A LEADING light in the St Vincent de Paul charity in Fermanagh this week described the level of need here, especially Lisnaskea, Enniskillen and Irvinestown as, ‘the worst I’ve ever seen’.
Brendan Hueston is the society’s assistant area president of eight conferences (branches) across the county and two dedicated shops, in Lisnaskea and Enniskillen. He has been involved with the charity since 1987.
“Last year, in Fermanagh, we raised between £300,000-£400,000 between collections from these eight, the two shops plus donations, for instance the Lisnaskea Fairs and Markets Trustees gave us £1,000, and from our customers.
“But, things are that bad now we’ve been making home visits this last one and half weeks, and we’re still going out du to the level of requests.
“Fuel povery (the need for heating oil) is the biggest item we’re asked for. We were giving out £100 but we’re going to have to cut that down to £50 because we couldn’t sustain it because of the amount of requests we’re getting.”
The ‘home visitation’ is a critical part of the way that the Society works. It how people like Mr Hueston are able to make a judgement call on the need and on what to give.
“We have quit giving out hampers and, instead, we give out vouchers because we find this is more beneficial to people. With the vouchers they can buy whatever they want themselves.’
The size of the voucher, he explained, depends on the size of the family, between £50-£60 for a family and between £30-£40 for a single person.
And, the need is widespread.
“There’s something seriously wrong when you see Val Irvine, God bless her, running a food bank. It’s ridiculous in this day and age, but the need is there. You have single parents with small children and it’s the biggest one. I know we do get criticised and people will say to us, ‘why give to them?’, that they’re up the town drinking, but that’s old gossip.
“They’re not up the town drinking and, even if they were, it’s the small babies in the house we have to look after.”
The Society’s two shops, in Enniskillen and Lisnaskea, a major source of income, are well supported by customers, and each has a good team of volunteers.
Across Ireland, the level of need as outlined by Mr Hueston, is repeated.
Jim Walsh, a spokesman for the St Vincent de Paul Society, confirmed that single parents, families with children in general and older people living alone were in the ‘top three’ category.
“Last year, the Society across Ireland gave out £43m and, in 2009, £23, so you can see how things have got worse.
“There’s all this talk in the south of an economic recovery, but there are still thousands of people who are not seeing it, who are struggling.”
He joined with Brendan Hueston in thanking the public for their response.
“It has been consistently good. We’re totally dependant on public support and this direct assistance is critical in our work with families in need.”
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