“Amen, I say to you, insofar as you did this to one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did it to me” (Mt 25, 40)

Introduction
Twenty years ago, the existence of a great number of poor who live on the street was discovered. It is estimated that in Mexico City alone they are over 10,000. This situation results in what is called “an emerging social problem.” If preventing this type of problem is the job fundamentally of a family, we cannot forget that today it is the challenge which demands the commitment of the Vincentian Family (VF) in its option for the service of those most in need.

1. Motivation
In September of 2001, during the Second Annual Meeting of the VF, it was decided that the VF of Mexico would help the service of the Kitchen of the Poor, “Comedor San Vicente de Paul,” to respond to the initiative of the officers of the international VF of undertaking a campaign against hunger “Globalization of charity: Fight against Hunger.”

In order to accomplish this commitment, a coordinating team was named, composed of two members of each branch of the VF in Mexico City. They would take care of organizing and of administering this project. In October of 2001 Brother Marcelino Cárdenas, CM, was named the project coordinator.

From the beginning, it was decided to continue with the work that the Association of the Miraculous Medal and the Vincentian seminarians had been doing since 1998 to provide food for street children.

2. General Objective
Our goal is: To offer, every Saturday, the basic services required by the persons who live on the street, in the center of the Mexico City, such as: food, evangelization, medical care and educational services.

3. Team to coordinate and serve the persons
a. Those committed to this project will work in it for at least five years.
b. Two Vincentian priests will coordinate the team of the VF dedicated to this ministry and the seminarians will give their own input;
c. Two Daughters of Charity will work in the Project through visiting and welcoming the poor.
d. The various Associations of the VF: AIC, AMM, JMV, SSVP will commit personnel to this project.

4. Finances
Each branch should attempt, on the level of national councils, to give $100 monthly to finance the work. In the same way, we receive all help in kind that the same lay people of the VF can offer us for the project.

5. Volunteer service team
Direct service will be offered by at least two volunteers from each branch of the VF who offer their services for an entire Saturday. The participating lay people life in Mexico City and the metropolitan area. These are members of the: AIC, CM, HC, JMV, AMM and SSVP. At the same time, we will count upon the help of a group of lay volunteers who do not belong to the branch of the VF but who offer a good service in the project.

6. Activities and Services
The following are the principal tasks in the direct service of the poor: collaboration in the kitchen for food preparation, organization of the dispensary, preparation and distribution of clothes, coordination of activities of other volunteers and general cleanliness in the house. In addition, there is medical service, care of the young, giving of clothes and shoes, education, evangelization and listening.

7. Organization
The house belongs to the CM, which has granted ceded it to the VF to offer this service to the street people of Mexico City. The coordinating team is Brother Marcelino Cárdenas, CM, two members of the JMV and the seminary sisters of the Daughters of Charity. The Service Team is composed of 22 persons, members of VF and lay volunteers.

8. Steps of the project
The many poor street people in is a genuine challenge to the VF. Our service began with a service of 80 persons and now serves about 450 poor. Fortunately also the number of volunteers, especially of those who belong to the VF has increased. Presently the possibility of working also with institutions that collaborate in a greater medical attention, such as drug addiction, and legal problems, among others, are being studied.

9. Needs in human resources
A needs analysis carried out since the beginning of this work has shown the following areas of concern: to create a basic team of volunteers to cover the service permanently, to provide uniforms to the volunteers in order to be recognized, to motivate and develop stable and regular participation in other centers of the VF, to collect donations in money, clothes, food, medicine, etc.; to detect poverty in order to provide solutions and to network with other educational, health and hospitality institutions, to collaborate for better service.

10. Our Dreams
a. To modify the soup kitchen and to install a system of toilets and showers in order to offer a better service to the poor;
b. To set up a permanent fund to maintain the project.
c. After the concrete assistance to the poor that this project provides, we would like to continue further with the task of the human promotion of the poor.
d. To make this project a point of contact with the government of Mexico City and with other private charitable institutions to orient those interested in the medical treatment, rehabilitation, education, integration in the society, search for employment, speeding up of transaction, etc.;
e. With the help of the government of Mexico, D.F., we would like to serve a daily hot meal during winter to the poor. Of course, volunteers will be needed for this program too.
f. To present this project to private business establishments to get financial assistance to maintain it.

11. Address of this Project:
Br. Marcelino Cárdenas, C. M.
Plaza de la Concepción, No.20
Col. Centro-Delg. Cuauhtémoc
06010 México, D.F.
Tel: (55) 55 26 69 76
E-mail: vicentedepaul@asistencia.org