim) on Tuesday, January 3, from 3–8 pm.

All to meet Wednesday, January 4, at St. Bernadine Church, 7246 W. Harrison St. (Harrison and Elgin), Forest Park for visitation at 10:00 a.m. before a Funeral Mass at 11:00 am. Interment Queen of Heaven Cemetery.

Click HERE for more details.

Get the latest name from the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Chicago Council in our December 2022 Newsletter.

https://conta.cc/3iT2ZMK

Dear Vincentians & Friends, #GivingTuesday is finally here and the Society of St. Vincent de Paul Chicago asks that you please consider us as your charity of choice today. Your donation will directly benefit our local neighbors in a time of need and give them the gift of hope this holiday season. Please click on the link below to view a video message from Harry Ohde, Volunteer President/CEO – SVdP Chicago: https://conta.cc/3Vl7JJE On this Global Day of Giving, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul is having two raffles thanks to our generous donors. For any donation of $100 or more made on Tuesday, November 29, 2022, between 12:01 am and 11:59 pm, a raffle ticket for each $100 donation will be entered. Our two winners will be announced on Friday, December 2. Our raffle prizes are: ·        1-Night Stay at the Hyatt Place Indianapolis Airport ·        $300 Southwest Airlines Gift Card We are also very excited about our $5,000 MATCH CHALLENGE given to us by an amazing donor! This “match” means that for every dollar you donate, our donor will match it, up to $5,000. For example: You donate $50 + the donor’s match of $50 = $100 for St. Vincent de Paul! It’s a very exciting time for us and we sincerely hope you will consider making a donation today. If you would like to be entered in our raffle to win one of these great prizes or if you would like to make a donation, just click on this link to go directly to the St. Vincent de Paul Chicago donation page: https://bit.ly/3VuRud8 You can also scan the QR Code below with your cell phone camera and go directly to our website to make your donation. It’s that simple!

Lastly, if you prefer to mail in a donation, please make your check payable and send to: The Society of St. Vincent de Paul PO Box 233 Blue Island, IL 60406 Attention: Harry Ohde Please make a note in the “memo” section: Giving Tuesday Together, we will make a difference. God Bless and Thank You for Your Support.

https://conta.cc/3Vl7JJE

If you already use Amazon.com for online shopping, you can link your account to AmazonSmile and support SVdP Chicago! You will make a .5 percent donation with every Amazon purchase by using AmazonSmile.

Here are 3 simple steps to start donating today:

Step 1: Go to smile.amazon.com log in using your email and password as if you were at amazon.com.

Step 2: Search for the Society of St Vincent de Paul-Chicago and select us as your charity.

Step 3: Shop, Amazon Smile, and Amazon will donate 0.5% of your eligible purchases to SVdP!

Click HERE to read our latest newsletter and all the great things that are happening at the Society of St. Vincent de Paul-Chicago and it’s Conferences.

On this Thanksgiving Day, let us join together in prayer for all our fellow Vincentians, family, and friends who are sick or may no longer be with us. Let us also not forget, those who have requested us to pray for their special intentions.

You can view all the prayer requests we have received throughout the year from those asking for our prayers to help their loved ones or themselves, to those seeking guidance and seeking answers by clicking HERE. Please keep all of them in your thoughts this holiday season.

Happy Thanksgiving All, I received the following message from Bill Burke at BEDS PLUS. Their emergency shelters are opening up this coming Monday, November 28, and they are in immediate need of volunteers. Please take a minute to read his message below and reach out to Bill at his cell number listed below if you are able to share of your time and talent. Thank you. God Bless, Harry Ohde Volunteer President/CEO Society of St. Vincent de Paul Chicago-ADC —————————————————————————————– BEDS is opening the emergency shelters from November 28 through March 5. We will be open the coldest 3 months of the year to provide relief (hot dinner, warm place to sleep, breakfast) for the homeless. You can learn more by clicking this link: https://beds-plus.org/rotating-shelter-is-back/ We presently need volunteers on the overnight shifts, 11 p.m. – 3 a.m. and 3 a.m. – 7:30 a.m. We also need volunteers more urgently at St Louise de Marillac in La Grange Park, St Barbara in Brookfield (now combined as Holy Guardian Angels Parish) and Redeemer Lutheran Church in Oak Forest. So whatever you can do, we’d appreciate. If anyone needs more information, I can be reached on my cell at 708-446-4650. In St Vincent and Blessed Frédéric, ​Bill Burke Employment Specialist

Ogden Avenue Supportive Housing 9601 E. Ogden Avenue La Grange, IL 60525 Office: 708-354-0858 Cell:   708-446-4650 Email: burke@beds-plus.org www.beds-plus.org https://beds-plus.org/ways-you-can-help/

What an exciting day for St. Vincent de Paul Chicago’s very own, Liz Arreola!

Liz and the St. Gall Volunteers were featured on a WGN News Feature Segment at Saturday’s Annual St. Gall Thanksgiving Food Drive where they distributed Thanksgiving meals for approximately 2000 people!

No matter the heat of the summer as depicted in the above picture, or the cold winter winds and driven snow of yesterday, Liz makes it her mission to ensure that no one is left without food. This is the type of person she is. St. Vincent de Paul Chicago and the Gage Park community are blessed to have her.

Thank you Liz and all the volunteers for all you do for the St. Gall/Gage Park community!

Congratulations on a job well done!

To watch the complete interview, click HERE.

Dear Vincentians and Friends,

We are excited to announce that our St. Vincent de Paul Chicago eBay has been up and running now since September 30 for our Grand Re-Opening! We have revamped our store to offer you a wider selection of more unique and collectible items.

Please take a minute to check out what we have to offer and come back often as we will be adding items daily. All our items are shipped immediately upon payment and are packaged carefully to ensure that they will arrive at their destination intact.

Proceeds from our ebay sales benefit our friends in need. Today, more than ever, with grocery and gas prices escalating we want to be there for our friends in need and help as many as possible. 

Your support of our mission to build a better tomorrow for those in need is sincerely appreciated.

CLICK HERE to visit our eBay store today!