Brendan Dempsey is a passionate and tireless worker for the disadvantaged of Cork, and as Regional President of the St. Vincent de Paul Society he is very much hands-on in working for social justice in Cork.
Brendan was named Cork Person of the Month for September to mark his 30 years’ work with the SVP.
As Regional President Brendan Dempsey heads up Cork's biggest charitable organisation, which celebrates its 167th anniversary in Cork this year. The current recession and local natural disasters, such as the city floods, has increased the Society's workload and drastically cut their financial resources.
"On a weekly basis, we're paying for food and electricity for many Cork families. We now also have the “new poor”, such as self-employed people who have lost businesses and are not entitled to claim for anything" said Mr Dempsey.
The St. Vincent de Paul in Cork now have 900 members, calls for their services are up 33% this year, and they will spend €5m helping people in Cork County and City this year.
"Brendan and his fellow Vincent de Paul volunteers are true Cork heroes, doing real work such as home-visitations, providing financial and practical supports and caring for the homeless through city hostels. They also use this on-the-ground experience, to lobby governments to make practical changes to policy, especially at budget time" said awards organiser Manus O'Callaghan.
Brendan Dempsey's name now goes forward, for possible selection as Cork Person of the Year, at a Gala Awards Lunch on Jan 20th ('12) next.