About Us
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul is one of the oldest and most successful charitable organizations in the world. Following in the tradition of Frederic Ozanam, founder of the international Society of St. Vincent de Paul in 1833, we provide assistance to all people in need, regardless of creed, race, status or origin.
For more than 60 years, The Society of St. Vincent de Paul District Council of Sonoma County has been providing emergency and basic needs services to everyone that comes through our doors.
We are self-supporting and do not receive funding from the local Catholic Diocese.
Our Team
Meet the people who keep things running smoothly
at SVdP-Sonoma
Executive Director
jtibbetts@svdp-sonoma.org
Jack Tibbetts
Jack has long held a passion for serving others, and homelessness in particular is near and dear to his heart. While in college, he set up a nonprofit, Warm for the Holidays, which partnered with local businesses to provide thousands of coats and jackets to Sonoma County's homeless every year. This experience further motivated Jack to serve this population. Jack loves the Society of Saint Vincent de Paul because he appreciates the anonymity and humility with which the Society serves the poor in our community.
Thrift Store Operations Director
Lonnie Rivas
Lonnie has been with SVdP-Sonoma for more than 11 years. He manages both the warehouse and Thrift Store in Rohnert Park. He also oversees partnerships with other local organizations that help keep the warehouse and Thrift Shop running.
Patricia Lugo Guerrero
Office Manager
Patty is a diligent, detail-oriented, organized and highly accurate bilingual office manager who keeps everyone in line. From answering the telephones and distributing information to callers to managing billing for 10 different agencies, in collaboration with the Human Services Department of Sonoma County, along with Catholic Conferences of Marin and Sonoma County. She assists with daily deposits and sales data, and tracks a variety of databases for volunteer hours, daily food calls, donation calls, and monetary assistance given through clothing vouchers. She also keeps track of monthly number of people attending the Community Kitchen for lunch, collection and submission of quarterly reports, and donations and thanks to donors.
Helen Volhontseff
Grant Writer/Fundraiser
Helen identifies potential donors, investigates their favored causes and recipient requirements, and crafts and submits grant applications for SVdP-Sonoma. She has helped us raise more than $1.5 million, and has helped our agency forge and manage positive relationships with past and new donors.
Our Executive Committee
President, Board of Directors: Ron Plasse
Executive Director: Jack Tibbetts
Vice-President: James Nantell
Treasurer: Melissa Fanning
Spiritual Advisor: Fr. Ron Serban
District/Conference Liaison: Jack Tolin
Member-at- Large: Alan Karbousky
Member-at-Large: Don Nowacki
Member-at- Large: Barbara Stevens
Who Are the Vincentians?
The Society of St. Vincent DePaul is one of the oldest and most successful charitable organizations in the world. Founded in 1833, the Society is made up of men and women who volunteer to seek out and provide person-to-person aid to the poor and needy in 142 countries on five continents. The essential elements of the Society are Spirituality, Friendship, and Service.
In the United States, the organization provides 11.6 million hours of volunteer services to 14 million people in need. Our services include food programs, home visits, and outreach at prisons, hospitals, and churches — wherever there is a need.
Through local Parish Conferences, the St. Vincent de Paul Sonoma County Vincentian Volunteers reach out directly to those in need in their own communities. In addition, many particularly needy families receive assistance based on a referral from case managers at partner agencies and SVdP Parish Conferences. “Conferences” are volunteer groups of 5-50 people responding to needs in their local communities. In Sonoma County, these include Clearlake, Cloverdale, Cotati, Guerneville, Healdsburg, Petaluma, Rohnert Park, Santa Rosa, Sebastopol, Sonoma, and Windsor.
Vincentian volunteers provide assistance through home visits in outlying areas throughout the county, which enable them to learn about a person’s specific situation and offer specific and personalized help. This is in the form of rental assistance, food, vouchers for clothing and/or furniture, and compassionate care. Vincentians may then link clients to the Community Kitchen or theThrift Store, job training, government assistance, or other resources.
Every year, our district volunteers contribute more than 20,000 hours, with conference volunteers contributing an additional 30,000 hours. Together, they serve more than 80,000 people in the community. Volunteers strive to help get people on the road to self-reliance by understanding and finding resources and support for their individual situation.
An essential precept of the Society’s work is to provide help while conscientiously maintaining the confidentiality and dignity of those who are served. Our volunteers strive to help get people on the road to independence and self-reliance by understanding their individual situation. The Society recognizes that it must assume a role of advocacy for those who are defenseless or without a voice.