Strategic Plan 2013 to 2016

Message from the National President

The St Vincent de Paul Society was founded by a group of Catholic university students who were willing to take a risk. They took the risk of responding to the glaring inequality and injustice emerging in their time. We who have come after them are guided by the same desire to do God’s Will through faithful service to the people who are pushed to the margins of society. Our calling will never change. Our historical focus on Christ’s Poor will never change. But the context in which we carry out our mission has changed. If we want to be truly faithful to our calling then we must look at how we should change in response to the signs of the times.

This Strategic Plan challenges us to be clear in our desire to serve Christ in the Poor, to fearlessly speak out against the causes of poverty and inequality, and to build a more sustainable St Vincent de Paul Society in Australia. The ultimate goal of this Plan is to equip us as members of One Society to give hope to all of the people we assist. Our message is that no matter how hard things get, we will always be there for them to give them assistance and to stand up for them with One Voice.

Anthony Thornton