Province News

This summer, 13 Vincentian volunteers traveled more than 7,000 miles to the Vincentian region in Kenya, East Africa, to serve the poor. For months leading up to the trip, the volunteers raised funds to cover the cost of their travel and to provide supplies to the people they would meet. In June, the group made the long journey to Nairobi, and settled in at DePaul Centre, a Vincentian house of formation that served as the group’s headquarters. During the school year, the facility houses seminarians studying for the priesthood. The center offered the volunteers a comfortable place to meet, sleep […]

This year, we invited our friends, benefactors and lay collaborators to join in celebrating 200 years of Vincentian service and the start of a third century
of faith. The response was overwhelming! Dedicated people from throughout the United States have offered their prayers and financial gifts to enliven and expand our mission – the mission of St. Vincent – to evangelize the poor. This year, your gifts touched the lives of those we serve by helping to: Provide direct service to the poor in the United States Establish the Welcome the Stranger program in Kenya Enable care to our senior Vincentian […]

For 200 years, Vincentian brothers have farmed the land and taken care of the buildings at St. Mary’s of the Barrens in Perryville, Missouri. In the early years, they provided fresh produce, dairy, beef and pork to Vincentian seminaries throughout the region. This year, the farm will be winding down its operations. The last of the cattle herd will be sold and just enough equipment will be kept to maintain the pastureland. Fr. Ray Van Dorpe, C.M., recently acknowledged the farm brothers’ efforts and the work of so many dedicated Vincentians before them who were instrumental in sustaining the community’s […]

My heart is overwhelmed with thankfulness and joy for this ‘gift from heaven,’ allowing the Vincentian Family to celebrate the 400th Anniversary of the Vincentian charism. This charism has left such deep marks of Jesus’ unconditional love on the world throughout the last 400 years and continues to do so today!” These words of Fr. Tomaz Mavric, Superior General of the Congregation of the Mission, at the opening of the worldwide celebration, reflect the sentiments of the Vincentians in the United States who celebrate 200 years of service in this country. The Vincentians first sent missionaries to the United States […]

“I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me.”
 – Mt. 25: 35 “This Gospel quote describes how the Vincentians live every day,” says Bob Shadduck, long- time supporter of the Western Province. “The priests and brothers recognize people as individuals and share whatever they have with those they serve.” Bob and Catherine Shadduck first encountered Vincentians at Padre Serra Parish in Camarillo, California. Fr. Kevin McCracken,
C.M., was working as a professor at the nearby seminary and served in the parish on weekends. […]

Your support means so much to those we serve, including our Vincentian priests and brothers living in retirement. Your prayers and generosity help provide quality health services and 24-hour care in a community setting at the Apostle of Charity Residence in Perryville, Missouri. For more than five decades, these Vincentian priests have dedicated their lives to provide for the poor they served. Now, you help provide for them in their senior years through your generous support. Thank you! Fr. Tom Hinni, C.M. Fr. Tom Hinni, C.M., was ordained a Vincentian priest in 1963. During his years of active ministry, he taught […]

Nearly 15 years ago, a wave of immigrants, mostly from Mexico, moved north from Texas through Oklahoma to Arkansas, where many of them settled. Fr. Tom Stelik, C.M., and the other priests serving at St. Anne Parish in North Little Rock, recognized that the new immigrant community was underserved and in need of assistance. The Vincentians set about finding new, innovative ways to serve and minister to the Hispanic population in the region. “The Church in North Little Rock is thriving with the tireless energy and deep faith of the Vincentian lay missioners. They are on fire with the love […]

An Interview with Mark McGreevy, OBE, Chief Group Executive, Depaul International By Fr. J. Patrick Murphy, C.M. What is Depaul International? Depaul started as a partnership within the Vincentian Family. We develop that partnership through governance and our practical work on the ground. Our services for homeless are cradle-to-grave, including mother-and-baby service in Ukraine, caring for street drinkers in Ireland, teens on the streets in the U.K., people striving to find their way back into society in the U.S., and hospice care for elderly homeless in Slovakia. We intend to follow Vincent sending us to the poorest of the poor. […]

In the back-seat of a small Toyota SUV, Fr. Paul Golden, C.M., rode white-knuckled to visit a Vincentian parish outside Nairobi. “Driving in Kenya is a nightmare,” Fr. Paul chuckled. “The roads are rough and, in the Nairobi area, there is so much traffic – cars, trucks, motorbikes, taxis and bicycles. It’s quite an experience!” But Fr. Paul did not travel more than 6,000 miles from Denver, Colorado, to Kenya, East Africa, to survey road conditions. He was there to visit Vincentian parishes and outstations, and to lead strategic planning meetings for the growing Region of Kenya. The program attracts […]

“Growing up, we attended the novena every Monday night at the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal,” Rita Esselman recalls. “Our faith and the Vincentian ‘way’ were central to our family life – I wanted to pass it on to our children.” Born and raised in Perryville, Mo., Rita and her future husband, Eugene Esselman, knew Vincentian priests and brothers since their early childhood days. Eugene worked at the local newspaper and, in his free time, helped to publish the seminary paper, The DeAndrein. Rita was active in the parish and school, and worked as a full-time mother – instilling a […]