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North Central Region

 

 

 

Click on report for an overview of VOP activities in Milwaukee presented by Regional Representative, Rita Cannestra to the VOP National Committee during the Society's National meeting in Austin, TX (September).  Included in the report is a job description for a conference contact for VOP.  Report

 

 

VOP Representatives

Rita Cannestra, West Allis, WI  e-mail

Paul Novotny, Green Bay, WI  e-mail

 

 

 

Senator Obama's Response to Vincentian on LIHEAP

August 2008 - Mary Van Wazer (Chicago VOP) shares a letter she received from Senator Barack Obama on the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which says:

More than two decades ago, the government created LIHEAP to help our most vulnerable citizens with high utility bills, and prevent them from having to make difficult choices between heat and food during the winter months.  Over the years, this program has been effective in helping American families.

I appreciate the importance of this program to communities all across Illinois and the country. With natural gas prices increasing so severely, more Americans than usual are expected to apply for LIHEAP assistance in paying their heating bills. LIHEAP as currently funded serves far fewer households than are eligible for this assistance.

SInce my arrival in the U.S. Senate, I have consistently suported all efforts to increase LIHEAP funding. As 2007 drew to a close, Congress approved $2.57 billion for LIHEAP in the omnibus spending bill, a modest increase from the fiscal year (FY) 2007 level. Although, President Bush signed this bill into law on December 26, I cosponsored legislation to appropriate an additional $1 billion in emergency LIHEAP funding for this year.  Introduced on December 4, 2007 by Senator Bernard Sanders (I-VT), the Keeping Americans Warm Act (S. 2405) is supported by a bipartisan coalition of Senators. Most recently, I became an original sponsor of S. 3186, the Warm in Winter and Cool in Summer Act, also introduced by Sen. Sanders on July 24, 2008 to add $2.5 billion to the LIHEAP program. An effort to proceed to the consideration of this measure was defeated in the Senate by a vote of 50-35, with 60 votes required for approval.

I will work to pass this bill, and will continue to fight to fully fund this commonsense and vital program.  We cannot afford to short-change this program when low-income families, disabled individuals and elderly on fixed incomes are all wondering how they will warm their homes, keep their lights on, and cook their food through the winter. Please be assured that I will continue to be an advocate for the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program.

 

Young Vincentians Inspire!

March 2008 -- Jeanne Harper, president of the Green Bay Diocesan Council and Mary Ambrust, theology teacher, St. Thomas Aquinas Academy (Marinette, WI) share their faith-filled Vincentian story, Voice of the Poor - an Inspirational Magnet for New Vincentians.  

 

 

 

Photos: Young Vincentians and Boy Scouts Food Drive (left) and SVDP orientation sessions with young Vincentians (right)

 

 

Milwaukee Voice of the Poor Formation Session II

The March 2008 issue of the Milwaukee Archdiocesan Vincentian has an invitation to the Archdiocesan Council's second Formation Session for Conference VOP Contacts, Saturday, April 19.  "The session will begin with a presentation on a main issue... Participants will then divide into two groups: those who want a basic agenda (what does a Conference contact do?) and those who want to go deeper into the main issue."  Sign up information is available via email council@svdpmilw.org

 

2007 North Central Region VOP News

 

St. Louis VOP Web Action

Joe Komadina, president of the South Central District, has created a website.  You can find his page on voice of the poor at http://www.freewebs.com/jkomadina/voiceofthepoor.htm  Joe's introduction:  "The fire of the Holy Spirit enkindles the little flame of Love that is in every heart, it raises the soul to soar in the freedom of God, it feeds the soul with food from Heaven, it gives courage to overcome all human weaknesses, it grants complete trust in God so that we can say with St. Paul, it is no longer I who lives, but Christ who lives in me."

 

Keeping Warm in Winter

November 2007 - Receiving crisis assistance is a matter of survival, particularly for those households without winter heat and those with a broken furnace and no way to pay for heat.  Energy assistance was a topic in the Heart of Giving the District Council of Milwaukee newsletter.  The Wisconsin Home Energy Assistance Program (WHEAP) provides assistance with home heating assistance once per heating season.  Assistance is determined by family size, income level, energy costs and change each year.  (For example, income guidelines are 150% of the federal poverty level based on the average gross monthly income for the prior three months. ) WHEAP pays a portion of heating costs.  "There is no such thing as a mild winter," is the theme of the joint SVDP-Catholic Herald cap drive called "Caps for Kids" collection which asks the community for donations and funds for SVDP to purchase new caps, mittens and scarves for those in need. 

 

Put Prayer into Practice

November 2007 -  In Heart of Giving the District Council of Milwaukee newsletter, Deacon Gerald Ponec, spiritual advisor of Nativity of the Lord Conference, developed a sample prayer that can be customized and used when praying together with those visited.  "Actually the practice of praying with the people visited goes back in history but seems to have been largely abandoned in recent decades.  There seems to be a strong revival of this practice, as informal polls show that at least half of all Vincentians currently offer to pray with the people they help."  (Note: Adding our voices together in prayer is also a Voice of the Poor action!) The following "Prayer for Those in Desperate Need and for the Canonization of Ozanam" is from "Heart of Giving." 

O God our Father, You alone have the power to bestow those precious gifts of Yours which we rightly call miracles.  If it be Your Will, be pleased to grant such a gift in behalf of those persons for whom the prayers of the Society have been requested; and for Joe Flannigan.  We humbly ask that You grant this favor to glorify blessed Frédéric Ozanam, that it may serve to have him called Saint by our Holy Mother the Church.

Milwaukee Voice of the Poor Formation Session I

The October 2007 issue of the District Council of Milwaukee's newsletter, The Heart of Giving, contains a formation invitation for VOP conference contacts.  It says:  "The Voice of the Poor ministry within the Society challenges all Vincentians to increase their concern about the effects of public policy on the poor.  VOP is not an elite committee that speaks on behalf of the Society - it gathers the input of all its members on important issues for our communities and nation.  Conference Contacts are needed to take items to conference meetings for reflection and to feed back to the committee the issues raised by conferences.  This formation session welcomes all Vincentians who would like to know about SVDP's involvement in social justice and the Church's social teachings.  Specific responsibilities of the Conference VOP Contact will be explored for those considering accepting this position in their conference."  

 

Bringing VOP Action to Conferences

The headline of the September 2007 Milwaukee Archdiocesan Vincentian newsletter reads:  "Voice of the Poor promotes 'Conference Contacts' throughout our Archdiocese."  The Voice of the Poor ministry in the Milwaukee Archdiocesan Council has approached nine District Council Presidents and asked that each conference designate one member to become the "Conference Contact" to the VOP Committee.  According to the article, "In addition to receiving Educational and Action Alerts from the committee, this member would bring such alerts to the attention of the conference and initiate discussion on justice issues.  Feedback to the VOP ministry is requested."  The newsletter also provides a full job description on the front page.  The job description for a Conference Contact for VOP is also noted in Milwaukee's annual VOP report.  Report

 

2006 North Central Region VOP News

 

“Tent City” Set to Go!

From Milwaukee SVDP Executive Director, Gerry Felsecker (Aug. 23):  “Wish us luck at the “Tent City” which our VOP Committee is staging in a park near one of our meal sites tomorrow.  The issue is getting the city to establish a housing trust fund.  We’ll actually serve the meal in the park and have invited over a hundred agencies which support us in this cause to send reps – we should have over 500 people come to the rally (we are neophytes at this).  The tents will provide a visual, symbolic of homelessness.  We will have several formerly homeless people (who now work for us) give talks during the meal.  We’re hoping the media covers us so we can increase community awareness of homelessness. “

 

VOP in Milwaukee

August 2006 -- Executive Director, Gerry Felsecker shares the following update on Milwaukee VOP action.

 

(1)     Vincentian Education

Prior to the National Council developing a more generic PowerPoint on the purpose of the Voice of the Poor effort, Milwaukee took the Phoenix VOP presentation and adapted it for our Vincentians by using local photos and graphics showing our involvement, and adding a section on the issues we are working on.  This was presented five times during the spring, with a total viewership of about 250.  Many Vincentians commented that they now understand Voice of the Poor better.  Milwaukee also had an opportunity to present the program to about 75 Vincentians attending a VOP workshop at the North Central Regional Meeting where it was well received.

 

(2)     Immigration

This is a difficult issue for many Vincentians because of its complexity.  We sent an action alert to all our Vincentians, reminding them of the position of the Catholic Bishops, and asking them to write to their Congressmen against the punitive aspects of the House Bill.

 

(3)     Energy

The rapid rise in rates this past year has left a record number of people in danger of shut-off.  Local utility companies are aggressively shutting off people throughout our Archdiocese (in Milwaukee County alone, fully 40% of the 1,000+ calls last month coming to Vincentians through our Central Office are for utility assistance).  The VOP is trying to arrange a meeting with top people at the utility companies to urge a more compassionate approach.

 

(4)     Housing issues

SVDP in Milwaukee joined an interfaith coalition to have the City of Milwaukee establish a Housing Trust Fund to stimulate the development of more affordable housing.  Many low income single men and women have been displaced from the downtown area due to redevelopment, and many have become homeless.  In addition to issuing an action alert to our Vincentians, we are planning to stage a ‘Tent City event’ at a local park later this month, offering a free picnic lunch to the poor in the area while speakers on homelessness will be presenting.  We expect to draw about 1,000 people.  The goal is to draw media attention to the Society’s support for the development of more affordable housing.  (We are still waiting for a decision from Milwaukee County whether we receive a permit for the use of the park that day.)

 

(5)     Death Penalty

Wisconsin has been one of the few states that does not have the death penalty.  There is an effort by some to establish one, and they have gotten an advisory referendum question to be put on the September ballot.  Because of the disproportional effect on the poor (nearly all executions in this country are of poor people), the Society is urging its members to vote ‘no’ to this question.  The Wisconsin Catholic bishops have also taken a position against it.  A more detailed action plan is still under development.  (Mary Steppe who was the director of a program to return ex-inmates to the community until her retirement recently is leading this effort.)

 

VOP in Chicago

August 2006 -- Jan Deckenbach, VOP chair, Archdiocese of Chicago, reports: 

 

We are concentrating on educating Vincentians about immigration and then urging them to action: contacting their legislator in March, April, May and now before the Senate and House bills are reconciled….I’ve gone around to various district council meetings to present the case for this action.

 

VOP in Detroit

August 2006 -- News from Nancy Panther:

 

We finally have a VOP Committee in the Archdiocese of Detroit Council. They meet once a month via conference call and are networking with the Archdiocese's Peace and Justice and I understand it is working out very well.

 

Detroit to Hold Advocacy Workshop

May 2006 -- Bill Brazier of Detroit tells us about an upcoming collaborative workshop on advocacy between the Voice of the Poor committee of the Society of St. Vincent De Paul in the Archdiocese of Detroit and the Department of Social Justice for the Archdiocese of Detroit titled, “Advocating for Justice, Here and Now: A Toolkit for Catholic Legislative Participation,” scheduled for Wednesday, May 24, 2006, 10:00 AM – 2:30 PM at Sacred Heart Major Seminary.  Registration is $15.00.  This is a skills-building workshop for parish and vicariate leaders in the Archdiocese of Detroit.  The workshop will provide an overview of Catholic social teaching, role-play sessions on effective methods of advocacy with legislators, and resources from the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Michigan Catholic Conference and other Catholic agencies. 

 

Speaking Out at the Catholic Social Gathering in Washington, DC

Feb. 2006 -- In preparing for the Catholic Social Gathering in Washington, DC  Rita Cannestra of Milwaukee reports that the members of VOP put together stories on the needs of the poor they serve and took these stories along with a letter from their Council’s Board of Directors on their Hill visits.