Many young people do not realize that the founder of the Society of St Vincent De Paul was actually a young law student from a prominent university in France. Frederick Ozanam was so inspired by his faith that he wanted to out into action the teaching of Christ. i.e. to serve the poor.

Our founder at a young age of 20 had put his faith to practice and  went beyond his social stature and  standing to visit the poor in the slums of Paris offering assistance the best he could  in a country where social class and pride takes great importance, an era when serving the poor and the less fortunate was a shameful thing and a great task in the 1830s.

To him each human being is of an of an inestimable worth and Frederick Ozanam’s passion drew a large number of followers who were dedicated to help the poor of Paris and to bring Government Aid to the needy under the patronage of St. Vincent de Paul .
Therefore, Frederick as a young man was no different from you and I. He was touched by the pleas of the needy.

The Youth Convention 2010 aims to create awareness amongst the youth in our Catholic church of the vast works involving education to the poor, assistance to the needy, helping the poor build better lives for themselves, helping unfortunate children who are not as privileged as us to have a roof over our heads and many other aid to the less fortunate amongst us. The convention would even bring out that leadership  quality in you that you never knew you had.

You too can make a difference just like Ozanam, COME & SEE from the Youth Convention 2010 how and what difference you can make in another person’s life and in doing so how enriched your own life can become. Let us togther continue the work of charity  and mission of the Society of St Vincent de Paul.

- by Ameleena

NOTE:   Details of the Youth Convention 2010 can be viewed here (poster), including registration form to be downloaded.