Efforts to reopen St. Vincent dining hall continue as lunches distributed from van

YOUNGSTOWN

While former volunteers of the St. Vincent de Paul Society brought lunch service back to Front Street, the Diocese of Youngstown and others are leading efforts to restore the shuttered food service.

The diocese as well as the National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul said they are working to reopen the hall as soon as possible.

“We are working closely with Bishop [George] Murry and his staff and local Society of St. Vincent de Paul leadership to resolve the situation,” said Gary Stevens, national director of marketing and communications for the National Council of the U.S. Society of St. Vincent de Paul, in a statement. “Our priority is helping the local [society] to assist those in need in the Youngstown area and get back to serving the community.”

The dining hall has been closed since Monday. St. Vincent de Paul Society Mahoning District President Brian Antal said the closure was due to “personnel issues.”

Volunteers told The Vindicator they walked out in support of long-time hall manager Ralph “Skip” Barone, who resigned Nov. 27.

The closure did not come as a surprise to many volunteers, clients and others who said they were distraught over Antal’s leadership.

“We don’t like the policies that Mr. Brian Antal is creating,” said Allen Wasylychyn, an eight-year volunteer. “They go against the mission. From my outlook, the mission is to feed everybody. He’s against that.”

Read more about the situation in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.