uld nd what wo ou give — a y ld ce u n o e w ri t e a Wh n exp — to have a p u e ht iv ig g e u , yo rch r life? In Ma u o y d e g n g a a Chic o that ch ents on the d tu s ’s rd a d out. St. Edw Break foun g n ri p S e v ti Alterna
By Erin Peterson | Photos by Jessica Attie ’04 Maybe it was the afternoon she laced up roller skates for two dozen preschoolers, or one of the mornings that she served up soup and sandwiches to 140-some guests at the Seton Sandwich Kitchen. Maybe it was late one night, when she and her fellow Alternative Spring Break companions held an impromptu dance party after spending a long day volunteering. Jenny Eakin ’13 might not be able to pinpoint the exact moment she felt her priorities change, but she knows that somewhere in that spring-break chaos, something shifted. “People might think it’s over-the-top when I say that Alternative Spring Break was life-changing,” she says. “But I learned so many lessons about living simply and being in the present. I never thought I could teach in an inner-city
elementary school, and now it’s something I could see myself doing now that I’ve experienced how valuable the work is.” It’s a sentiment that her fellow travelers appreciate. This past March, eight students on the university’s “Urban Immersion” Alternative Spring Break trip to Chicago ditched their cell phones, their laptops and their comfortable beds. They jettisoned more traditional spring-break plans — sun, surf, relaxation — to work long days in some of the roughest areas of the Windy City. In return, students say they gained a new sense of focus for their lives and their educations. We asked students — and the people who worked with them — to walk us through the week to share the moments, both big and small, that made an impact. Nicole Bradley ’13 u
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