Church of The Holy Spirit 3526 Sheppard Ave. E., Toronto, Ont., M1T 3K7 Phone (416) 293-7974 Roman Catholic - Archdiocese of Toronto, Ont., Canada |
Church of The Holy Spirit 3526 Sheppard Ave. E., Toronto, Ont., M1T 3K7 Phone (416) 293-7974 Roman Catholic - Archdiocese of Toronto, Ont., Canada |
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 The History of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul in OntarioOn November 11, 1850 the first conference of The Society of Saint Vincent De Paul was founded at St. Michaels Cathedral:In 1848 a young lawyer named George Muir joined the newly formed Conference of Notre Dame in Montreal through the inspiration of Bishop Bourget. A couple of years later his work took him to Toronto and was asked by the Quebec Council to try and found a Conference in Toronto. Having arrived in Toronto Mr. Muir attended daily Mass at St. Michael's Cathedral and noticed several other men who also attended daily Mass. He approached them and they agreed to meet to explore the possibility of founding a Conference. As a result, the first Conference was founded at St. Michael's Cathedral on November 11, 1850. The Annual Meeting of the National Council took place in Ottawa in 1972. The main topic of discussion was the Canadian Rule. Bro. Boudreau represented officially the National Council of Canada at the International meeting held in Dublin, Ireland in 1973. The 1973 Annual National meeting was held at a retreat home in Orleans, Ontario, a short distance from Ottawa. A larger delegation than usual from the Toronto Central Council participated at that meeting. Thus began the participation of numerous English-speaking members from Ontario at the Annual Meetings, thanks to Bro. George Morley, who was President of the Toronto Central Council at the time. Bro. Boudreau in his professional capacity was appointed Secretary of a Federal/Provincial Commission of inquiry on National Health in Canada, which held hearings during 1974 - 1975 in all the provinces of Canada. In the evenings, when the Commission was not sitting, he was able to meet with Vincentians in all of the provincial capitals to discuss the proposed Canadian draft of the Rule. When the final text was submitted to the Annual General Meeting held at Orleans, Ontario in 1975, it was unanimously adopted without any modifications. The 1974 Annual General Meeting was also held in Orleans, Ontario and again the proposed Rule was submitted for further corrections and study, and as previously stated was finally adopted in 1975. Bro. Boudreau was the first National President to visit and participate in many functions of various Councils across Canada. A memorable occasion was his visit to the 125th celebration of the Toronto Central Council at St. John's Parish Hall on November 1975, accompanied by the International President, Brother Rouast, and his wife. Brother Boudreau was also instrumental in Providing simultaneous translation at all of the Annual General Meetings, a factor which helped a great deal to have the participation of larger numbers of English speaking Vincentians.
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