…over these past few months, life for some members of our communities has become a bit better thanks to the efforts of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Conference of Southern West Virginia…a unique Conference that exists only because of the support of you Vincentians outside of our area. These are really your accomplishments.
The heat of summer is fading and the hills of Appalachia are starting to dress in the vibrant colors of the approaching Fall. Life is good here in the mountains of southern West Virginia. And over these past few months, life for some members of our communities has become a bit better thanks to the efforts of the St. Vincent de Paul Society, Conference of Southern West Virginia…a unique Conference that exists only because of the support of you Vincentians outside of our area. These are really your accomplishments.
And what things have happened as a result of your continuing support? Unfortunately, the level of poverty remains the same…nearly 40% of our children still live in poverty. Many houses remain unsafe and unsanitary. Jobs still are an unfulfilled dream for many. Folks still leave the area every day looking for work in other states. Illiteracy remains high along with alcoholism and domestic violence. So, the big problems still remain despite your efforts. But along with these problems, the area still abounds in faith filled people, pot luck suppers brimming with fellowship, and mountains that remind us all of the creative majesty of God.
But in so many little ways, in homes scattered throughout the hills, life has changed for some of our folks, thanks to you. One family now has a bathroom attached to the one room house they built after fire destroyed their former home. A single mother can use her driveway once again since the flood washed it out. A woman who is mentally slow will soon have the broken pipes under her house repaired and water back to her kitchen and bath. An elderly woman using a wheel chair now has a ramp, which has released her from being a prisoner in her home. A young couple has a new special car seat for their disabled 5-year-old. Utility bills have been paid for those who have fallen behind. A hundred families have some new furniture and mattresses in their homes. Roofs have been repaired and replaced. Some rooms painted, floors replaced, and toilets returned to working order, and so on.
Along with these noticeable improvements that you helped bring about, other things have been happening…some that are not quite so obvious. Members of the Conference have spent some time at the nursing home and the home for the mentally ill…have helped distribute food and household items at the food bank. Our staff person has spent hours on the phone listening and empathizing and giving advice and referrals to numerous callers in search of help. A number of volunteer church groups from different denominations have joined with us in an ecumenical effort of helping. Networking has begun with other agencies in the area in trying to make sure that we work together and not duplicate efforts.
But now I am getting worried. Let me share my worry with you. I am worried about two things. First, I worry about our people. I worry because we are already overwhelmed with requests for help and we can’t answer them all. Debbie in the office does her best to check out and prioritize needs, but it’s more than we can handle. I’m worried that people who are looking to us for help will become discouraged and disappointed when we can’t get back to them in a reasonable amount of time. I’m worried that maybe we bit off more than we can chew. I’m worried that the volunteers might stop coming to help. I’m worried that some of our people will spend another winter in substandard housing, children will go hungry, homes will lack decent furniture, and our frail will face increasing loneliness.
But my second worry concerns all of you and really becomes more of a hope than a worry. It’s your generosity that has enabled us to start up our Conference. It has enabled us to do some wonderfully helpful things. But what happens next year when we are “old news”? I hope we will keep our newness. Can we continue to live up to your expectations of how our Conference should carry out the Vincentian charism? I hope you will continue to help us grow. Can we impose on your kind generosity for another year? I hope and pray that we can.
I am always somewhat sorry that all of you cannot enjoy the blessings of working here among God’s special people…people who daily live their lives with full trust in the continuing care of God. But I am confident that all of you realize how important your concern for our people is…not only for our continuing ministry, but also for our people themselves.
I learned that lesson a few years back from an elderly man named, Eugene. He was a wizened typical old time coal miner…missing fingers, bad back and black lung. His house had only one habitable room. His bathroom was unusable because its roof was barely there. He ate and slept in one soot-blackened room boiling potatoes on the old coal stove. He slept on a piece of plywood propped up on his couch. He needed help. I visited him and told him the volunteers—college students on spring break—might be able to help make his house livable. Not wanting to make promises, I carefully laid out all the “ifs”…if we have enough volunteers, if we have the expertise, if we have the money for materials. Eugene, looked at me with a slight smile and said, “I really don’t mind if you can’t fix my roof. I am just so happy that somebody cares.”
And you care and that is the greatest gift that you can give to our people…your continuing care and concern for people you don’t even know and who will never be able to thank you in person. This is truly a carrying out of the mission of charity as described by St. Vincent. So, as his feast day approaches, may we all thank God for blessing us with the chance to care for others and continue to ask St. Vincent to keep our love for the poor alive and ever growing.
Stay well and a heartfelt thank you from all our “Eugenes”….
Arnie Simonse, President
Conference of Southern West Virginia
304-732-8959
arnoldsimonse@aol.com
