About Us

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is a volunteer member organization devoted to serving those in need.

Assistance, whether material, emotional or spiritual, is offered to each individual with a spirit of compassion, respect and dignity. Rather than address only the specific circumstance, Society members seek to work with the people they serve and to create solutions that consider all aspects of a person’s life.

The goal is not to solely provide assistance, but to provide assistance in a manner that will make a meaningful difference in people’s lives as they work to reestablish their stability. The goal is to keep individuals from becoming homeless, not waiting until they are homeless to help them. No act of charity is foreign to the Society.

The Society of St. Vincent de Paul Central Council Office in San Antonio, Texas, has several "special works". Our free Dining Room in downtown San Antonio serves nearly 900 meals per day to local homeless and low-income women, men, and children. In addition to hot meals, the Dining Room has also provided over 65,700 bag lunches to those in the SAMM shelter that cannot come to the dining room or are going off to work for the day. It was founded in 1985 and has served over 4,386,233 hot, nutritious meals over the past 21 years. The Dining Room is funded solely by donations and is served by hundreds of volunteers who assist the small staff in preparing and serving the meals.

In addition, the Central Council Office raises funds to purchase the canned goods and food products sent to over 73 food pantries in San Antonio, Bexar County, and nine other counties in the area. Each unit of food will help feed a family of 4 three meals a day for 4 days.

The Central Council Office receives over 150 calls per day with inquiries for help with rent, utilities, clothing, baby items, furniture and much more. Throughout many of the St. Vincent de Paul conferences in San Antonio clothing, food assistance, furniture and much needed household items are provided free of charge.  This type of assistance is provided for those who are formally homeless or have been displaced or for people who are in hardship and need help through this struggling time in their lives.  Clothing and furniture assistance is available due to the many donations given by our neighbors throughout San Antonio and surrounding areas.

An international organization with members in over 142 countries, the Society has been serving those in need in San Antonio since 1871.

Mission Statement:
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is an organization of lay persons who seek, in a spirit of justice and charity, by a person-to-person involvement of its members, to help those who are most in need.