The Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SSVP) is a lay Catholic organization. Membership is open to all those who desire to live their faith by serving Christ by serving their neighbours. Members of SSVP, known as Vincentians, are called to do Christ’s work in their own communities. 
In parishes where SSVP is active, many Vincentians deliver emergency food hampers to individuals and families in need. In addition to providing food , Vincentians sometimes help people access funds for housing, utilities and other essential needs. Vincentians who conduct Home Visits work with individuals and families who need help accessing other social and economic supports.
Our Vision
As a Catholic lay organization, we will embrace the world in a network of charity, serving Christ in the suffering, the poor and the marginalized, bringing them love and respect, aid and development, hope and joy, in a more just society.
We also seek to deepen our spirituality and the mutual love and support amongst members, so that, seeing how we serve those in need with one mind and heart, people are attracted to the Society and to Christ who animates it.
Our Mission
The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul is a lay Catholic organization whose mission is:
To live the Gospel message by serving Christ in the poor with love, respect, justice and joy.
Our Values
The mission of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul implies that as Vincentians, we:
- see Christ in anyone who suffers;
- come together as a family;
- have personal contact with the poor;
- help in all possible ways.
Our Spirituality
The mission of the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul is a response to the message of our Lord in the Gospel according to Saint Matthew, Chapters 25, verses 31-40:
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, escorted by all the angles of heaven, he will sit upon his royal throne and all the nations will be assembled before him. Then he will separate them into two groups as a shepherd separates sheep from goats. The sheep he will place on his right, the goats on his left. The king will say to those on his right:
“Come. You have my Father’s blessings! Inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the creation of the world.
For I was hungry and you gave me to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me to drink. I was a stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me. I was ill and you comforted me, in prison and you came to visit me.”
Then the just will ask Him: “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you or see you thirsty and give you drink? When did we welcome you away from home or clothe you in your nakedness? When did we visit you when you were ill or in prison?” An the king will answer them: “I assure you, as often as you did it for one of my least brothers, you did it for me.”
Members of the Society are called to value the principle of life, which manifests God’s love for men, women and children throughout the world. Christ came to gi e hope to persons in need and expect Vincentians to do the same.
By meditation, prayers, reflection on the scriptures, and the teachings of the Church, Vincentians seek to :
- develop their awareness of God;
- develop their relationship with persons in need;
- bear witness by acts of kindness in the spirit of Christ.
The Gospels are the prime sources of Vincentian spirituality. Meditating on the spirt of the Rule and on the lives of he saints, especially those of Saint Vincent de Paul and Blessed Frédéric Ozanam, is recommend for greater spiritual development.
Society of St. Vincent de Paul Calgary 