About Us
In the spirit of love and justice, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul of Santa Clara County (SVdP) provides person-to-person services to help our neighbors in need. SVdP respects the dignity of every person. We provide Safety-Net services for families and individuals in our community who are often suffering, forgotten and deprived — the working poor, the homeless, the incarcerated, and all people living on the margins. We also seek systemic change solutions to move people out of poverty.
History of SVdP
The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul was founded in Paris in 1833, by a young French student, Frédéric Ozanam, to confront his city’s devastating poverty. Inspired by St. Vincent de Paul, a 17th century French priest who had an untiring commitment to serving the poor, Ozanam’s mission was clear – help the needy on a one-to-one basis and “accomplish through charity what justice alone cannot do.” Compassion in action was the heart of Frederic Ozanam’s spirituality.
Today, the Society is a network of charity in 142 countries. The Santa Clara County St. Vincent de Paul Council was founded in 1946 in Mountain View, CA. Now located in San Jose, CA the Council consists of 25 parish-based Conferences and approximately 750 Vincentian volunteers that offer emergency aid to all areas of Santa Clara County.