LINDENWOLD — John McLaughlin and Tom Miller not only believe time, talent and treasures are important for their stewardship but also believe cooperation is equally as important.
Both men have worked together to strengthen the work being done by the St. Vincent DePaul Society. John was president of the society at Our Lady of Grace Parish in Somerdale and Tom, who is 93, worked for many years with the society at St. Lawrence Parish.
When Our Lady of Grace Parish, St. Lawrence and St. Luke in Stratford united to create Our Lady of Guadalupe, John and Tom worked diligently to coordinate the volunteers from the merged parishes and to continue to provide the services for the poor and needy who are part of the parish. St. Lawrence Church and St. Luke are both worship sites. Our Lady of Grace was closed in 2009.
Our Lady of Guadalupe covers Lindenwold, Clementon, Laurel Springs, Somerdale, Stratford, Hi-Nella, and parts of Voorhees.
“The merger of the two societies has gone very well,” said John. “We merged the societies in 2010, and we help people with their bills and other things. We even supplied a playpen and a crib to a mother in need.”
He added that combining the societies “was emblematic of getting together and cooperating, something the diocese wants to see in all these parish consolidations.”
John and Mary Lou Creedon, president of St. Lawrence St. Vincent de Paul, held meetings of the combined societies during the transition to understand what Father Joseph Capella, Guadalupe pastor, expected of them.
“John and Tom are very spiritual men and are dedicated to Our Lady of Guadalupe,” Father Capella said. “What they do to help the community is outstanding. They took two separate agencies and worked together to form one with the goal of helping as many people as possible.”
John pointed out that the new parish’s biggest effort is the food pantry which Tom coordinates.
“I’m in charge of food procurement,” said Tom. “I’m the only one there all the time. I was with St. Lawrence for 17 years. John and I worked closely during the merger process and we had five volunteers to help us. Twice a month we distribute food to upwards of a 105 people at a time. But we’re on call throughout the month for anyone who needs help.”
“Many of the members from Our Lady of Grace Parish are young,” John said, “and are still working so they’re not available during the week to help with the food pantry. So we changed one of the distribution days to a Saturday so they could help.”
The St. Lawrence site was chosen as the distribution center for the parish primarily because it has a refrigerator and freezer. “We can offer perishables,” John said, “such as eggs, and fruit such as blueberries. Much of this food comes from government sources but we also rely on parishioners.”
Tom coordinates the inventory of the food pantry with the Food Bank of South Jersey which is a resource for the Our Lady of Guadalupe program. This allows him to order what he needs on a monthly basis, “and I get people, volunteers to help unload the truck when it comes in,” he said.
People usually receive a bag filled with canned goods, cereal, vegetables, pasta, sauces, juice and occasionally what’s available from the Food Bank, such as eggs.
Tom noted that the Knights of Columbus will donate surplus food collected during their drives and the Rotary of Lindenwold will periodically make donations. Throughout the year John Paul II Regional School students will hold food drives and donate, as will various businesses during Christmas and Thanksgiving.
“None of this would be possible,” John said, “if we did not pull together as one team. We are Our Lady of Guadalupe.”
For more information on stewardship contact Deacon Russell Davis, Office of Stewardship, at 856-583-6102.