ST. VINCENT de PAUL
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Outreach Coordinator Doris Mullins Caring for Others in Need
bout seven years ago, when Doris Mullins heard that St. Vincent de Paul was hiring an Outreach Coordinator, she knew without a doubt that the role would be a great match for her background and interests. At the time, Doris had spent over a decade working in community relations and charitable giving with Southwest Airlines. Also, Doris’ roots at St. Vincent de Paul run deep — her family have been parishioners here since 1980. As Outreach Coordinator for our parish, Doris is thankful for the opportunity to blend her faith life with her passion for serving those in need. “I love being able to have these personal relationships with our community partners,” Doris says. “We’ve made some great friendships and partnerships, and it’s great community teamwork. And I love having the faith community of our parish, as well.” In her role as Outreach Coordinator, Doris helps our parish partner with many non-profit organizations in the Arlington area to meet the needs of individuals and families in the community. When the person in need is a parishioner, Doris will often work directly with him or her. In other cases, she works to match clients with the local agencies that are best equipped to help. The needs to be addressed can be anything ranging from rent or utility assistance to more unique situations, like a graduating student whose family may not be able to afford the graduation regalia and invitations. Thanks to the generosity of our parishioners, St. Vincent de Paul can successfully serve countless members of our faith family and area residents. As soon as the pandemic hit last spring, parishioners began contacting Doris and asking her what they could do to continue helping those in need — a phenomenon that, as Doris notes, “speaks volumes” about how charitable our parish is. While many ministries continued operating remotely, restrictions on in-person activities called for a creative new way to serve the community. To help us continue serving in a more hands on approach, on Sunday, Sept. 27, the feast of St. Vincent de
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Doris Mullins, Outreach Coordinator at St. Vincent de Paul
Paul, we launched our Support Thy Neighbor program which allows our parish to continue providing for the vunerable in the time of COVID-19. Every third Sunday of the month, parishioners can participate in a drivethru drop-off of items to be donated to local non-profit service agencies. Non-perishable food items, baby essentials, and toiletry essentials are collected every month, in addition to a “special” item that reflects each month’s current needs — for example, cold weather essentials in December. Thanks to the generosity of our parishioners, St. Vincent de Paul is typically able to provide donated items to up to eight different local organizations, including the Salvation Army, the Arlington Life Shelter, Safe Haven, St. Anthony’s Food Pantry, Mission Arlington, and many more. “It’s really neat just to see the smiling faces — or maybe I should say the twinkles in the eyes with the masks!” says Doris of those who come with donations on Support Thy Neighbor Sunday. “It’s been a safe way to come together in some fellowship and to really connect and give to
