Charles Levesque, Executive Director, Depaul USA reports on DePaul USA’s recent tour of Vincentian Family ministries in the USA. Click to read more.
Depaul USA opened the doors of its first project, Depaul House, a 25-bed shelter for homeless men in Philadelphia, in April 2009. Two months later, the shelter was filled. By the summer of 2010, 56 men had already moved on from the shelter. Working with Depaul House program counselors and staff, nearly 75 percent of these men were able to break the chains of homelessness by finding a job and moving into a home of their own.
As the summer of 2010 came to a close, it was time to introduce Depaul USA and its successful program to the larger Vincentian family. Father Bernard Tracey, C.M., Chair of Depaul USA, and Mark McGreevy, the head of Depaul USA’s international parent company, came up with the idea of a national Vincentian tour. I joined the tour three days into my tenure as the new Executive Director of Depaul USA. The tour had three primary goals in addition to introducing Depaul USA to the Vincentian family. First, we wanted to learn from homelessness programs run by Vincentian family members in each region we visited. Second, because Depaul USA’s goal is to expand its programming to five US cities over the next five years, we were on the lookout for programming leads and potential program partners. Third, we were looking for suggestions for new board members to oversee our national expansion.
The first leg of our tour took us to Los Angeles, where we met with the Vincentians at the Amat Residence and Sister Joyce Weller, D.C at St. Vincent’s Hospital. Sister Joyce provided a tour of the largest “Meals on Wheels” program in California, which serves 5,000 meals a day and was founded by a Daughter of Charity. We also toured the Hotel Dieu, an impressive affordable senior apartment complex developed by the Daughters. From Los Angeles, we moved on to beautiful Los Altos, where we celebrated Labor Day and met with Sr. Marjory Ann Baez, D.C., Provincial of the Western Province and her council. Sister Marjory Ann informed us that the Western Province is currently assessing its programs but assured us that the Daughters of the West would always be with the poor.
After California, it was on to the Midwest. In St. Louis, Sisters Julie Cutter,D.C., Ellen Kron, D.C. and Marge Clifford, D.C. briefed us on programs and conditions in the bi-state area. Father Perry Henry, C.M, Provincial of the Western Province of the Vincentians, provided a detailed briefing of The Rebuild Center, a day center located on the grounds of St. Joseph’s Church in New Orleans. The Center provides meals and hygiene, medical, and legal services to 250 people every day. In Evansville, Indiana we met with Sister Honora Remes, D.C., Provincial of the East Central Province and her council who encouraged us to explore opportunities and needs in Indianapolis and Detroit. In Chicago, Father Dennis Holtschneider, C.M., President of Depaul University, arranged meetings with the head of Catholic Charities, the City of Chicago’s Commissioner of the Department of Families and Support Services, and a representative of the MacArthur Foundation. In Chicago, we learned that the City is grappling with the problem of teen homelessness.
In the east, we meet with Sister Louise Gallahue, D.C., Provincial of the Northeast Province and her council in Albany and Sister Claire Debes, D.C., Provincial of the Southeast Province and her council in Emmitsburg, Maryland. On the final leg of our tour we visited St. John’s University in New York City and Niagara University in upstate NY, where Father Joseph Levesque, C.M., President of Niagara University, organized a meeting with key faculty and community organizations working to better living conditions in Niagara Falls.
Although we crossed the country from West to East and visited large cities and small towns, there were two constants throughout the tour—the wonderful hospitality offered by members of the Vincentian family and the inventiveness and effectiveness of their work. At every stop, our hosts also generously provided contact information for relevant programs and potential partners.
The tour is already paying dividends. I have returned to Chicago and New Orleans to develop program proposals. In Chicago, we are in initial conversations with city agencies to develop a housing program for homeless youth between the ages of 18 and 25. In New Orleans, participating agencies at The Rebuild Center are mulling a proposed Depaul USA project that would provide transportation services that will allow their clients to access additional services across New Orleans. In January, I will visit Macon, Georgia to meet with an ecumenical group interested in creating a day center and/or shelter for women in that city.
The Board and staff of Depaul USA join Fr. Bernard Tracey, Mark McGreevy, and me in extending heartfelt thanks to our hosts and all who assisted us on this trip. We look forward to welcoming members of the Vincentian family to Depaul House in Philadelphia and wherever Depaul USA opens its doors in the future.
Tags: Depaul USA
