Rudolph Boneo completed his first year as president of the Society of St Vincent de Paul (SVP) last Sunday. Two days before their AGM, feature writer Raymond Syms spoke with him about his first year and his vision for one of the Church’s oldest social action organisations.

SVP president Rudolph Boneo has a mantra these days – technology, technology, technology.

“Technology is what is going to keep us in tune”, affirms Boneo, who also sees it, in an indirect way, helping to increase membership.

Boneo, 51, is a senior labour relations officer in the Ministry of Labour. He joined the Society in 1991. In his younger days, though, being a member of a Church organisation was unthinkable. “Like everybody, I went through my own crisis of faith…” He considered himself an agnostic, neither believing nor disbelieving in God.

As an avid reader though, Boneo read lots of material as he searched for meaning and understanding. A divorcé (he had a civil marriage) with a daughter as an only child, he had ideological disagreements with Church teachings, but always recognised there was some measure of truth.

He joined other groups but there was something about the SVP that fulfilled a need to give back to the wider society. He began as a member of his home conference of Santa Rosa, Arima – he is a parishioner there – eventually becoming the president of the Society’s North Eastern Particular Council.

He has grown spiritually through his involvement, and his sense of a social consciousness has been raised. “There is a pride and pleasure in what the Society does”: helping to build houses, carrying groceries for shut-ins, getting up early to transport an aged person to the hospital for a check-up.

He misses the fieldwork, nowadays, it’s more administrative: meetings with government representatives, preparing position papers, more planning meetings.
“This first year was a little bit disappointing. In the sense that you come in and have grand ideas and want to make all these changes.”

Most “Vincentians” (members of the Society) have helped the less fortunate in a certain way and have come and met it in that way, and may be reluctant to do things a little differently, he says. He has taken advice from those around longer than he has been, and is willing to work and wait for the change to come.

Boneo explains that his thrust will be to encourage Vincentians to be trained, not so much in learning new skills, but more in an understanding of the Vincentian vocation, good accounting practices, relevant protocols and utilising the technology available.

Aware of how the SVP is perceived, he hopes to make the membership comfortable with at least one aspect of modern communication - electronic mail. “This will help in our communications, and reduce costs”.

He also hopes to develop closer relationships with other charitable organisations within the Church for the simple reason that resources are scarce. “There is no real harmonisation between organisations that are also involved in charity work.”

The Society will also continue seeking to develop ties within the corporate world, he says, citing their good relationship with Republic Bank.

SVP president Rudolph Boneo greets Anna-Maria Garcia-Brooks, General Manager, Group Marketing and Communications, Republic Bank, at the Sign of Peace during the Mass at the opening of the St Vincent de Paul Republic Bank Home for the Aged.

“I think corporate citizens understand that to keep the fabric of society together they have to be a little more responsible. They don’t have the time – they can’t be making money and seeing about the poor too - so that is a basis for a partnership.”

It’s symbiotic: businesses may have the money but not time, charitable organisations like the Society have the time but limited money. The SVP fulfils its vocation, and the corporate entity can feel good, giving the money.

“My personal view is it doesn’t matter whose name appears on something, once you can dispense your calling. It’s not about publicity. It does not impact what we do.”
Boneo says the challenge of an aging membership and fewer members joining is one which many organisations in society face.

There is a limited pool from which to draw new members and some people leave service, particularly Church service, for retirement. There are educational and work circumstances that challenge recruitment. He cited the case of Tobago, where some youth members had to came to Trinidad to further their studies, but didn’t join a conference here.

Boneo firmly believes membership will catch up though, citing cases elsewhere in the Caribbean. “Guyana had gone down quite a bit but we were there this year and they have come back strong. Bahamas too. Eventually things will catch up here, we have that confidence. And unlike other organisations who do social work out of maybe an intellectual concept, we are driven by spirituality and we have a confidence that there is no way it will ever collapse”.

Membership is 1,000 strong from all over the country, and the Society has a “high degree of adaptability and in this information age it means we have to get in tune with that.

We feel this will cause youths to come in. If older people can do it (use the technology), getting their children to show them, they (the children) may see the other benefits of being in the Society and that will bring them in. But there is no one solution (to the problem of membership)”.

The Society reaches out to youth through its youth arm; Angelique Taylor is the representative on the Executive.

Concerning the government, he says the relationship with the government is good, but could be better. “ I would like to see the policy they had in the past with support for construction of buildings… I would like to see that come back.”

The Society knows Social Development Minister, Dr Amery Browne, from his days in HIV work, and says he has been enthusiastic about most of their projects, and he has a sympathetic ear for their HIV programme.

Boneo’s only wish is for the government to make their financial contributions to the Society in a more timely fashion.

That’s something for Rudolph Boneo to work on during his second year as president of the Society of St Vincent de Paul.