Please read the latest update from the SVP about the work they do in our Diocese.
Plans continue for the Tyne Central Council festival event which will be held at Ushaw Historic House, Chapels & Gardens (formerly Ushaw College) on Saturday 31 May, from 10.00am – 2.20pm. It is a free event open to all SVP members and volunteers, Diocesan Caritas partners and clergy. In this Jubilee Year, it is an opportunity to come together as ‘Pilgrims of Hope‘ to support and inspire each other to keep being vessels of hope for those who need us. Reflecting on the good work of the Caritas network, there will be several presentations held in the theatre from SVP and partner representatives, before concluding things with Mass celebrated by Bishop Stephen in the iconic St Cuthbert’s chapel. To assist with the organisation of this day, attendees are asked to register online here.
Here’s just one example of recent Conference work. An RVI pediatric nurse made contact about a child who had been discharged after extensive stem call treatment. The mother had called back into the hospital saying she did not have the means to feed her family. Members of the SVP visited the family and established that the mother of three children had spent so much in visiting her child in hospital that she had nothing left and her next income was not due for several days. Essential help was provided in order that the family had food and fuel until more money came in. The nurse later contacted again to say how grateful both she and the family were for the SVP’s timely action.
‘Twinnage’ is the way in which SVP groups in developed countries provide support to SVP groups in developing countries. SVP England and Wales is currently twinned with local groups in India, Sudan, South Sudan, Grenada, Guyana and Romania. Read more about Twinning and how one SVP Conference responded to a recent appeal here.
You can also read an update here on the justice and Peace Refugee Project, which is based in St Vincent’s Community Support Centre in Byker.
About the SVP:
The role of a conference varies from one parish to another, however befriending remains at the heart of what the SVP does. Visits take place at beneficiaries’ homes, sheltered accommodation or residential care. Every visit can be so different. Those who are elderly or housebound enjoy chatting about their past, hobbies and family. One SVP member shared how time seems to fly by during his visits to beneficiaries, one of which is over 100 years old, as they engage in conversation fuelled by tea and biscuits. Some beneficiaries prefer a phone call, so SVP members are only too happy to keep in touch in this way. The recurring theme when listening to SVP members talk about these befriending visits is always that they are as equally valued by both those visited and the SVP members themselves. For the housebound, lonely or downhearted, the power of personal contact must never be underestimated!
Nationally, there’s been a 49% increase in requests to the SVP for help over the past 24 months. Due to the cost-of-living crisis, more people are facing extreme financial difficulties. Equally, the cost of delivering our services also continues to rise. Parish SVP groups rely on the generosity of parishioners in their fundraising efforts. Equally helpful are donations of unwanted items, such as clothing, to the SVP Support Projects and shops in the Newcastle-Gateshead area, or to the Revive Centre in Sunderland.
If you have any questions about how to support the work of the SVP, email Deacon Patrick Rutherford at patrickr@svp.org.uk.
