Jesuit Volunteer Corps
Profiles in Service Spring 2014
Board of Directors 2013-14
Lisa Grattan†, Chair Summit, New Jersey
Tom King†, Secretary Los Angeles, California John Mullman†, Treasurer New York, New York (through February 2014) Betsy Ackerman Pasadena, California Mary Baudouin New Orleans, Louisiana John Carron† Irvington, New York
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Note from the President
5
JV Stories: The Fool on a Tree
6
Profiles in Service
AnnMaura Connolly† Washington, D.C. Margaret Egler† San Diego, California Fr. Greg Goethals, SJ Los Angeles, California Fr. Tom Greene, SJ Washington, D.C. (through April 2014) Fr. Simon Hendry, SJ Detroit, Michigan (through April 2014) Richard P. Hogan, Jr.† Houston, Texas (through April 2014) Paul Kirwin† Chanhassen, Minnesota Fr. Michael McFarland, SJ New York, New York Jack McLean Chicago, Illinois (through September 2014) Don Morgan† Los Angeles, California Mark Ouweleen† Chicago, Illinois Denis Ring Lafayette, California Kerry A. Robinson New Haven, Connecticut (through September 2014) Mary Claire Ryan, President Baltimore, Maryland
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The Transformative Effect of Service: Volunteer Introspective Survey
11
Advancing JVC
12
Partner Profile: Ignatian Solidarity Network
13
JV Stories: ReOrientation Reflection
14
Impact: Cleveland
17
FJV Stories
19
the last word
Sima Thorpe Spokane, Washington †
Former Jesuit Volunteer
The Jesuit Volunteer Corps, in collaboration with the Society of Jesus, enhances the capacity of local organizations to serve their communities by providing Jesuit Volunteers to directly serve the poor and marginalized in the U.S. and developing countries. For a year or more Jesuit Volunteers live simply, in community, immersed in Ignatian Spirituality. The experience opens the JV to be conscious of the poor, attuned to the causes of social injustice, and dedicated to service informed by faith. The Jesuit Volunteer Corps helps Former Jesuit Volunteers nurture this orientation throughout their lives.
Contributors
Kathleen Haser, Baltimore 80, 81 Colleen Kennedy, Philadelphia 89 Kara Spak, San Jose 96
Photography Jean Lachat
Jesuit Volunteer Corps magazine is published by the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. Periodical postage paid. Postmaster: Send address changes to JVC, 801 Saint Paul St., Baltimore, MD 21202
Kellene Urbaniak
Readers can update information online at jesuitvolunteers.org/updates
Design
I
t’s May! After the winter of 2014, I am struck at every turn by the gift of all this juice and all
this joy, in the words of the poet, and Jesuit, Gerard Manley Hopkins.
Spring is a perfect time to reflect on how the “juice and joy” of a mission like JVC’s is replenished, kept vital and growing as the landscape of social needs and service responses evolves.
Note from the President
Surely one way is to learn from paths our volunteers follow during their year with us and throughout their lives. In my travels through the seasons of JVC this past year, I have seen up
close the authenticity of their engagement and the deep meaning to be found
Mary Claire Ryan
in contributing service of value to
communities in need. We offer in this
spring issue stories of involvement and
leadership inspired by JVC service: Beth Killian “found love and gave love” as a
recent JV in Tanzania; AnnMaura Connolly of City Year, Santa Ana 86, has spent
decades developing the national service
movement; Amy Escoto, San Antonio 97, now runs Amigos de Jesus operations in
Honduras, a children’s home and volunteer community. In bold and quiet ways JVC’s impact is amplified.
Can we do more to heighten JVC’s impact in the world? I think we can, and we should. I am excited by the collective impact a group of JVs can
have in a city like Cleveland, for example
(see page 14), and see tremendous potential to be even more intentional about making a difference in the communities we serve.
I am also eager to spread the story of our impact. The service landscape has dramatically changed in the fifty years since the Jesuit Volunteer Corps led the way. Many worthy
postgraduate programs — from faith-based organizations to Teach for America — now
compete for graduates. Communicating impact, and what is distinctive and meaningful
about being a JV, is mission critical. Cultivating agency partners, allies, and supporters today requires similar focus.
But what a story we have to tell! I look forward to the “juice and joy” of vigorous renewal that is firmly rooted in JVC values and service leadership. May the blessings of this season be yours!
Spring 2014
3
JVC Today Strategic Plan
2013-14 by the numbers
Update
325 Jesuit Volunteers
Goal 1: Identity
To better articulate what JVC is and wants to become, and to
communicate that to our partners, potential partners, and other audiences.
259 Partner Agencies 105 Current JV
Progress
A committee comprised of board members and staff engaged in an in-depth process to
Alma Maters
capture JVC’s essential purpose, to inspire all who work with JVC to fulfill its purpose, and to serve as a touchstone for action and accountability. JVC’s full identity and
distinctive place in the world will be projected through a comprehensive brand and
39 Cities in the U.S.
Through one-on-one interviews and in-person meetings, the process identified feedback
27 Types of Ministry
communication program.
on key themes and challenges, and developed the “Agreements in Principle” as a starting point for crafting a new mission statement for JVC. We look forward to sharing updates
on our promising and exciting work in coming publications and on jesuitvolunteers.org.
7 Countries, including the U.S.
Agreements in Principle Clarity of purpose
JVC pursues a “double bottom line” of
positive impact: on people and communities served and on volunteers.
Religious identity
JVC is rooted in Catholic, Jesuit tradition and
Ignatian spirituality; JVC desires for program and language to be inclusive, accessible.
Impact
JVC has high standards for excellence in service and in volunteer experience.
The JVC Staff convened at the annual national meeting in December 2013 at Loyola Retreat Center, Flintstone, Maryland. The theme for the meeting focused on the book Blessings for Leaders: Leadership Wisdom from the Beatitudes by Dan Ebener.
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The Fool on a Tree Beth Killian, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania 11, 12
W
Stories
position — throwing rocks, laughing and
head like a disappointed grandfather.
die boom” which means “climb the tree.” It was
precariously hanging from a tree. But Jesus told
forever” instead of “I will remember you
I worked as a third grade student-teacher. A
with more love and forgiveness than any of us
limb, and I asked him to teach me something in
the ground, he was changed. He gave his cash
hen I studied abroad in South Africa, the
first phrase I learned in Afrikaans was “klum en
yelling at this man who was foolishly and
my first day at Lynedoch Primary School, where
him to come down and spoke directly to him,
student named Brighton was hanging on a tree
could muster. When Moneybags’ feet touched
his language. So he did: “Climb the tree.”
away, fixed the crooked deals he’d made over
That phrase was part of my motivation to seek
the years, turned his life around.
The next day I said “I will remember me
forever” during an impromptu farewell speech to my choir. Damn fool. I tripped and made
grammatical and cultural errors until my last day in Mabibo. But there’s something to be
said for all that failing. If there’s anything I’ve gained, it’s a confidence to laugh at myself. Because when you’re in a tree, you look
what I thought would be a similar experience
The point Fr. Joe made was that we need to
trees is what you do as a kid. It’s foolish and
matter what. Now, I don’t necessarily mean
something about the thoughtless scramble
new perspective, a person or experience that
Tanzania time from my house in Connecticut
we were still on the ground. Without taking the
Year’s Eve Mass. It happened to be my favorite
just living on the ground, part of the crowd,
last time. The final line, “Kwa kuwa umeniona,
as a Jesuit Volunteer in Tanzania. Climbing
keep climbing trees in order to see Jesus, no
reckless from an adult perspective. But there’s
Jesus the guy. We have to climb to see love, a
from branch to branch, not knowing your
will make us different from who we were when
ridiculous, but you can see things. And lifechanging people can see you.
On December 31, I called my choir at 11:30 p.m.
as they were singing the final song of the New
route, when you’ll have to backtrack or shift
your weight in order to
avoid falling, that makes climbing trees attractive. That’s why I came to Tanzania, originally.
Being in South Africa
was a thrill and I wanted more. “A bigger tree!” I thought. So I came.
Two years later, I had completely forgotten
about the tree metaphor. I fumbled on branches for a long time before
I felt I’d settled onto a sturdy one. I stopped writing blog entries because things felt
“normal.” I didn’t think to share my experiences because they no longer felt like shaky, hilarious
risk to get up there, looking like a fool, we’re standing on tiptoes.
balancing acts.
After two years in Tanzania, having been up
But something happened during my final days
feel different. Even after two years of becoming
in Tanzania that made me reconsider. I was at daily mass and one of my favorite Jesuits, Fr.
Joseph Kiarie, SJ, gave a homily about the story of the tax collector who heard that Jesus was
walking through town. Moneybags — probably fat, sweaty, and ridiculous looking — pushed through the crowd who hated him, and
scrambled up a sycamore tree to try to see Jesus. Fr. Joe painted the picture of the townspeople taking full advantage of his compromised
in a tree for so long, but just like the fat dude, I
acquainted with the culture, I still had moments every day when I felt like a publicly humiliated fool. Some anecdotes for proof: I went to a
rural area two hours away from Dar es Salaam during my last month, confidently riding the mini buses, listening to the stops called out,
and chatting with the conductors in Swahili. I
song, and I sang it with them via phone one
asante,” roughly translates to “Thank you for
seeing me.” In 2011, I scrambled up a sycamore tree, looked around, and stayed. I saw my
students. I saw my neighbors, my choir, the
banana trees and chickens. I climbed the tree
and learned how to dance, learned a language, learned how to operate at a different pace.
I found love and I gave love. I was seen by
people who forgave me my foolishness and
forced me to face my weaknesses to become more human.
then hopped out five stops too early because I
Thank you for seeing me. Keep your eyes
bus, waving my arms like an idiot, while the
I’ll be doing.
misheard the name and had to chase after the conductor called me back on and shook his
peeled for your next tree to climb. That’s what
Profiles in Service By Kara Spak, San Jose 96
Former Jesuit Volunteers Leading Service Organizations
M
ore than 13,000 Former Jesuit Volunteers
are currently living, working, and quietly spreading the four core Jesuit Volunteer Corps values of social justice, spirituality, community, and simple living throughout the world. A handful of those former volunteers, though, are directly impacting other volunteer service
A
nnMaura Connolly was never particularly
inspired by the “private sector, get a job, pay the bills route.”
Law school was similarly unappealing for the
political science major at the College of the Holy Cross.
of what would become a career in the public and nonprofit sectors.
AnnMaura Connolly Chief Strategy Officer City Year
“It would be so
amazing if every
young person could
have the kind of year
Santa Ana 86
I had” through JVC,
she said. “It gives you
A campus newspaper ad
a different perspective
for the Jesuit Volunteer
and different world
them.
during her senior year in
amazing development
Relating to the challenges of community
seven friends to join
programs in a day-to-day capacity. They lead
Corps piqued her interest
view. It was an
1986, and she convinced
living by calling on their own years with their JV communities, refreshing some favorite spirituality night activities, or using Ignatian spirituality to help guide big workplace decisions, Former Jesuit Volunteers are at the helm of all kinds of full-time volunteer service groups, large and small. Former JVs in leadership roles at other volunteer organizations is a natural outgrowth of JVC’s history. In 1956, five years before the Peace Corps started, a small group of college students formed the first JV community in Alaska’s Copper Valley, working with Jesuits from the Oregon Province of the Society of Jesus. Dozens of other Catholic volunteer programs sprung up in JVC’s wake, many of them adopting some form of the four core JV values as their own.
opportunity.”
She started working at
her for a postgraduate
St. Anselm teaching job
adventure in California.
development classes
for recent immigrants
“It’s not that inspiring of
from Southeast Asia
a story,” said Connolly,
but eventually was
a Jesuit Volunteer in
promoted to work on
Santa Ana in 1986-87.
a new program that
“I was looking for
addressed the largely
adventure and wanted to
unspoken issue of
do something I thought
domestic violence
would be good for the
in the refugee
world.”
While Connolly’s entry
into the world of full-time domestic volunteering
might not seem inspiring,
what has happened in the
nearly three decades since certainly inspires.
Currently, Connolly is the chief strategy officer and
community.
The notion of service sets us apart as a culture. That is a big part of how we envision ourselves as American.”
executive vice president
violence, and my boss said I think you have the chops
to run this,” she said. After JVC, Connolly returned to Washington, D.C., where
she grew up, working for Very Special Arts, a sister
organization to Special Olympics. After two
pressing social issues could be solved by young
Service America.
people committing to a year of volunteer
service. She also serves on JVC’s board of directors.
Her commitment to the idea of a national service year began through her own JVC
years there, she noticed a job ad for Youth
“It was sort of a policy hub for a burgeoning national service movement,” she said. “The
whole idea was that we should ask and expect every young person to do a year of service.”
experience at the St. Anselm Immigrant &
She worked there for more than five years,
Episcopalian church in Orange County’s
that eventually became AmeriCorps in 1992.
Refugee Community Center, located in an
jesuitvolunteers.org
in the area of domestic
at City Year, Inc., a national service organization founded around the idea that America’s most
6
“It was a pretty
groundbreaking practice
Garden Grove. There, she was first given a taste
helping to craft the policy recommendations She was recruited to a senior management
position for the Corporation for National and Community Service, the federal agency that
oversees AmeriCorps, Senior Corps, the Social Innovation Fund and other programs.
For more than a decade, her friends Michael
Brown and Alan Khazei, the founders of City
Year, attempted to recruit her into their group. In 2000, she joined them as chief of staff.
Today, she oversees one-quarter of the entire organization, working every day toward the goal of having the most common question
asked of young people be, “Where are you going to do your service year?”
“Young people have an incredible array of
new perspective and passion that we often don’t leverage,” she said. “Young people
everywhere really want to be a part of building a more positive future, and this gives them the opportunity to do so.”
Connolly believes that working toward
providing young people service opportunities is a “huge opportunity for this country.”
“Some of it is aspirational — who do we want to be as a country?” she said. “The notion
of service sets us apart as a culture. That is
a big part of how we envision ourselves as American.”
There are practical reasons for promoting service, too.
“Government can’t solve all our problems; the
private sector can’t solve all our problems,” she
said. “There is this notion of citizenship, but we don’t give people an opportunity to practice
what it means to be good citizens” — a huge
opportunity that, for Connolly, had strong roots in a community in Orange County, California. “I was more challenged in JVC than I’d ever
been,” she said. “I definitely surprised myself. I could handle more than I thought I could.”
Rebecca Little
Kelly Caddy
Oakland 08
Chicago 02
Director Sisters of St. Joseph Mission Corps
Director Change a Heart Franciscan Volunteer Program
A
A
2013, Rebecca Little studied and learned about
Wheeling Jesuit University, where she started
s a Jesuit Volunteer in Los Angeles in
2008-2009 and a member of JVC Magis in 2011Ignatian spirituality as a core of her experience. Her JVC Magis years included working at the
Ignatian Spirituality Project, a unique program that offers retreats based on Ignatian Spiritual Exercises to homeless men and women.
deep faith that started as a child with a
beloved Jesuit great-uncle led Kelly Caddy to exploring the idea of service from a place of
faith. That same spirit drove her to the Jesuit
Volunteer Corps, where she worked at Friends of Battered Women and Their Children,
teaching classes on healthy relationships and stereotypes.
That familiarity and belief helped lead her to
While she acknowledges that all four values of
growing Sisters of St. Joseph Mission Corps.
she agreed more than five years ago to take
her current position as leader of the small but SSJ Mission Corps is an all-women volunteer
program in Philadelphia that currently has two volunteers.
“I think part of the reason I was hired for
JVC are critical, her spirituality was a big reason on the leadership in Change A Heart, a small
full-time volunteer program based in Pittsburgh
and sponsored by the Sisters of St. Francis of the Neumann Communities.
this job was my experience with Ignatian
“Service is a component of JVC, and service is a
were started by a Jesuit, and I think my own
not the only one, though, and part of her role
relation to the poor is a unique thing I bring. It
each volunteer as well as within the entire
spirituality,” she said. “The Sisters of St. Joseph deep understanding of Ignatian spirituality in
allows me to have a dynamic understanding of their spirituality and to have those two things work hand in hand.”
component of Change A Heart,” Caddy said. It’s
is fostering intense spiritual discussions within group that directs the social justice component of the experience back to the spiritual.
“Who is God? Who am I? Who are we as a
volunteers once a week, and typically they do
“We’re giving a safe place for young people to
Little meets with the SSJ Mission Corps
some Ignatian spirituality-based exercise.
community? Who are we called to be?” she said. talk about these things.”
“It has a deep effect on how I interact with the volunteers,” she said. “My experience doing
long-term service has had a profound impact on my career.”
Spring 2014
7
D
uring Evan Cuthbert’s senior
In 2004, with their two young
year at Boston College, he took
daughters in tow, they joined the
a class called “Spirituality for
Maryknoll Lay Missioners and
Authentic Christian Living.”
moved to Bolivia. It was a natural
extension of the life he knew as a JV.
The course’s first half focused on
faith and justice; the second, on faith
“Yes, there was an impulse that came
and personal discernment.
out of college, an opening,” he said.
“But it was the ongoing connections
“It was a great course to take my
that we fell into in some ways, that
senior year,” said Cuthbert, who
we discerned in other ways, that kept
now leads Rostro de Cristo (“Face
us immersed in trying to find a place
of Christ”), a volunteer program in
to live a life of mission and focus on
Ecuador. “Many of the class went on to be Jesuit Volunteers.”
Cuthbert wasn’t one of them, at least initially. He joined a Boston College-
sponsored volunteer program that sent
living in community, on justice issues,
Evan Cuthbert
Executive Director Rostro de Cristo
at Cristo Rey High School. In June 2013,
him in 1988 to Tacna, Peru, to work at
Cuthbert started as executive director of
the newly formed Cristo Rey Center for the
Rostro de Cristo, an organization he was
Working Child. The Boston College volunteer
familiar with through his time on staff at
program folded, and JVC agreed to take on could finish out their terms.
“I worked in outreach to children and
families whose children worked on the streets of Tacna as shoeshine kids, in
newspapers sales, in cemeteries cleaning
Jesuit Volunteers International. Ignatian to take the job and how he leads the organization, he said.
about bringing God or a
“The commitment to encountering God
spirit of faith but about encountering together
families, being attentive to anything we
a divine presence that
the center.”
calls us to live together”
might be able to assist them with through
spirituality played a role in the decision
It’s not really
off gravestones,” he said. “We sort of acted like caseworkers for children and their
In 2011, the family returned to Boston
so Cuthbert’s wife, Sue, could take a job
Peru 88
the placements so volunteers like Cuthbert
on living out our faith.”
where God is revealed in and through people and in the world is part of the
Ignatian Jesuit spirituality that guides
what I do and what I bring to this job,” he said. “Also, the commitment to justice, to
being people of justice not just in serving, but serving in a way that would bring
justice. That is something we continue to
He returned to the United States and
worked in the Washington, D.C. area,
marrying Susan Marble, a friend when she was also volunteering in Peru.
Eventually Cuthbert worked on staff at Jesuit Volunteers International,
received a master of divinity degree, and returned to Boston College as a campus minister.
“My wife and I decided to discern
what our vocation was as a family,” he said. “We knew we wanted to go back overseas.”
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jesuitvolunteers.org
live out.”
Cuthbert said he strives to bring openness to helping the volunteers reflect and
encounter the culture in Ecuador where they work and live.
“It’s not really about bringing God or
a spirit of faith but about encountering together a divine presence that calls us to live together,” he said. “Respecting
cultures, respecting identity, respecting
history, letting people tell their own story.”
S
usannah Bourbeau served as a Jesuit
Volunteer in Punta Gorda, Belize, in 20072009. The experience lived up to her high
expectations, expectations that started when
she was in second grade and had a teacher that spoke of her year as a JV in New Mexico.
Zeal defines the religious community, and
both the sisters and Bourbeau wanted that to translate to the volunteers.
“These sisters have so much energy that keeps them going and working,” she said. “It’s a
mission to bring the
fullness of life to all. We
“I had such a great
look for volunteers to
community experience
take that on and take it
my first and second
on seriously, volunteers
year,” she said. “Belize
that are going to commit
was such a great place
to this program fully.”
to live in community
with volunteers. There
Committing fully means
is such a history of
being fully present,
JVs in the town and a
Bourbeau’s biggest
positive impression of
takeaway from her time
the JVs in that area. You
in Belize.
really felt part of the
family there from the get-go.”
After JVC, Bourbeau
returned for a master’s
degree from Marymount College at Fordham University, where she received her
“That was something
Susannah Bourbeau
that so impressed me
with JVC,” she said. “It’s
Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary Volunteer Program
not about the hours you
put in or the quantitative
data you can collect from your years of service. It’s
Belize 07
when you are present
to the people you were
undergraduate degree.
living among and
She reconnected with the
Religious of the Sacred Heart of Mary (RSHM), founders of the school, who were looking to start their own full-time domestic volunteer program. Bourbeau served on an advisory
working with. I felt that
from the first days of orientation, this is part of who we are as JVs.”
committee to the sisters, providing feedback volunteer group. With the sisters, she again found community.
Bourbeau was offered the job of launching the
Director of Operations Amigos de Jesus Honduras San Antonio 97
A
my Escoto didn’t think when she was a Jesuit Volunteer in San Antonio in 1997-98 that she would end up running a volunteer program. “I think at twenty-two it was too hard to imagine myself as a ‘grown up’ with a ‘real job,’” she said. “But I know that JV Amy would approve of where I am sixteen years later!” Escoto is the director of operations of Amigos de Jesus orphanage in Honduras, a job she shares with her husband, Wilson. She runs a children’s home with a volunteer community within it. Initially drawn to JVC South because she wanted to volunteer in a Spanish-speaking environment, she quickly realized the four pillars of JVC fit in well with her ideas of service, faith, and community. “I loved the idea of living in community with like-minded people,” she said. “I was very service-oriented but wanted to develop an understanding of how my faith called me to serve.”
on JVC and what might translate into this new
Amy Escoto
I was very service-
RSHM Volunteer Program after graduating with
oriented but wanted to
are currently two of them in the program’s first
develop an understanding
as well as the value of “zeal,” which is a critical
of how my faith called me
to serve.”
her master’s degree. RSHM Volunteers — there year — commit to the four values found in JVC part of the sisters’ vocations.
“With zeal we wanted to make our program unique,” said Bourbeau, the program’s
volunteer coordinator, who also oversees about thirty-five volunteers who visit in solidarity
with the retired sisters. “We still really value
what JVC brings to it. JVC is the foundation of so many programs.”
Her experience with JV community life was particularly influential and something she calls upon when working with the Amigos de Jesus volunteers, who also live in community. Escoto’s JV community was six 22-year-old women and one 30-year-old man.
“Andy was a saint!” she said. “When (Amigos de Jesus volunteers) think their community is quirky or doing things wrong, it helps them realize that there is no one right way for a community to function or a perfect makeup for a community.”
Spring 2014
9
The Transformative Effect of Service
I
A Survey by the Catholic Volunteer Network & The Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate
n summer 2012, the Catholic Volunteer
Network (CVN) commissioned the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA)
at Georgetown University to conduct a survey of former volunteers of CVN membership organizations. The central purpose of this
research was to help CVN and its members to understand and document the
Following the release of the results of the
survey in November 2013 by CVN, the Jesuit Volunteer Corps commissioned a subgroup report for Former Jesuit Volunteers that
responded to the CVN survey. Of the 5,051 respondents, a total of 1,954 Former Jesuit
Volunteers completed the survey, representing a 30 percent response rate. A sampling of the
transformative effect of the volunteer
responses of the Former Jesuit Volunteers is
experience on the career choices, civic
involvement, spiritual growth, and human development of these alumni.
Between February 2013 and June 2013, CARA distributed an online survey to a total of
18,515 men and women. A total of 5,051 men and women completed the questionnaire,
making it one of the largest recent surveys of former volunteers. In joining with Catholic
Volunteer Network to celebrate fifty years of
faith based service, the Jesuit Volunteer Corps was pleased to play a role in the Volunteer
provided below.
“Catholic Volunteer Network is incredibly
The survey was designed to measure how
Volunteer Corps in this landmark project,”
“after-life,” how volunteers remembered their
Catholic Volunteer Network. “In many
incorporated in both their professional and
faith-based service programs, and their
hopeful that the study findings foster renewed
research is another indication of their robust
and excite future generations.
grateful for the participation of the Jesuit
volunteer service affected volunteers in their
said Jim Lindsay, executive director of the
service year, and how volunteering remained
ways, JVC has served as a model for other
personal lives many years later. CVN is
strong involvement in this groundbreaking
interest in faith-based volunteering and inspire
commitment to service.”
Introspective survey.
67%
57%
More than twothirds of former volunteers say their service was either somewhat or very important in influencing their choice of career.
98%
Almost six-inten responding former volunteers have a master’s degree or higher.
9%
82%
Excluding respondents who have never been married, just under onein-ten have ever divorced.
More than eight-in-ten responding say that they have volunteered time, donated money or property, or done both in the last month.
96% 96 percent say that social justice is an important value in their life.
Almost all responding former volunteers “somewhat” or “strongly” agree that their volunteer service made them a better person.
To view the complete survey report, go to catholicvolunteernetwork.org/volunteer-introspective-survey-former-volunteers-catholic-volunteer-network
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jesuitvolunteers.org
Advancing Colleen Kennedy
FJVs Show the World
Joins JVC as Director of Advancement
A graduate of Boston College, Colleen
With gratitude
served as a JV at the Gesu School in North
for donations
Philadelphia in 1989. Colleen was inspired
made in
to serve by her late brother, Joe Grady, SJ,
2014, and in
Newark 78. Colleen, who earned an MBA
recognition
from the Kellogg School of Management
$1 MILLION Challenge Gift
FJV jes
uitvo
lu nte ers.
org
of the commitment to the Jesuit Volunteer
at Northwestern University, has spent her
experience, JVC will send all FJV donors
career developing marketing and fundraising
an FJV decal (for car or water bottle) to
strategies in the technology, not-for-profit
show the world that they are an integral
and education sectors.
part of JVC’s past, present, and future.
An anonymous donor has made an inspired demonstration of faith in JVC’s future by committing to four annual $250,000 donations. JVC will receive this donation over four years if we meet our ambitious, but achievable fundraising goals.
The $1 Million Challenge presents an outstanding opportunity for building JVC’s capacity by inspiring new, renewed, and additional support for JVC. Join us and share in this generous multi-year response of the JVC community.
Board of Directors Update John Carron
Joins Board of Directors After earning a BA in history from the College of the Holy Cross, John served as a JV
in St. Louis in 1993 at the St. Louis Economic
Conversion Project. John went on to earn an MBA from the Yale School of Management, In January 2014 in Houston, JVC honored outgoing board members Richard Hogan, Jr., Baltimore 81, and Fr. Si Hendry, SJ, with gratitude for vision, generosity, and years of commitment to JVC and its values.
and he currently leads the Private Wealth
Management (PWM) Global Credit team at Goldman Sachs.
He and his wife, Katie (St. Louis 93), have
three children and live in Irvington, New York,
where he also is an avid runner and den leader for his town’s Cub Scouts.
Gatherings
Los Angeles
JVC recently hosted gatherings of Former Jesuit Volunteers and supporters in Houston, St. Louis, Los Angeles,
the Bay Area, and Chicago. Additional gatherings are planned in key cities to reconnect FJVs and celebrate JVC.
Chicago
Chicago San Francisco
Los Angeles
Berkeley
St. Louis
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Partnership Is at the Heart Ignatian Solidarity Network
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ringing to life the mission of the Jesuit
Volunteer Corps is greatly enhanced by
vital partnerships with other organizations. Beginning with our partnership with the
Society of Jesus, this strategy extends to the
agencies and schools where Jesuit Volunteers work, universities, and many Ignatian and
Jesuit-inspired organizations. JVC believes
that successful partnerships at their core are mutually beneficial and strengthen the values and mission of the partnering organizations.
One such partner is the Ignatian Solidarity Network (ISN),
a national social justice, education, and advocacy network inspired by St. Ignatius of Loyola.
For almost ten years, ISN has coordinated justice-related
outreach and advocacy efforts
among Jesuit schools, parishes, and
“
Beyond their core audience, Kerr says that they
have just begun to unlock their potential: “What we’re able to offer parishes is an Ignatian-
inspired way of engaging in social justice and
advocacy.” One example of this is the ISN blog, Just Parenting, which explores the intersection of faith, justice, and parenting issues. In this
way ISN is “stepping into the next generation
We hope that JVs
see ISN as a way to
continue living out the
social justice component of their JV covenant as
they move on from their volunteer experience.”
other institutions—a network with enormous
potential. Their work is made possible working in tandem with the Jesuit Conference’s Social
and International Ministries office, and with the Jesuit provinces.
According to Christopher Kerr, executive
director, ISN came out of the convergence of
two movements in the Jesuit world: the passion
behind the protest of the School of the Americas in honor of Jesuit Martyrs which inspired the Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice, and an
overwhelming desire for enhanced connectivity and collaboration “cross-apostolically” among
— recapturing the faith experience for young
Current JVs and FJVs alike participate in ISN’s
campus.”
their blogs. Each year a solid one hundred
parents, once limited to the 10 p.m. mass on
ISN offers numerous conferences each year,
including the annual Ignatian Family Teach-In for Justice (IFTJ) where 1,300 young people
convened in 2013 to learn, pray, and advocate.
Fr. Jim Martin, SJ, the keynote speaker in 2013,
remarked, “I can’t remember being so inspired by so many young people in such a short amount of time.”
those involved in Jesuit works.
ISN’s Summit for Immigration Reform, co-
ISN provides an information network
in 2014, brought together 150 students from
enabling lay-religious partnerships through
an exceptionally effective website, fearless use of social media, and intelligent, responsive programming for its audiences. As master
communicators and information aggregators, ISN has traditionally targeted their messages
toward young people and those who work with young people.
organized with Loyola University Chicago
Catholic universities across the Midwest. The
Arrupe Leaders Summit, in its third year, is held on the east and west coasts to bring high school
students and faculty together to further develop their social justice work.
ISN’s staff is led by the dynamic Kerr, alongside Former Jesuit Volunteer, Kim Miller (Portland 09, Washington, D.C. 10), who instinctively
and expertly connects JVC with ISN’s work.
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programming and are regular contributors to FJVs participate in the Teach-In, and Kerr
observes, “JVs offer a unique perspective on the integration of social justice into spiritual life and everyday life that creates a deeper
level of engagement that they can share with others. We hope that JVs see ISN as a way to
continue living out the social justice component of their JV covenant as they move on from their volunteer experience.”
ISN will continues to forge new frontiers
in faith-based social justice education and
advocacy, utilizing technology and creative
program approaches. Kerr reflects, “the work of ISN offers us hope for the future of our Church. Collectively our network, works in tandem
with organizations like JVC, creating greater
space for experiences of faith that are inherently grounded in solidarity with our brothers
and sisters who are marginalized by injustice
throughout the world. The Ignatian Solidarity
Network a place where people can find Church be inspired to work for justice.”
To learn more, visit ignatiansolidaritynetwork.org
ReOrientation Reflection Tracy Peterka, Phoenix 13, St. Matthew Catholic School
Stories
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ore to the JVC experience is an open, honest engagement with spirituality and faith. The JVC program facilitates prayer, retreats, and other
activities grounded in the Catholic, Ignatian tradition. As part of this formation process, each January, JVs make a retreat as a region to renew
their commitment to JVC. The retreat takes the JVs through the pastoral cycle: focus on the experience of people they encounter, ask questions of what economic and political structures are at work, consider the situation in the light of the gospel and Catholic Social Teaching, and determine what action should be taken. The following reflection was shared as part of the mass at the ReOrientation in Texas.
On this retreat, we were asked to reflect on where we have been, where we are now, and where we want to be in six months. Our
year of JVC is half way over, and we have been asked to recommit
God watches over us with his steadfast love.
to the four values. I know some of us had our doubts about coming
He is with us all around, not just above.
go on a retreat, but something about the four values struck a cord in
We are baptized with the Holy Spirit
to ReO, not desiring to leave our jobs in the middle of the week to
each of us to dedicate our lives to a year of service in JVC. Perhaps it is because we thought that living by the values could bring about a
better world. I envision the values to be woven together by the Holy Spirit in a blanket of love.
It is the Holy Spirit that God sent Christ to baptize us with. Not with water, but with the Holy Spirit. The scriptures say, “I remind you to
and this spirit of love has no limit. It is from His spirit that we live and move and have our being
stir into flame the gift of God that you have through the imposition
and it is this love that is so freeing.
of power and love and self-control” (2 Timothy 1:6-7). He has given
May the Holy Spirit a fire in us ignite
of my hands. For God did not give us a spirit of cowardice but rather us a spirit of courage. Courage to move across the country to live with strangers. Courage to work at placements where injustice is
crystal clear. Courage to build a relationship with God. Courage to
rebel against a culture of materialism and pride. Those strangers are now family. Those injustices are in the act of being remedied. Those
relationships with God are growing. And that culture of materialism is changing as we live in simplicity and humility.
that we may touch the lives of others with our light that shines so bright. May we find in ourselves an outpouring of this grace and work to be God’s hands, feet and face.
St. Augustine once said, “Hope has two beautiful daughters: their names are anger and courage. Anger at the way things are.
Courage to make them the way they ought to be.” It is with this hope, anger, and courage that we venture to our placements every day with aspirations to rectify the injustices we experience around us. It is this hope, anger, and courage that brought us here. And it is the Holy
Spirit with which Christ has baptized us that will make spreading the love of God possible.
God only knows what the next six months will bring, but with the
four values as our guide, we stand ready to go out into the world to find God in others and to do God’s will.
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Impact: Cleveland by Kara Spak, San Jose 96
First in a series of city profiles where Jesuit Volunteers – current and former – are demonstrating their commitment to faith in action.
N
ew York. Los Angeles. Austin. Washington, D.C.
Aspiring Jesuit Volunteers can choose placements in some of the country’s hippest cities. There’s one place, though, on the banks of Lake Erie and in the heart of the Rust Belt, that has been one of Jesuit Volunteer Corps’ strongest locations for 40 years. Cleveland. That’s right, Cleveland. “Cleveland was our first JVC Midwest house when it was founded in 1974,” said Angie Moloney, program director. “It’s always been a really strong, a really large community for JVC.” JVC in Cleveland also reaches the highest levels of city power. Cleveland City Council President Kevin J. Kelly is a Former Jesuit Volunteer, as is the Ohio City neighborhood’s council representative, Joe Cimperman. “There’s something about Cleveland’s movements, whether it was the labor struggle, issues around race, issues around how to create
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and keep social justice on people’s minds — it’s kind of like a really perfect culture for JVs to live in,” said Cimperman, who served as a JV in Portland, Maine, and Baltimore between 1993 and 1995. “Being a JV in Cleveland is kind of like a passport. People want to do stuff for them.” The connection between Cleveland and JVC reverberates through Jesuit-run John Carroll University and St. Ignatius High School, a 128-year-old all-boys high school. There are regular events through the Loyola Club for alumni of any Jesuit school. The Harvest Moon block party every September brings together the current JVs, FJVs, and other community members in a do-gooder gathering nearly 250-people strong. Potential JVs might be lured by Cleveland’s reputation as an underdog or by the depth of long-standing placements. Once they arrive, though, they learn being a JV in Cleveland is synonymous with living as a JV in the Ohio City neighborhood. Ohio City is a 9,000-resident strong neighborhood on Cleveland’s Near West Side that is experiencing a rebirth following decades
of neglect. Home to St. Ignatius High School and the West Side Market, one of Cleveland’s biggest tourist attractions, it is also known as the place with the largest concentration of beer breweries in Cleveland. “There’s a vitality in the neighborhood that is really long-standing,” Moloney said. “It’s a very well-informed neighborhood in the sense that people know one another. It’s a pretty diverse neighborhood where JVs are able to interact with former volunteers and potential clients. There are a lot of former volunteers who live in the neighborhood who understand what JVC is.” Many JVs in Cleveland stay in the city after their service years are up, drawn in by the grassroots passion and myriad social service opportunities in the city, said Moloney. Cleveland can also be one of the more affordable urban options for life immediately after a volunteer year. “Cleveland has always been a place where I think people have tried to live their idealism or fulfill a mission,” Cimperman said. “There is very little artifice in this city.”
Partner Agency Profile
Libby Emery works at the Domestic Violence & Child Advocacy Center where she provides individual and group service to children. Emily Keating manages the expressive arts program at the Westside Catholic Center, a day center for homeless and low-income individuals. Carlee Snider works at the Neighborhood Family Practice where she assists individuals who are uninsured and those who are enrolling to get medical benefits and food stamps. Tricia Mirando bridges the gap between the students of St. Ignatius High School and its homeless neighbors through the Arrupe Neighborhood Partnership. Lauren Mulkern serves at Youth Challenge where she organizes adaptive sports and recreational activities for those who experience physical disabilities.
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n 1991, Cleveland’s Jesuit-run St. Ignatius High School wanted to connect more closely with the surrounding neighborhood. Arrupe Neighborhood Partnership was the result. For the past seven years, the Jesuit Volunteer Corps has been a critical part of the organization with one volunteer working at the agency each year. The JV coordinates the homeless ministry and helps deliver a simple meal to homeless in Cleveland every Sunday night, a meal the JV community prepares. The JV also runs afterschool programming, and the entire JV house participates in Arrupe’s annual Christmas party, Easter party, and other neighborhood celebrations. “All our JVs have brought their own talents and gifts but they also have the same approach that JVC has,” said John Gill, Arrupe’s director. “They live the JVC mission of those four values. And those four values are very easily seen in the Arrupe mission, the St. Ignatius mission. Being open to the community and social justice are key words for all of us.” Arrupe, located in a house that almost sits on campus, is “the front door of the school to the neighborhood,” Gill said. The agency sends Ignatius students into the neighborhood to shovel snow in the winter and organizes “Spring Into Action,” a spring cleaning day on Cleveland’s near West Side that coincides with the Jesuit Day of Service, when 10 Jesuit institutions take part in similar activities throughout northeastern Ohio. Gill said each year the Arrupe JV and the Ignatius students form a unique connection through Thursday service meetings where the students gather to discuss the past week’s service experiences. The JV is an active participant in the meeting. “There is a pretty deep respect that the Ignatius guys have for the JVs who come here and vice versa,” Gill said. “Each day after school the Ignatius guys come to our (Arrupe) house. They are trained and supported and grow in relationship with the Jesuit Volunteers.”
Lexy Pickett supports those who have mental and physical disabilities at United Cerebral Palsy/LEAP by offering activity outside the home as well as teaching healthy lifestyle skills. Sarah Rebecca Gaglio works as an educational aid in the classroom at St. Martin de Porres, a Cristo Rey School, where she is also a parttime campus minister. Nora Kearney also works at St. Martin de Porres where she collaborates with students to prepare them for the transition to colleges and universities.
Few know the ins-and-outs of a city like a Jesuit Volunteer, and the eight women in the 2013-2014 JVC Cleveland House are no exception. The best Cleveland restaurant for a simple living JV: The Big Egg for brunch. Known for its distinctive egg-shaped menus, the price is right in line with a JV budget. Two eggs, hash browns, toast and jelly set you back $3.29. Another $10 gets you a steak with your eggs. The best Cleveland activity for a community night: game night at The Happy Dog, a family-owned bar built in the 1940s that was purchased by five friends in 2008. A spiritual spot in Cleveland: the dock at Edgewater Park, the westernmost park in Cleveland Metroparks Lakefront Reservation. People should know Cleveland is: the best-kept secret in the Midwest!
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Stories Reunions
1 During Christmas week, FJVs and Returned Peace Corps Volunteers from Chuuk, Micronesia, gathered in Cashiers, North Carolina, for a “Team Chuuk” reunion. Volunteers pictured were in Chuuk ranging from the years of 2008-2013. 2 Bob Harper (JVC NW St. Mary’s 72) and his wife, Joan, traveled to Peru last year. Here they pose with some of the current JVs in front of the Jesuit church in the central Plaza of Cuzco, Peru. Susan Brusky (Peru 11), Brian Harper (Nicaragua 11), Joan and Bob Harper, Sarah Brady (Peru 12) and Theresa Cutter (Peru 12). 3 Kip Gallagher (Rostro de Cristo 10), Peaches Dela Paz (Micronesia 10), Meghan Arbuckle (Micronesia 10), and Shea Meehan (Tanzania 10) met up in Seattle last summer to catch up after being in country for a year (or more). 4 Twenty-nine years later, all four members of the 1984 Buffalo JVC community gathered last summer at the home of Susan O’Hagan Marley in North Wales, Pennsylvania. Pictured relaxing on the porch are Brian Henebry, Brigit Hurley, Karen Emmerth, Rich Emmerth and Susan O’Hagan Marley.
Commitments
Andrew Carrell (Detroit 09; JVC staff 10-13) entered the Society of Jesus in the California province in August 2013. 5 Sarah Davison (Camden 02, Bronx 03) married Chris McHarg on July 28, 2012, at Holland Lake, Montana. They were surrounded by many friends and family, including many Former Jesuit Volunteers. Will Smith (Camden 02), Mara Byrne (Camden 00), Ann Dypiangco holding Miriam (Raleigh 02), Chris McHarg and Sarah Davison (Camden 02, Bronx 03), Stephen Dypiangco holding Jane (Camden 02), Erica Shea (Newark 02), Brian Shea (Portland 02), Robin Turner (San Antonio 02). 6 Michelle Cimaroli (Baltimore 07) pronounced vows as a sister in the community of the Handmaids of the Sacred Heart on May 26, 2013, in Philadelphia. She is studying for a master’s in education at St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia and working part time at St. Raphael’s retreat center and at Cristo Rey high school. Catherine Kirwan-Avila (Bolivia 04), Michelle Cimaroli (Baltimore 07) and Allie Rabek (Camden 07, Baltimore 08) at the celebration of Michelle’s vows. 7 Juliette Hughes (Phoenix 09) and Jack Lahey (Santa Monica 09) were married in Fresno, California, April 6, 2013, and FJVs from both the 09 and 10 years attended. Juliette is a preschool teacher in West Hollywood and Jack is a case manager at St. Joseph Center in Venice working with individuals who have been diagnosed with severe mental illnesses.
8 Andrew Leonard (Mobile 11), married Linda Eichling on June 8, 2013, in Wolfeboro, New Hampshire. Pictured are Mary P. Eilenfeldt (Mobile 11), Linda Eichling, Andrew Leonard, Matt McEnery (Mobile 11), and Emily Sumner (Mobile 11). 9 Bridget Monohan (Mobile 04) married Tom McShea on March 2, 2013, in San Francisco. Bridget is now working for the Veterans Association in primary care. 10 Rosemary Othmer and Matt Pesko (Portland 09) were married July 28, 2012, in Santa Fe, New Mexico. His whole community was able to attend as well as some other FJVs! Jon Sheffield (Portland 09, New York 10), Emma Ackels (Portland 09, Cleveland 10), Lindsey Peletier (Harlem 10, Oakland 11), Mike Pesko, brother (Los Angeles 07), Matt Pesko (Portland 09), Sean Cain (Portland 09), Rosemary Othmer Pesko, Meghan Pesko, sister (McAllen 03), Kim Miller (Portland 09, Washington, D.C. 10), Chris Eagan (Portland 09), and Kristina Simes (Washington, D.C. 09). 11 David Scholl (San Francisco 05) married Ellen Stryker in August 2013. They live in Omaha, where David is a campus minister and liturgy coordinator at Creighton University. 12 Sara Shea (San Antonio 09) married Brendan Carey (Los Angeles 10) with both of their communities present. Sara’s uncle, Fr. Jim Shea, SJ, the Maryland Province’s Provincial, presided at their wedding. Back row L to R: Jennifer Lydic (Los Angeles 10), Chris Wilson (Los Angeles 10), John Kelly (Los Angeles 10), Fr. Jim Shea, SJ, Brendan Carey, Sara Carey (San Antonio 09), Molly Rozier (San Antonio 09), John Weems (Sacramento 09), Sara Seghezzo (San Antonio 09), Amy Mullen (San Antonio 09), Meghan Butler (San Antonio 09), Nicholas Collura (San Antonio 09). Front row L to R: Mariel Lougee (Los Angeles 10), Rachael Siemon-Carome (Los Angeles 10), Tanya Beroukhim (San Antonio 09), and Mary Kate Wagner (San Antonio 09). 13 In December 2013 Tommy DuRoss (Los Angeles 07) and Nicole Warner (Los Angeles 06) married in El Segundo, California. Attending the wedding were: from L to R Elizabeth DeNiro-Wallace, Kelli McErlean (Los Angeles 07, JVC staff 12-present), Nicole Warner (Los Angeles 06), Mike De-Niro-Wallace (Los Angeles 07), Tommy DuRoss (Los Angeles 07), Maddie Goodreau (Phoenix 07) , Ali Griffith (Los Angeles 07), Eric Leefe (San Francisco 07), Sarah (Fahrenkrug) Wicks (Los Angeles 07), and AJ Goodman. 14 Ellen Derby (Micronesia 06) married Mike Fisher on June 8, 2013, in Napa, California. In attendance were Jaclyn (Truncellio) Range (Micronesia 05), Colleen (Sweeney) Picou (Micronesia 06), Patrick Reynolds-Berry (Nicaragua 08), and Brianna Hussey (Portland 08).
15 Janelle Peregoy (Los Angeles 04, JVC staff 09-13) married Richard Laukam on February 28, 2013, at Our Lady of Guadalupe in San Diego. Fr. Bill Sheahan, SJ (San Antonio 89) presided. Kelly Gibbons (JVC NW Portland 04, 05, JVC staff 07 to present), Jane Rieder (San Jose 04), Lisa Colella (JVC staff 08 to 10, JVC NW Juno 10), Janelle Peregoy, Richard Laukam, Theresa Vela (Los Angeles 04), Fr. Bill Sheahan, SJ.
Arrivals
First child, Gabriel Robert Burke, was born July 18, 2012, to Christina (Bell) Burke (Milwaukee 02). Christina is a bereavement counselor in Oxnard, California. 16 Grant Alexander Cevasco was born on June 20, 2013, to former JVs Marc Cevasco and Jenna (Grant) Cevasco (Sacramento 04). 17 Ruth (Anderson) Lang (San Jose 05) and her husband, Juan Lang, and their son Juanito welcomed the newest member of the family, Xavier Nathaniel, a.k.a. Chavi, on May 31, 2013. 18 James Ratner (Philadelphia 01, Bronx 02) and his wife, Beth, welcome Logan Jarpe Ratner on March 19, 2013. Catie Cavanagh Wolfgang (Philadelphia 05), her husband, Chris, and their daughter Abigail welcomed Hannah Clare into the family on January 22, 2014.
Work and Life
After a year and a half in Germany, Michael Amabile (Baltimore 09, JVC Staff 02-07) returned to the States with his wife, Joanna Tellis, and their sons, Charlie (4) and Pete (1). He was there on an Alexander von Humboldt Foundation fellowship to study sustainable transportation. Michael is currently a transportation planner at Arup in New York City. 19 FJVs in Washington, D.C., took a fall hike to Fountainhead Regional Park in Virginia. Back row L to R: Bassam Zahid (Vincentian Volunteer Corps), Ben Ballard (Los Angeles 10), Paula Charbonneau (Los Angeles 09, 10). Bottom row L to R: Johnny Walker (Newark 04), Kierstin Quinsland (Washington, D.C. 08, 09), Kate Sullivan (Santa Clara 10), Julie DeMareo (Los Angeles 10), Maria Gaona (JVC NW Sitka 06). Elizabeth Duclos-Orsello (Kansas City 05), who teaches at Salem State University, writes: “I am one of 6 siblings, three of whom are FJVs. My work as a professor and scholar and activist have been interconnected since leaving JVC and the lessons, issues, and work of that year have shaped every project, position, and course I have created, completed, or cared about. I am a publicly-engaged scholar working to transform the world through the lives of young men and women at an institution of public higher
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In Memoriam Michael Edwin Vosburg-Casey
Michael VosburgCasey was born on March 13, 1974, in Palo Alto, California. After graduating from Bellarmine Jesuit High School in San Jose and Colby College, Mike moved to Atlanta where as a Jesuit Volunteer for two years he worked at the Central Presbyterian Outreach Center and the Georgia Justice Project. There he became involved with the Open Door Community and met Amy Vosburg, an FJV who represents Georgia prisoners on death row with the Georgia Appellate Resource Center. They married in 2004.
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education serving many young people who are marginalized in our society. I tell all my students at the beginning of each new course that my goal is to (ruin them for life) and then I explain what that means. JVC is at the heart of who I am and what I do.” Hannah Dwyer (New Orleans 02) writes, “After ten years in the classroom at Saint Bernard Academy, I took on a new role this year as director of student learning. I oversee curriculum development, student placement, analysis of standardized test scores, and faculty professional development. I continue to teach two sections of fourth grade math.” Emilee Flynn (Oakland 08) graduated from the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine in Baltimore in May 2013. She is a pediatric resident at St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia. 20 Jesuit novices from the United States and Canada met for a course in Jesuit history at Regis in Denver last summer. Back Row L to R: Matt Cortese (JVC NW Seattle 09), Marcos Gonzales (Micronesia 06, JVC Staff 08), James Antonio (Nashville 10, JVC NW Portland 11), Matt Wooters (Belize 09), Matt Petrich (Tanzania 01-04, JVC staff 06-07) Front Row L to R: Chris Geraghty (San Antonio 07, Syracuse 08), Lucas Sharma (Washington, D.C. 09), Steve Nicholson (JVC NW Portland 08). 21 Sara Kelley (Mobile 08), Lauren Carpenter (San Antonio 08), and Jen Guterman (JVC NW Billings 02) attended World Youth Day in Rio in July 2013 as part the Equally Blessed organization. 22 Boston FJVs made an Advent pilgrimage to LaSalette in Attleboro, Massachusetts, famed for its Christmas lights and nativity
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scenes. Michael Lavelle (Boston 09, 10), Julianne Tylko (Chicago 10), Mary Tontz (JVC NW) Rachel Snyder (Baltimore 09). Cooper McCullough (Houston 12) and John Rogers (Belize 11) who are both entering Master of Divinity students at Boston College School of Theology and Ministry and Union Theological Seminary, have been selected to receive a 2013 Fund for Theological Exploration (FTE) Volunteers Exploring Vocation (VEV) Fellowship. The Fellowships will provide up to $10,000 over three years to help meet expenses and to fund a ministry internship opportunity. FTE awards the Volunteers Exploring Vocation Fellowships to participants in the 19 national faith-based volunteer service organizations with whom it partners, are designed to foster leadership and diversity in pastoral ministry. Lori (Ryan) Neale (San Diego 06, Cleveland 07) is working with Jesuits and others to reestablish Jesuit Volunteers Canada this fall. You can visit the website at jesuitvolunteers. ca. Ted Penton, SJ (Raleigh 01) and Yvonne Prowse (Sacramento 04, JVC staff 2004-2009) are assisting with this effort. 23 On June 29, 2013, Bishop Steven A. Miller ordained Dorota Pruski (Milwaukee 06) to the priesthood at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Madison, Wisconsin, where she will be serving as associate rector. Heather (Stout) Svanidze (Baltimore 05) moved to Spokane, Washington, in late 2012. They had their second baby, Claire Eowyn, in January 2013. Heather is blogging about simple living and car-free living with young children at awalkingmama.blogspot.com with header illustration provided by Elizabeth Metz (Washington, D.C. 05). Carol Vecchhio (Troy 79) has a new book, “The Time Between Dreams - How to Navigate Uncertainty in Your Life and Work.” Carol founded CenterPoint Institute for Life and Career Renewal in 1992 in Seattle.
In 2006, after many years of discernment and actions against war and violence, Michael crossed the line at the School of the Americas at Fort Benning, Georgia, during the annual protest. He was sentenced to federal prison for resistance. Over the 100 days of his imprisonment, Mike and Amy maintained their partnership and continued their joint work to bring justice and peace inside the walls of prisons and jails and radiating to the streets of our towns and cities. In June 2010, Elena Lucille Vosburg-Casey was born to Amy and Mike, and Mike became a fulltime father. Along with her daddy, Elena visited the sick, went to soup kitchens, and vigiled for peace every Friday. He taught her to sing at the top of her lungs, tp play the piano in a unique style, to dance in the rain, and to never meet a stranger. He read to her every day and helped her to develop an astounding level of curiosity, concentration, and verbal skills. Mike made a unique contribution in the movement to abolish the death penalty. Every time an execution was scheduled in Georgia, Mike planned a vigil in front of the office of the physician hired by the Department of Corrections to administer the lethal drugs. Michael’s vigil was an important factor in leading the Georgia legislature to pass a secrecy law that classifies the prison personnel who participate in executions and the source of the prison’s lethal drugs as “state secrets.” This law is currently being challenged in the courts. In December 2011, Mike was diagnosed with colon cancer. During treatments he maintained his ongoing work for peace and justice. Toward the very end of his life, Mike insisted on attending the Friday peace vigil in his wheel chair. Mike Vosburg-Casey’s life remains as an inspiration to action for all who love justice, peace, and the radical vision of the Beloved Community. Deo gratias. Written by Murphy Davis in collaboration with Amy Vosburg-Casey (Marshalls 95), Tom and Betty and Dan Casey, Beth and Vince Casey Pereira, Eduard Loring, and Hannah Murphy Buc.
the last word What do you wish other people knew about JVC?
The depth of the program and its impact on those serving and those being served. It is very difficult to convey the depth and breadth of the experience of JVC succinctly, and so sometimes people who are learning about it for the first time will focus on just one of the aspects — the work or the formation and integration of the four values. Without both, JVC is not really JVC.
What has surprised you most about working at JVC?
For an organization that has such a rich history and tradition, JVC is willing to look at how to develop and improve itself. Also, I have been surprised and humbled by the pride and ownership that so many who have been impacted by JVC feel — both in the immediate and long term. FJVs who just completed their service and those who have been out for many years. Placement sites where JVs have been for many years and those with whom we are starting a relationship.
Why do young adults need Ignatian spirituality?
Ignatian spirituality provides tools and language for young adults to name and work through some of the things that they are struggling with or looking to grow in. It can provide a concrete foundation where the young adults can both feel comfortable and be challenged. It provides a grounding that is so important to young adults at this transitional point in their lives.
What are some places, situations, etc., you have found yourself in through working for JVC?
Sleeping on plastic mattresses. Playing Ninja in the pool at Orientation. Chopping vegetables for about 80 volunteers. In silence at the beach, in the mountains, and in the country. Listening to the excitement of JVs when jobs go well and listening to the challenges when things are not going well. Reading applications of potential JVs. Gathering with all JVC staff each year at the national meeting.
What might JVC supporters be surprised to know about you? I am NOT an FJV. Yes, JVC does hire and retain non-FJV staff.
If a picture paints a thousand words, what are you doing in that picture? I am surrounded by family and friends with empty plates and full glasses in front of us with my head tilted back in laughter.
If you could choose one superpower, what would it be?
Speed. I was never as fast as I wanted to be, and now I could get from place to place fast so I could enjoy BEING there.
What are you reading now? What are some books you would recommend to JVs?
Sue Monk Kidd, The Invention of Wings, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Poisonwood Bible. In general, find fiction that you can learn from. Don’t be afraid to pick up a real page turner. Pick up and read something that makes you want to talk to other people about it.
Describe heaven and how to get there.
Maggie Conley Maggie has served as Senior Program Director since 2010, and worked on recruiting and marketing JVC since 2003. Prior to joining JVC, Maggie worked for Catholic Relief Services. She is a proud graduate of Xavier University and lives in Silver Spring, Maryland, with her husband, Brian, and their three children.
I am not sure what heaven looks like because it changes for me all the time as I grow older and more of the people who are close to me are now in heaven. I am more concerned with whom I will see there and how I will be able to reconnect and engage with them than I am about what my surroundings will look like. I want to look in others’ eyes rather than looking around. The key to getting there is to be authentic and grounded — in all parts of your life.
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