Our store opened on October 1st 2015. Blessed by the generosity of our donors and the loyalty of our customers, we have grown tremendously in such a short time. We have consistantly been selected by the Sarasota Award Program as 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2021 Best of Sarasota Awards for a Non-profit Organization. Most importantly, we have been able to help the poor and needy in our local community along the way.
At St. Vincent de Paul Sarasota Thrift Store our goal is to raise money for the St. Vincent de Paul Society. We operate entirely on donations from the community and with the help of our dedicated volunteers, without whom we could not function. We raise money primarily by selling items that are donated to our store. The money raised goes to St. Vincent de Paul case workers so that they can help the poor and those in need in the local community. We also work directly with our case workers to provide the people they are helping with whatever they may need.
The St. Vincent de Paul Society was actually founded by the Blessed Frank Ozanam in 1833 and was first known as the “Conference of Charity.” Shortly after being established they changed their name to The Society of Saint Vincent de Paul in honor of their patron. They would beg for food, money, and anything else that could be used to help those in need.
Today The Society of St. Vincent de Paul has grown into an organization that is known all around the world for its effort to help the poor and now has close to 1 billion volunteer and staff members in 142 countries.
