Catholic agency serving poor says it won’t tolerate rudeness

St. Vincent de Paul Society has dismissed the volunteer staff at Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Mesa, saying clients coming for food boxes, utility help and other services were being poorly treated.

The society’s current "conference" of 17 volunteers who had been providing the outreach to the poor were ordered to quit, and that their conference be dissolved.

"We had a number of complaints from people we serve that were being rudely taken care of, and the decision was that we are not going to tolerate it," said Larry Shima, president of a five-parish district and board member of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul-Phoenix. Action was taken after the Rev. Leonard Walker, the parish’s pastor until his resignation last weekend, wrote a short letter Nov. 7 to society leaders.

"We have come to the time when we have to suppress the current leadership of our conference at Queen of Peace due to many complaints we continue to receive regarding rudeness towards those who come here in need," he wrote.

Shima said he and others from society headquarters would meet today with potential new volunteers to reorganize the St. Vincent de Paul program at the oldest Catholic parish in Mesa.

Banned from the new group will be Ruben Martinez, who had been president of the Queen of Peace conference, and his treasurer, Juan Candelaria.

"Everybody is thinking we’re the rotten eggs in the dozen there, and, boy, is that not the case," Candelaria said.

He said his ancestors helped start the parish, and he has spent as much as $6,000 for a new engine and tires on his car and truck for food deliveries.

"Ruben and I were very outspoken," Candelaria acknowledged. "We were aggressive."

Candelaria said he and Martinez are withholding their tithes in protest — an amount he estimated to be a combined $6,000 per year.

Shima called Candelaria "a disgruntled person who is retaliating." He said the charity has shifted its outreach and serving clients from the campus’ food pantry is decreasing.

"Our whole concept of St. Vincent de Paul Society is home visits," Shima said. "We go out to homes of people and take food to them and see what else they need. Sometimes they need utility help or rent, or they might need something else, and we try to take care of it that way."

If enough new volunteers can be found, a training program will begin Wednesday, Shima said.

About 80 Catholic parishes in central and northern Arizona are served by St. Vincent de Paul, said Susan DeQueljoe, its communications director.

She said sometimes "people who run it for so long may have stopped seeing the big picture because they are focused on the matters at hand."