Conferences are Catholic Church parish based groups that provide food, clothing, rent and utility assistance, and other aid to the needy. St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Stores provide clothing, furniture, and household items to the poor and low income. Ozanam Inn provides food to women, men, and children, as well as shelter to men. Marie's Family Home is a transitional home for homeless women and their children. The aim of the Society is to relieve suffering.
Assistance is essentially local.
It is adapted according to the particular needs, places, and circumstances. Vincentains seek through prayer, meditation on scriptures and Church teachings, through their daily lives and in their relationship with those in need, to bear witness to the love of Christ. The Society does not attempt to convert the needy to Catholicism, nor does it limit its aid to Catholics. Vincentians, therefore strive to foster, to develop, and to favor all means by which the fundamental virtues of faith and charity can be kept alive within us and around us. Frederic Ozanam, a loyal Catholic, had been defending the Church during a debate with fellow students.