Vincent De Paul

THE DRIVER reaching the bottom of the Jones Falls Expressway sees two reminders of our fragile time: to the left, outside historic St. Vincent de Paul Church, a message from Pope John Paul II that reads like a national admonition. And, to the right, the concrete barriers outside the front doors of the Baltimore City Police Department. The words from the pope were hoisted Tuesday morning, just hours after President Bush delivered his wartime ultimatum to Saddam Hussein. "War is always a defeat for humanity," the sign says.

On February 24, 2003 PAUL JOSEPH DAVIS beloved husband of Kathryn L. (nee Winterling); devoted stepfather of Lauren M. Debelius; loving father of Paul G., Darren, Lee and Russell Davis, Loretta Kerr and Vicky Hoyt; dear brother of Ronald J. Davis and his wife Ann Jean and James F. Devlin; brother-in-law of Janet M. and Joseph B. Duni; uncle of Kelly Ann and Kathleen M. Davis, Jamie Devlin and Amanda N. and Alaena M. Duni; grandfather of Katie, Jonathan and...

John R. Hook, who spent nearly 80 years assisting the poor of Baltimore, died Tuesday of complications of a stroke at the Glen Meadows retirement community in Glen Arm. He was 95 and had lived in Hamilton for many years. After retiring as night admitting officer at Johns Hopkins Hospital about 30 years ago, he remained active in the St. Vincent de Paul Society, a Roman Catholic nonprofit organization that provides food, clothing, shelter, heating fuel, furniture and companionship to the needy.

Debra D. Johnson came to the St. Vincent de Paul Society Clothing and Furniture Bank in East Baltimore six years ago without money for clothes for her then-3-year-old foster child, Rodae White. After a few words to the manager, she left with a bag of clothes and returned that Friday with the money to pay for them. She hasn't forgotten the kindness shown her at the store in the first block of North Central Ave. And like many former public housing residents, she comes back for good prices and friendly staff.

Robert Bernard Watts Jr., a retired Baltimore County public school teacher and administrator who in his retirement helped inner-city adults earn their high school equivalency certificates, died Tuesday of a heart attack at his Bentalou Street home. He was 59.Mr. Watts, a solidly built man who was gifted with a gentle and caring disposition, was stricken at his desk while studying for a second master's degree.At the time of his death, he was a graduate student at the Ecumenical Institute of Theology at St. Mary's Seminary in Roland Park.

Mission: In a spirit of love and compassion, the St. Vincent de Paul Society provides human services to needy individuals and families -- meeting their basic needs while inspiring hope and empowering people to reach their full potential. Founded in 1865, the society is an independent, volunteer-based charity that operates a variety of programs that open doors to better lives for those in need. Programs include the Frederick Ozanam House, a homeless outreach service and transitional housing; Beans and Bread, a meal program and learning center; Camp St. Vincent, a summer camp for inner-city children; St. Ambrose Family Outreach Center, with adult education, job training and family services; a clothing and furniture bank; emergency assistance; prison outreach; burial assistance; overseas and disaster relief; and Christmas gift distribution to needy children.

THEY CAME in cold and fresh from the shelters and the social welfare agencies. Some on foot, some by bus, many clutching shopping bags stuffed with clothing, they migrated through the big business lanes of downtown Baltimore and funnelled into the Pratt Street entrance of the Convention Center, down the grand staircase, past the water fountains and into the cavernous, concrete heart of the city's tourism complex. Where usually are found white-collar professionals with briefcases and name tags were close to 3,000 of Baltimore's poor.

PICTURE this: It's a freezing cold morning and the four of us brothers are encased in the collapsed mattress, which reeks of excrement and urine and is the home of millions of fleas and lice that feast nightly on our bodies.Church bells ring out as they do every day, giving Mass times. You struggle to light a fire with wet scraps of wood and sodden peat. Your soaked shirttail is beginning to stiffen with the cold and your ears, nose and toes and fingertips tell you it's freezing in here.That would be a sample winter morning in our house, except for getting the monthly food docket.

The date of a lecture by achitect Allan Greenberg was incorrectly reported in yesterday's Urban Landscape column. It will be Wednesday at 6:15 p.m. at the Langsdale Auditorium, Maryland Avenue and Oliver Street.The Sun regrets the errors.POVERTY IS NO CRIME.That's the inscription above a doorway in Frederick Ozanam House, a transitional housing and homeless services center run by the St. Vincent de Paul Society of Baltimore.But the saying also could be the architectural anthem for the building, which opened this year at Bond and Bank streets in East Baltimore.

FRIDAYS are special at Arundel Senior High School.Members of the faculty and staff and many students are sporting green and white outfits. During Friday morning announcements, Principal Will Myers is recognizing good things going on at the school. This week, several people were honored for their achievements. Delante Byrd, Brandon Harris and Kelly Jordan have been named National Achievement Scholars, recognizing their performance on the 1997 PSAT.Franklin "Buddy" Hepfer was named 4A-3A Wrestling Coach of the Year by the Maryland State Wrestling Association.