St. Vincent de Paul Society

Founded in 1833 in Paris, France by a young student, Frederic Ozanam, the Society has extended its mission to 130 countries with over a million members.

The first conference in the Diocese was founded in 1871 on Galveston Island.  Father John Mary Odin, the first bishop of the Diocese of Galveston-Houston and Father John Timon, who introduced the Society in St. Louis were founding fathers.

 Inspired by Gospel values, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul, a Catholic lay organization, leads women and men to join together to grow spiritually by offering person-to-person service to the needy and suffering in the tradition of its founder, Frederic Ozanam, and patron Saint Vincent de Paul. 

As a reflection of the whole family of God, members are drawn from every ethnic and cultural background, age group, and economic level.  They are united in an international society of charity by their spirit of poverty, humility and sharing, which is nourished by prayer and reflection, mutually supportive gatherings and adherence to a basic rule.

 Organized at the parish level, members witness God’s love by embracing all works of charity and justice.  The society collaborates with other people of good will in relieving need and addressing its causes, because in them members see the face of Christ.

 If you would like to be part of this worthy ministry or know someone that needs assistance please contact St Martha’s Conference President Fran Mc Connell at 281-358-6637

Interfaith CarePartners

Interfaith CarePartners'   principals   created   the  Care Team^®  model  of in-home support for families with special needs in 1985. Congregation-based Care Team^® projects are linked together by Interfaith CarePartners in an interfaith network of partner congregations as a basis for team training, continuing education, and volunteer service.

The Interfaith Care Partners operates through a number of groups up to 12 volunteers known as “Care Circles.” Each group, who will become the “second family” to the family requesting their presence, offers support to individuals and families affected by chronic or terminal illnesses or disabilities. The members of these groups share in service activities so that no team member is solely responsible for the level of care that may be required and no member is overburdened with too frequent or too lengthy visits.

Care Circle members provide a range of services including:

· Emotional and physical support;

· Limited transportation;

· Friendly visits and companionship;

· Respite opportunities that lift the burden of care for caregivers of ill or disabled loved ones

This new St Martha ministry already has seven Care Circles with about 62 volunteers, helping clients with a variety of needs. The Circles have already carried out several tasks. Members of one Circle replace the care giver in a family, on Sunday mornings. Now she can attend Mass, which she had not been able to do in several months. Members of another Circle provided transportation to the Medical Center for a widow who has breast cancer and was receiving treatment. Another Circle helped put up Christmas decorations for a widow who lives alone. Two other Circles visit lonely elderly persons on a regular basis.

  New Circle members are always needed and new Clients are always welcome. If you would like to volunteer or need help please call Peggy Wehe at 281-360-3244

HAAM (Humble Area Assistance Ministries) 

HAAM started in 1989 by a coalition of 25 religious and community organizations that were concerned about the overwhelming number of needy people seeking help from church food pantries in the Humble area. Their mission is to provide food and social services to the homeless, hungry and to others who don’t have the means to satisfy their basic human needs. The food pantry opened in February 1990; today, more than 3,000 people are served each month.

HAAM is a non-profit organization, with 13 paid part-time employees, and over 1,000 volunteers annually that give 33,000 hours of their time. It is governed by a board of trustees composed of two representatives from each of the 25 member churches and organizations, including St. Martha.

HAAM has a variety of services for the needy including:

· Providing food for needy families once a month

· Administering FEMA and CEAP funds as well as county and private foundation grants

· Helping clients pay rent and mortgages on a short-term emergency basis

· Assisting with utility bills

· Providing clothing from the resale shop, when needed

· Helping with gasoline or transportation costs for clients who have     medical appointments or job interviews

· Providing funds for eyeglasses and prescription medications when needed

Volunteers are always needed, especially bilingual. Volunteers are needed in the Resale shop, the Food Pantry, Social Services as counselors, daily receptionists, computer help, tutors and help with office work. HAAM is located at 1302 First St, Humble. If you would like to donate items or give you time you can call Mrs Sue Ann Lane at 281-446-3663.

Martha’s Kitchen 

Martha’s Kitchen is one of the parish’s primary and must visible mission activities. It is dedicated to Christ’s call to love one another and to actively fulfill the basic physical and spiritual needs of those who need our help.

It opened in 1992 with Sister Maria Elena Lopez as director and Sister Julianne Sandoval as Assistant Director. They have two more full time employees and about 20 or more volunteers Monday through Friday. They prepare, serve and clean up after the hot nutritious lunches are served to 350 to 400 hungry men, women and children.

Some volunteers come from other churches, including non Catholics and social service organizations, but the vast majority of volunteers belong to St Martha’s community. The Parish’s financial contributions  are critical to the  work of Martha’s Kitchen. Although some contributions come from large corporations such as Chevron, Shell and Exxon, 7 out of every 10 dollars of the money essential to keeping this ministry going come from the Sunday collection. And despite the fact that the Kitchen gets as much food as possible from the Houston Food Bank, the majority of it must be purchased from other sources.

Martha’s Kitchen is located at 322 South Jensen Dr, Houston. If you would like to give a donation or become a new volunteer please contact  Sister Maria Elena at 713-224-2522.

Click Here for more details on Martha's Kitchen

Social  Justice Committee

The Social Justice teaching of the Catholic Church is rooted in Holy Scripture, which calls the people of God to lives of justice and mercy, compassion and hope, solidarity and peace. 

Modern Catholic social teaching is the body of social principles and moral teaching that is articulated in the papal, conciliar, and other official Church documents issued since the late nineteenth century and dealing with the economic, political, and social order. 

The St Martha Catholic Church Social Service is taking additional efforts to educate the community on the issues we face locally, statewide, nationally and internationally by creating the Social Justice Committee (SJC). The SJC  focuses mainly on poverty and life issues. These issues will include (but not be limited to) economic disparities, lack of education and employment, lack of basic needs, lack of medical coverage, human rights, family issues, abortion, euthanasia, stem cell research, cloning and capital punishment. 

If you feel called by the compassion and love of Jesus Christ to make a difference, we would like to hear from you. There are many ways to get involved, from participating in workshops and meetings, to researching and networking on social issues, to actively writing letters and visiting with local state representatives. 

If you have any questions or would like to be part of this ministry you can contact John Ehrman at 281-795-4494.

Northeast Hospice Services 

   Hospice provides physical and emotional support for those who can no longer benefit from curative treatment. To be eligible for hospice a patient must have a life-limiting illness with a prognosis of six months or less (if the disease follows its normal course). That does not mean that life ends on the day the patient comes on to hospice, nor are they discharged if they live longer than six months. The Hospice is a non-profit organization that is Medicare and Medicaid certified and Joint Commission accredited. They accept patient’s regardless of their ability to pay for the services. They provide: 

· Physician-directed services by the medical director in conjunction with the patient’s primary physician

· Nurse-coordinated care in the home and inpatient settings

· Medical social workers and counseling services

· Chaplain services on request for spiritual support

· Home health aide services for personal care

· Dietitian services, physical, occupational, and speech therapies

· Volunteers who perform a wide variety of functions

· Bereavement care for the family for at least one year following the death of the patient, including personal as well as group support

· On-call support available on a 24-hour-a-day, seven days-a week

     basis.

Hospice volunteers are special people who give freely of their time and energies. Vital services they provide may include making friendly visits, fund raising, and clerical support. Volunteers take part in a training program and do not need to be healthcare

professionals.

 The Hospice is located at the Northeast Medical Center at 18951 Memorial Drive in Humble. If anyone is interested in being part of this worthwhile ministry please call Nancy Parsons at 281-540-7852.

Birthright of Humble

Birthright is an emergency pregnancy service, founded in February, 1968 in Toronto, Canada. It’s immediate aim, therefore, is to understand and make known in our community our basic philosophy, that every girl or women who becomes pregnant, whether she is married or single, has the right to give birth, and to be given the help to carry the child to term. 

Until Birthright went into operation, there has been, easily accessible, more expedient help to get rid of the pregnancy rather than to have the baby. For this reason Birthright make themselves available to listen, to talk, to guide the girl or woman, not only to the best medical care, but to the discussion of the girl’s whole problem and give prompt individualistic personal care, establishing with the girl a trusting, loving relationship. 

 Birthright offers the following:

· Free Pregnancy Test

· Maternity and Baby Clothes

· Education of Pregnancy

· Assistance in locating medical care

· Adoption information

· Referrals to licensed agencies

· Referrals for legal assistance

· Community Resource information

· Friendship

· Support and Encouragement  

Birthright is always in need of volunteers who are committed, profoundly pro-life, n     on-judgmental. The shifts are weekly and they always need to fill with someone to answer the phone, listen and give guidance to women with an unplanned pregnancy. 

Birthright is located at 1502 1^st Street, Suite G, Humble. To volunteer you can call Mrs. Diane Engelhardt at 281-540-1123