Chief Philanthropy Officer

For more than 175 years, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul has served neighbors in need one person at a time. A global Catholic lay organization, the Society empowers volunteers to offer tangible aid with dignity and respect while growing in faith themselves. Today, some 80,000 to 90,000 Vincentians in more than 4,000 local Conferences and Councils serve over five million people in the United States every year.

The National Council of the Society of St. Vincent de Paul USA (SVdP USA) supports that vast network. In the past two years, under a new National President, a new CEO, and a largely new leadership team, it has embarked on an ambitious path of renewal: a Washington, D.C. advocacy office, a national Poverty Institute, Vision SVdP, a Society-wide digital transformation, and a fundraising program that is reaching more donors than ever before.

Philanthropy is central to that ambition. SVdP USA’s leadership aims to grow national fundraising substantially over the next three to five years, and just as importantly, to help build a culture of philanthropy across the entire Society. All the foundational pieces are in place; what the program needs now is a leader. SVdP USA seeks a Chief Philanthropy Officer (CPO) to build, lead, and evaluate a comprehensive national fundraising program.

Reporting to the CEO, the CPO will bring strategy, structure, and discipline to the work, develop a talented team, and personally cultivate the relationships that will carry the Society’s mission forward. For a builder with a heart for the mission, this is a rare opportunity to put a lasting stamp on one of the nation’s most venerable charities.

Founded in Paris in 1833, the Society expanded to the United States in 1845 when the first US Conference was established in St. Louis. Today SVdP operates in more than 150 countries. The US Society is listed as number 45 in Forbes’ latest ranking of America’s top 100 charities. Its members operate thrift stores, food pantries, charitable pharmacies, dental and veterinary clinics, housing programs, and disaster services, and above all, conduct the home visits that are the heart of Vincentian service.

The Society is organized around the principle of subsidiarity. Parish-based Conferences, its basic unit, roll up through some 500 District Councils and 156 (Arch)
Diocesan Councils to the National Council of the United States. Local Councils range from small all-volunteer groups to sophisticated operations; the Society’s Phoenix Council, for example, runs a $90 million operation with its own development team.

The National Council, headquartered in St. Louis with an advocacy office in Washington, D.C., supports this network through national programs and initiatives, advocacy and public policy, Vincentian formation and training, communications and marketing, and fundraising. Its staff of roughly 30 serves Councils and Conferences rather than individuals directly. A 25-person board of directors, most appointed by the National President, governs the Society;

the President and board serve six-year terms.

Recent momentum at the national level includes:

• A national voice. A Washington, D.C. advocacy office opened in 2025, and the Society convened its first national Poverty Institute in August 2026.
• Vision SVdP. A Society-wide, synodal planning process that gathered delegates from across the country to chart the Society’s direction.
• Digital transformation. A new national website, pilot microsites for local Councils, and a new storytelling platform are rolling out over 2027 and 2028, alongside a transition to a new donor CRM.
• Evidence of impact. SVdP’s Motel to Home initiative, which moves families from extended-stay motels…