LIKE AN OLD FRIEND, the St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Store in north Marquette is always there, and for many of us, always has been. However, that store is only one part of a much bigger outreach program run by the local Society of St. Vincent de Paul, under the umbrella of charitable causes in the name of the Catholic Church.
The original organization goes back to 1833, when it was founded in Paris. The idea was to address the needs of the many poor people in that country, but as good ideas go… this one just kept expanding. And by the early 1960’s, it was up and running here, a fully functional volunteer driven organization with programs targeting those in need.
A Store and More
While most area residents know “St. Vinnie’s” as a place to find inexpensive clothing and household goods, the store is actually just one function of the charitable work offered by the local society.
District President Karen Reese explains. “In addition to thrift stores and pantries, we have a Financial Aid Office located in the Marquette facility. Neighbors who need help with rent, utilities, clothing, household items, etc. are interviewed and written requests are referred to one of four SVDP conferences for financial assistance.”
The conferences Reese is referring to are the society’s installations across the District of Marquette, including St. Michael and St. Peter- Marquette, St. Louis the King- Harvey, St. Anthony- Gwinn, Sacred Heart- Munising, and St. Rita- Trenary.
Other than being familiar with their thrift stores and food pantries, we don’t really see a lot of what the Society of St. Vincent de Paul does. Like a lot of our charitable agencies, much of their work goes unnoticed. Except, of course, by those families getting the help they need, when they need it.
“The number of families and individuals using the pantry continues to increase,” Reese says. “Requests for assistance with rent and water bills are the most frequent requests that we have been receiving recently.”
She also adds, “During the winter months the Superior Watershed has MEAP funds to distribute to those needing help with heat and electricity; thus, we receive fewer requests of this type.”
Practicing What They Preach
Dedicated volunteers are the key. And it takes a commitment to the mission to be an effective volunteer.
“As our volunteers will tell you,” Karen says, “SVDP has a compelling mission: growing spiritually through helping those in need. Many retirees want to feel useful – to feel that we can make a difference in our world. If one is blessed with good health and adequate resources, many of us want to ‘give back.’ SVDP provides the means for us to do that.”
As President of the St. Louis the King Conference, Dan Trotochaud, doesn’t just feel useful, he really is. If you happened to stop by the thrift store earlier this week, you could have seen him putting his point-of-sale skills to work.
“We just finished rearranging the sales floor this past Monday,” says Trotochaud. “It provides a much more functional and pleasant shopping experience. The volunteers and staff did a fantastic job with this reset.”
While serving the mission, Dan finds enjoyment in the work. “Once I started volunteering I saw an opportunity to increase sales significantly. The old business entrepreneur in me took on the challenge. I’m having a ball and sales are increasing with a great staff.”
There’s Always More to Do
As for what lies ahead, Reese says, “One of our goals is to improve our Marquette facility to provide better space to support store and pantry operations and to construct an addition to the building for financial aid services. We hope to announce our plans for accomplishing this in the coming months.”
If you support the cause, you can help by donating goods to the thrift stores, and by shopping there. Munising has a food pantry while Marquette and Gwinn have thrift stores and pantries.
To find out more, visit their website here.
Pot
Taxes
What can we say about the new Michigan tax on pot? Some will support it, not just for the revenue it might raise, but because they generally oppose the use of marijuana, legal or not.
Opponents of the tax will gripe that state lawmakers are picking on an industry no different than any other, with local businesses just trying to make it in a very competitive market. Like… why us? Yes. Why them?
And then there’s the Michigan Cannabis Industry Association, the largest marijuana lobbying group in the state. They’re challenging the ruling with a lawsuit alleging the tax is unconstitutional.
Apparently, from what we understand, there was a pledge to not increase the tax rate established when cannabis was legalized a few years ago. So, to get around that, the measure’s proponents are claiming the tax is not an increase, but rather a new tax.
That’s some legislative creativity right there. Sounds like they’re smoking the good stuff, huh?
Anyway, while this plays out in court, the 24% wholesale tax is in effect. Budget accordingly.
Holes
Potholes in January? If that’s any indication of what we have to look forward to, this could be a banner year for those head-shaking, profanity-inducing, tire shop-visiting holes of Hades.
Did you see the one out by the visitor center in Harvey? I heard from several people about that rim-rattler.
“I had seen it the day before, but forgot about it. When I hit it I was truly shocked.”
“I thought I hit somebody’s bumper. Then my tire kept deflating. I was so scared, I couldn’t catch my breath.”
“While avoiding others, I thought I missed it. No such luck.”
That must have been one heck of a pothole.
The recent snowfall gave the holes a temporary filling, but that only works for a little while. Then our road workers will be out there, doing the best they can. But as the temperatures rise and fall, the pothole obstacle course will appear, and reappear.
Potholes are generally accepted as one of the first signs of spring. If only.
Epilogue
Finally, here’s where the pot stories come together. Our friends in Lansing have decided the revenue generated from the pot tax… will be put towards fixing the potholes.
Oh yeah. They’re definitely smoking the good stuff.