The gift of giving

Last Wednesday, St Vincent de Paul Deepdene and Balwyn Conference invited Fr Brendan and the Parish Staff to hospitality following their monthly meeting.  The hospitality was to acknowledge and thank Fr Brendan and the Parish Staff for the support we provide to all three conferences across our parishes and to give thanks to its members, associates and families supporting their good works.  

Whilst listening to the President of the Conference give thanks it reminded me of my own personal journey and association with St Vincent de Paul. 

The Conference came into my consciousness in late 1970.  The company my father worked for was subject to a strike.  Employees were stood down with no pay.  My brother and I had little understanding of what a strike was or what effect it had on families.  All we saw was that our father was suddenly there in the morning to see us off to school and was at home when we returned from school.  The weekly shopping bags were a little lighter with no treats, just the essentials and our weekly take away of ‘fish and chips’ on a Friday night was gone.  It was explained to us to not take anything for granted, there were many other families around us who were not as fortunate.

The strike finally ended, the shopping bags saw the return of of our favorite treats including biscuits, chocolate and Neapolitan ice cream.  Christmas arrived but the effects of the strike was still fresh in the memory of many. 

Again, it was explained to us that for many it was not necessarily going to be a happy Christmas and as such there was to be a new house tradition – the gift of giving.  What this meant for an eight-year-old and a six-year-old was that if we received gifts under the Christmas Tree on Christmas morning, we were to give thought to those who had nothing.  So, we were required to give one of our gifts to St Vincent de Paul who would then pass it on to a child in need.  There were of course rules that came with this!  If you received a toy under the tree – no, you could not first play with your new toy and then gift it; if your present was a book – no, you could not read your new book and then pass it on as a new gift; if you received new clothes under the tree – no, your new clothes and socks did not form part of the gifting.  And we had until Boxing Day to make the decision as to which gift was to be donated or the decision would be made for us.  The pressure!  

Gift giving in our house was very simple in those early days.  Looking at old photographs of those early Christmas mornings, our gifts compromised of a board game, jigsaw puzzles, books, a bag of marbles (would there be one or two tom bowlers in amongst them?), maybe a small box of Lego to share, chocolates, bumper colouring books and new colouring pencils.  The big decision of what we were prepared to part with was made with the hope that since both our birthdays were six months away, maybe we would receive the gift again – that was wishful thinking.

The gift of giving continued as a tradition until we left home and established our own households, where the tradition took on a different look by way of regular financial support of different charities and volunteering.  Like many families, it was instilled in us to look and care for those who were less fortunate.

After the speeches at the Vinnies gathering, I had an opportunity to chat with the past and present President, and current Treasurer regarding the recent Winter Appeal.  All were very grateful for the support from our parishioners, but it was noted that giving to the Winter Appeal overall was down considerably from previous years.  

However, the call for help is on the increase. 

The cost-of-living pressures are causing an increase in demand for Vinnies services as more and more people look for assistance with groceries, winter clothing, bedding, power bills and of course housing.  On Census night in 2021, more than 30,000 Victorians were reported homeless, that is an increase of 25% from 2016 and the highest nationally.  The Victorian social housing waitlist has surged to over 67,000 applications with 37,000 of these classified as priority cases.  An estimated 60,000 new social housing properties are needed over the next decade.

Such news was saddening to hear, and I left the evening with mixed emotions knowing that I was going to a home that was heated, there was food in the fridge and I had plenty of warm clothes for the cold days ahead, yet there were so many around me who had nothing to eat, no warm clothes and possibly nowhere to lay their head for the night.

It is never too late to contribute to our Conferences.  Donations may be made online using the QR codes below.  Or you may like to volunteer with them.  If you would like to learn more about the work of our Conferences or join one of our local Conferences please contact the Conference presidents via the Parish Office.  

By Kate Baines

Camberwell Conference

Deepdene Balwyn Conference

Surrey Hills Wattle Park Conference

Published: 12 July 2024