September 11, 2009
St. Vincent de Paul
Friends of the Poor Walk will be held Oct. 3 in Evansville
Vince Brenner is a 46-year member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society. “We try to help people in any capacity,” he said. (Message photo by Mary Ann Hughes) Click for a larger version.
By MARY ANN HUGHES (Message staff writer)
Years ago, when Vince Brenner was a young boy, hobos would come to the back door of his family home. His mother, Elizabeth, always gave them something to eat, and she never asked questions.
That quiet lesson of caring for others has stayed with him throughout his life. “She was very instrumental in me being concerned about other people, especially the poor.”
One way he has followed her example has been his 46-year membership in the St. Vincent de Paul Society. Back when he joined, “you had to be asked and there were no women at all. Two people asked me, Linus Glaser and Victor St. Hillier with St. Anthony’s conference. They came and said, ‘We feel you would be a good member.’ I was 32 years old, and I told them, ‘I’d be happy to be a member.’”
He was familiar with the society because when he was a child his family had received help from its members. “There were seven children, and at Christmas time a couple of times there were baskets of fruit and toys. They knocked on the door and then they were gone.”
He also knew about it from a co-worker at St. Mary’s Hospital. “Erwin Belz influenced me too. He had been a member since he was 16 years old. He was a good religious man, and I thought a lot of him. He professed what he believed.”
The society’s work hasn’t changed much in the 46 years that Brenner has been a member. “We help with the rent, food, medicine, clothing, even household furniture.
“One time, a young couple had an infant that died. We helped them pay for the funeral. They didn’t have any money. We do more than people think we do. We’ve even helped people find jobs.
“We try to help people in any capacity. We don’t discriminate — churched, unchurched, black, white — it doesn’t make any difference to us.”
Working with people who are struggling has been a good reminder of the blessings God has given him. It’s also provided a way for him to put his faith in action. “I believe if you are going to talk the talk then you have to walk the walk.”
Sometimes it’s hard to do the home visits, he says, but his mentor Father Ted Tempel has reminded him that “we are not supposed to sit in judgment. Our job is to help them.” He told me “if they scam you, they will have to answer for that.”
He’s also grateful for the opportunity to pay back all the help that his family received when his oldest daughter needed extra care because of a heart defect. “Father Tempel helped us a lot. A lot of people helped, and I think the only way you can pay back is to help other people.”
He says his work with the St. Vincent de Paul Society has given him “more respect for those who are called indigent,” those who struggle with drug and alcohol abuse. “It has made me more aware of people’s problems, what they have to deal with.”
Sometimes when he does home visits, he finds himself in places that are “unfit for human habitation. If they offer me a seat, I sit down and talk to them. Sometimes they just want someone to talk to.”
Being a member of the St. Vincent de Paul Society and being named Vincent has led him to feel a close connection to the saint. “I use him as my mentor,” he said, adding that he also respects Frédéric Ozanam, the society’s founder, St. Teresa of Calcutta and St. Padre Pio — and, “of course, Father Tempel.”
Last fall, the Evansville District Council of the St. Vincent de Paul Society held a Friends of the Poor Walk. Vince was invited to come dressed as St. Vincent. “I felt privileged to do that. I had to grow a beard, and I had a black cassock, a black cape and a black skull cap. I felt honored to do that.
“Father Tempel said, ‘That’s your name. That’s what you are supposed to do.”
This year’s Friends of the Poor walk will be held at 9 a.m., Saturday, Oct. 3, on the grounds of the Evansville State Hospital. Participants have the option of walking one mile or five kilometers. For additional information about the walk, go to the website www.svdpfriendsofthepoorwalk.org. and specify the Evansville District Council.