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My first semester at Holy Cross, I enrolled in Introduction to Women’s and Gender Studies — partly because I wanted to have academic concepts to back up my feminist ideals and partly because I wanted to spend time in the Worcester community. As a first year student, I was pretty sure I wanted to study anthropology. I wanted the opportunity to hear people tell their own stories and learn about experiences different than my own. I wanted to immerse myself in the communities I would become a part of.

Now, as a senior anthropology major, I am so thankful that my 18 year-old self had the wisdom to start engaging with my new community immediately. My first CBL placement was in the thrift shop attached to Abby’s House, a local non-profit that provides safe shelter and affordable housing to women experiencing homelessness. After that first semester, I went on to continue volunteering, become a summer intern, and this past summer, act as both volunteer and researcher.

As part of the Holy Cross Weiss Summer Research Fellowship, I was able to spend 8 weeks of this past summer volunteering at the Abby’s House thrift shop. Along with my volunteer work, I interviewed 3 fellow volunteers and engaged in a self-examination, with the goal of writing a paper about how volunteers make meaning of their experiences at Abby’s House. I am still in awe of the richness of my fellow volunteer’s lives. I am grateful for their willingness to tell me their stories and for their commitment to Abby’s House. One of the women let me shadow her at another Worcester organization where she volunteers and told me how people always ask why she does what she does. “You don’t have to be here,” they say, “You’re not one of us.” Her response is always, “We’re all human.” Another finds strength and community at Abby’s House, which has carried her through challenging times — including a battle with cancer. My last interviewee grew up in a “developing” country and noticed social inequalities from a young age. She knows something about almost every one of our regular shoppers and never fails to greet each person in either English and Spanish.

CBL has given me a great gift in the form of an opportunity. The first day I walked in to Abby’s House, I took great care to not just give of my time and presence, but to look for what I could learn. That opportunity to be open and humble, to give and receive, has truly shaped my Holy Cross experience and the way I approach the world. I have formed relationships with volunteers, donors, and shoppers who are citizens of Worcester. They have taught me little things like the best place to get ice cream, and they have taught me important things like the complex social, economic, and political issues facing the city of Worcester. This lesson on how to approach service and relationship-building is something I know I will carry with me, far beyond the gates of Holy Cross.

This summer I had the opportunity to go to India to take a course with the Maymester program called “Social Justice in Context”.  I was particularly inclined to the lessons we had on violence against women because I had just finished interning at Daybreak, a domestic violence shelter in Worcester, for a year.

One statistic that we learned that really stuck me during our seminars was that 70% of women in India experience some form of violence. This was only a statistic until a guest speaker came in and told us about eight case studies of violence against women; until we visited Sumanahali, a leprosy clinic, and met the candle maker who was a burn survivor; until I went to Victoria Hospital’s burn unit and saw many women who were victims of violence. Although I didn’t directly work or speak with any survivors, hearing their stories and seeing their lasting scars from afar was very impactful for me. That statistic was able to really come to life.

Where I found hope was during my time interning at Vimochana. Vimochana is a leading feminist activist organization that fights for the better treatment of women as well as for overall social equality not only for women but also for the “backwards” caste.  Being around so many passionate and powerful women was my source of hope after learning about the extremity of poverty and violence in India. It was very transformative for me to see the power that a NGO had in making concrete changes in India, where patriarchy is the norm. The women at Vimochana were respected and overtime they have been able to hold police and even government hospitals accountable, all while helping out every single woman that comes to their organization in search for help and protection.

Since returning back home, I have been contemplating the question: What now? Now that I’ve witnessed the realities of oppression and violence in India, what is my role in eliminating these injustices?  Before this trip I already had a passion for social justice and I already cared about these issues, but the extreme nature of these injustices in India was painful for me to see. Seeing the humble homes of the families in the slums was one way in which the way I viewed reality was changed. The poverty that I am used to seeing in America doesn’t even compare to the reality of those families in the slums. After seeing this first hand, there is no way that I can come back and do nothing.

At Vimochana I came across a quote from a woman who was a victim of domestic violence that stated, “How can I trust my life in these hands that have not touched my heart”. Immediately I wrote this quote down because it highlights the importance of listening and forming relationships. In my life I want to work in a profession that allows me to help people. At Vimochana I learned that you could only help those who you listen to. Not only is listening helpful for you as a worker to allow you to learn what you need to do to help, but many times telling their stories is a form of treatment for victims of domestic violence. I think being a better listener is an easy way that every person can make a change in their own lives to better help others around them. I believe that if everyone cared more about one another, then we would be closer to a more just world. I know that is a very simplistic outlook, but I believe that the element of care is missing in our government, criminal justice system, and many other structures that contribute to real justice work being done.

Overall, I am truly grateful for the month that I was able to have in India. Every part of the trip was extremely important in opening my eyes to the realities of the world.

A Month of Gratitude

This April, I have been fortunate enough to have two wonderful experiences that have allowed me to show and express my gratitude towards the Community-Based Learning (CBL) Office. On April 4, I was able to ‘co-host’ the Community Partner Reception with Ms. Isabelle Jenkins, the Associate Director of the CBL Office. The event is a yearly tradition in which organizations in the Worcester community that partner with Holy Cross are invited to campus for a light reception, and are recognized and thanked for their collaboration with Holy Cross and the work that they do in Worcester. It is a chance to thank all the community partners at once, and express our gratitude for time and effort that they devote as they work to make Worcester a better place. This year, the event was sponsored by the CBL Office, Government and Community Relations, the Teacher Education Program, and Student Programs for Urban Development, and Elaines Peña ’18 and Sean Teebagy ’17 gave speeches to thank all the community partners. They both spoke eloquently and passionately about how grateful they were to have experiences in the community that helped shape their worldview. They also spoke about how thankful they were to the community partners for their collaboration with Holy Cross students, and for providing so many with the opportunity to experience Worcester and to ask the tough questions in the classroom that lead to so many meaningful dialogues. It was great to hear the speeches from the two students, and their words were such a wonderful ode of gratitude to the hard but necessary work of the community partners.

Later this month on April 11, Joe Donelan made a visit to Holy Cross. Along with several other CBL students, I was able to meet with Joe Donelan, the alumnus from the class of 1972 that gave the $1.2 million gift that established the Donelan Office of Community-Based Learning – us! It was a wonderful opportunity to hear about his passion and motivation for donating and establishing the CBL Office. He spoke candidly about his experience here at Holy Cross, and his vision for the CBL Office and for students doing CBL work. I was moved by his continued passion and interest in seeing the CBL Office continue to thrive as well as his ability to ask tough questions and challenge us to think. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to reflect on my experience here at Holy Cross, and I found myself very grateful for my formative CBL courses in both my first and second year.

As a graduating senior, these two events have really allowed me to reflect on how much I have grown as a result of my engagement in and with the Worcester community, and they make me forever grateful for my academic and community-based learning experiences.

On Tuesday, April 4th, CBL Intern, Elaines Peña ’18 acknowledged and thanked our community partners for all that they do to serve as co-educators of Holy Cross students. Thank you, Community Partners! Read Elaines’ speech below.

First I would like to begin by thanking all of you for being here today and for all that you do in hosting Holy Cross students at your sites. Through my experience as a community based learning intern I have witnessed the impact that working in the city of Worcester has on the students here. Personally, community based learning has allowed me to find my passion for justice. Through classes such as Exploring Differences, Liberation Theology, as well as Women and Gender studies, students are able to read and talk about the injustices that occur in the world around us, but through community based learning everything we read about becomes a reality As students we are able to form meaningful relationships, with people at our sites, which inspires us to get to the root of the problems in our society.

I would like to take this opportunity to speak about the importance of CBL in my own life. Through my community based learning experiences I have been able to find a community in which I feel at home. Coming to Holy Cross from Boston, it is easy to forget the realities of life. CBL has kept me grounded on what truly matters to me and to the members of the Worcester community. I have had the privilege of meeting wonderful people through CBL at St. Mary’s, the Assumption Center, and now at Daybreak. When I was at Girls with Dreams, my supervisor, Anne Kane, had a profound influence on me. The semesters that I spent there were filled with kindness, love, and tremendous guidance. From the very first day I arrived until the very last day Anne trusted me and allowed me to grow as a person. I especially want to thank Anne for pushing me to take on a bigger role at Girls with Dreams by giving a presentation to the girls. Anne was able to see something in me, that I didn’t even know was there. My time at Girls with Dreams helped me grow in more ways than one, and I am so thankful for the time I got to spend there every week. It amazes me that Anne and all of the wonderful community partners take the time out of their busy schedules to make Holy Cross students feel so involved and valued at their sites. Although we are there to volunteer and help you all out, many times we are the ones who benefit because we learn so much.

The lessons we learn at CBL allow us to come back to Holy Cross and ask tough questions in the classroom in order to have meaningful conversations about the structural reasons behind inequalities. These conversations and experiences remind us what it means to be “men and women for and with others”- which is such an important part of the Holy Cross mission.

To end, I want to thank you all again on behalf of the Holy Cross students that participate in CBL and are engaged in the city of Worcester.

The Donelan Office’s Director, Michelle Sterk Barrett, offered the following remarks at Burncoat High School’s National Honor Society induction on March 30th.

Thank you for the very kind introduction, Stephanie, and thank you to Ms. Suprenant and Mr. Foley for the opportunity to be here with you tonight.  Congratulations to each of you for achieving at the level that has enabled you to be inducted into the National Honor Society on this very special evening.   Your induction into NHS is a testament to your hard work, perseverance, and strong character.  It’s also a testament to the fact that you are fortunate to have been graced with noteworthy talents and skills that have gotten you to this moment. Whether you are naturally brilliant or simply a hard worker who perseveres through academic challenges until you succeed, you have something remarkable to offer our world.  I hope you will view your gifts and talents in exactly that way—as something remarkable to be generously shared with the world.

In looking at the National Honor Society’s  website it describes itself as “the nation’s premier organization established to recognize outstanding high school students. More than just an honor roll, NHS serves to recognize those students who have demonstrated excellence in the areas of scholarship, service, leadership, and character.” While all four of the NHS goals are important, I would like to focus on one particular aspect of the NHS vision: service.

As  someone who has worked over 20 years in the field of service-learning, I’ve spent much time thinking about the questions that surround service.  Questions such as: What motivates one to serve?  What exactly is service? How can one serve well?  I’d like to spend the next few minutes sharing my thoughts and reflections related to those questions.

I’ve seen many motivations for service.  Often it begins as a requirement expected by one’s high school, one’s church, or one’s parents.  It may sometimes continue because of the benefits it can provide in the college admissions process or by the experience it can add to a newly developing resume.  While the initial motives may not be entirely selfless, I’ve witnessed people powerfully impacted by service—regardless of their initial motivation.
One of the many reasons why I think service can be so powerful is because of the way in which it has the potential to restore humanity to all involved—both the person who might have initially been thought of as the “client” to be served and the person who might have initially been thought of as the volunteer doing the service.

In a world that can be so isolating and individualistic…one in which we often interact with people via screens as much as we do in person… service can heal and can show us a more authentic and meaningful path through life.  It can show us how interconnected we all our to one another as human beings.  It can help us learn how to give love and receive love better.

Dr. Brené Brown, a research professor at the University of Houston, wrote a book entitled The Gifts of Imperfection, in which she discusses how recent research in biology and neuroscience demonstrates that we are hardwired for connection and that we have an innate need for this.  She points out, however, that the messages we are sent about what it means to be successful in our society often do not reinforce this importance of connectedness.  On the contrary, these messages regularly emphasize the importance of individual self-sufficiency and this can eventually lead all of us to increased separation and isolation from one another.

I think these messages about what it means to be successful have become particularly warped in the way they have been conveyed to your generation.  At the time Ms. Suprenant was taking my class, I was reading a book by William Deresiewicz called Excellent Sheep.   He’s a former professor at Yale who writes a thought-provoking cultural critique of the way in which young adults are being raised to believe that their value is in their accomplishments: grades, test scores, trophies, and other measurable outcomes or credentials. He says that from this vantage point, “The purpose of life becomes the accumulation of gold stars.” (p. 16).

Both of these authors point out how the culture in which young adults are currently being raised contrasts sharply with what researchers point out we innately desire as human beings.  It leads us to see others as the competition and our individual success as primary.
Service, on the other hand, is all about recognizing our interdependence and interconnectedness as humans.   Service suggests that we should not think individualistically about what is in our own best interest on a path to success, but consider the needs of others as equal to our own.  Service asks us to give ourselves away by loving and valuing others in the same way that we want to be valued and loved.  The great irony of service is that in choosing to put others first, in choosing to love openly, we often find a path to greater fulfillment, meaning, and purpose for ourselves.

Ultimately, service stops being something that we go out and do elsewhere, but becomes a habit, a way of life, something that is so central to one’s being that it is integrated with every action and every choice one makes.  This way in which service can be integrated into everyday life is illustrated so clearly by parents and guardians as they do not go somewhere else to do service, but do it consistently through preparing meals, changing diapers, assisting with homework, driving to activities, etc.

One of the most beautiful examples I’ve seen of a person who has integrated service into his whole way of being is Fr. Greg Boyle. He’s a Jesuit priest who lives in the Los Angeles area and runs a non-profit called Homeboy Industries that provides job training to young men and women who have formerly been involved in gangs.  He does not frame the work he does as service, but as kinship.  He says that kinship is standing with others as equals; not serving the other, but being with the other. Remembering that we belong to each other… Finding room for those who have been left out rather than judging them as unworthy of being let in.  He counters the shame that is so prevalent in the young men and women he works with.  Shame that results from believing that they are not worthy of love because of feeling rejected by their parents, their neighborhoods, or their society.  A shame that he says, “permeates to the marrow of the soul.” He seeks to love unconditionally in order to restore people’s belief in their own worth and help them to recognize they are valued as human beings.

Please allow me a moment to share a story from his book, Tattoos on the Heart, that illustrates the beautiful way in which he serves.  He tells the story of an urgent phone call he received at 3 a.m. from one of the youth he worked with: Cesar.  Cesar says, “I gotta ask  you a question. You know how I’ve always seen you as my father-ever since I was a little kid.  Well I hafta ask you a question.”  Now Cesar pauses, and the gravity of it all makes his voice waver and crumble as he asks, “Have I…been…your son?”  Oh, yes, Fr. Boyle explains.  Cesar exhales with a deep sigh of relief as he says, “I thought so.”  “Now his voice becomes enmeshed in a cadence of gentle sobbing” (p. 31).  Fr. Boyle explains that, “in this early morning call Cesar did not discover that he has a father.  He discovered that he is a son worth having…and he felt himself beloved” (p. 31).

Now, we won’t all serve in the exact same way with the exact same population as Fr. Boyle does. But, he does offer us a model worth following in many ways. The way he treats all people as equally worthy of dignity.  The way in which he restores connectedness to those who feel disconnected.  The way in which he uses his particular unique talents and gifts to live authentically.  These are things that each of us can do no matter where we work or where we live.

One of the most important things for you to consider as you look towards the future is how can I serve in my everyday life? It is important that you not think of service as something you do only when you can fit in a planned visit to a non-profit. Service should not be a separate activity done elsewhere, but should be how you choose to live your life in each moment.  You serve when you love those around you.  You serve when you think of the needs of others as equal to your own.  You serve by authentically and confidently sharing who you are with the world rather than trying to be who you think others want you to be.  You serve by developing your gifts, talents, and academic abilities to their fullest so they can contribute to making our world a better place.

I leave you tonight with two very important questions to ponder: First, how will you continue to live the ideals of the National Honor Society for a lifetime by integrating excellence in scholarship, service, leadership and character in all that you do?  Second, how will you become the best possible version of yourself by fully developing and utilizing your unique talents and gifts in service to your family, your neighborhood, and our world?

References
Boyle, Gregory. (2011). Tatoos on the heart: The power of boundless compassion.
New York, NY: Free Press.

Brown, Brené. The gifts of imperfection. Center City, MN: Hazelton.

Deresiewicz, William. Excellent sheep. New York, NY: Free Press.

This spring 2017 semester, I decided to participate in Casa Bayanihan, a study abroad program in the Philippines that is rooted in four pillars: community living, accompaniment, spirituality, and academics, with a focus on immersing oneself in the social realities of the Metro-Manila area. I entered into the program with a sense of openness but definitely had expectations that something big would happen in my life. I assumed that I would encounter suffering that would immediately shake me from my roots and that I would have an emotional turning point that cultivated in a complete self-transformation. In other words, I mistakenly assumed that my transformation would occur solely from the heart. However, it is not possible to be touched by suffering with the heart alone. Within the past two months, I have learned how to encounter others and enter into their realities through both deep self-reflection and integrated classroom study.

The time that I have spent at my Praxis site, a community that I enter into every Monday and Wednesday with one of my classmates, has helped me to understand the need for academic exploration alongside cultural immersion. My Praxis site is called The Homeweavers Upward Looking Microenterprise Association or HULMA. It is a community of weavers in Caloocan City, Manila who create woven panels that will be used for products in the Rags2Riches (R2R) non-profit in order to support their livelihoods. During the 7 hours that I spent in this low-income community every week, it was very easy to be repulsed by trash, flies, the dirty smells, cramped houses, and crowded streets. However, reflections with my classmates during our weekly Praxis Seminar have helped me to not be ashamed by these initial reactions. The seminar has also given me the space to open up about my anxieties surrounding the language barrier as well as the need to be patient amidst awkward silences as we got to know the weavers of HULMA. Fortunately, in the weeks that I have spent in the community thus far, my perspective has grown from an initial resistance to one of appreciation and curiosity. While I have enjoyed my time in conversation with the weavers, my perspectives here have also been shaped through the questions and discussions that I have in my Theology, Political Science, Filipino (I have to learn Tagalog somewhere!), and Fine Arts classes. These courses have allowed me to enter more deeply into the community despite an initial hesitancy in order to form meaningful relationships with the weavers and to learn about the social realities of Manila.

After being in the Philippines for two months now, I realize just how important academic integration is for understanding the experiences that I am having within the community. In fact, learning with the head and experiencing with the heart go hand in hand with one another. I have been deeply touched by the generosity and loving care of the weavers, and I have been deeply challenged by entering into and spending time in a community that experiences such a high level of poverty. However, my studies have given me a more practical standpoint and a political, cultural, and social context for the realities of the weavers. While my time in the classroom has not necessarily provided me with solutions, it has helped me to understand their challenges, which is the first step in walking with them. In this sense, encountering another’s reality with the head has allowed me to immerse myself more deeply with the heart. The stories that I have heard have helped me to develop more compassion to walk with others.

As second semester senior year quickly approached, I got off the plane from an unforgettable week engaging with fellow Holy Cross students, Father Hayes, 67 children at the Be Like Brit Orphanage, and a welcoming Haitian community who all demonstrated genuine compassion, love, and a desire to truly ask more of themselves and each other. My week in Haiti ended, but the memories, laughter, reflection, and excitement serve as a catalyst for my curiosity in surrounding communities as well as a recognition of the importance of forming relationships with one another.

Just two days after arriving back in the States I joined 13 members of my graduating class, 6 members of the class of 2018, 11 members of the class of 2019, and 2 first year students at the Non-Profit Careers Conference held at Holy Cross. Together we explored the various aspects of running, maintaining, and growing a non-profit organization. We participated in “The Business Side of Non-Profits” workshop with Professor David Chu, learned “Non-Profits 101” with Michelle Sterk-Barrett and her husband, Tim Barrett, and “Reflected on our Gifts” with Isabelle Jenkins ’10. We were able to pick the brains of HC alumni at networking events, learn what it takes to be a community organizer, and ask questions on vocational discernment in the “First Year Out” panel of recent grads. Most importantly we were separated into interest groups to work with local non-profits in the Worcester area to tackle specific problems the organizations faced, and propose possible solutions. From the Worcester Tree Initiative’s fight against the Asian Long Horn Beetle to new marketing strategies to bring more volunteers to AVID’s college readiness tutoring program, we collaborated with and learned from our community partners to get hands on experience in the non-profit sector.

From beginning to end of the conference we were getting to know each other, our case study partners and strengthening our Holy Cross Network of alumni, faculty, and staff. Having participated in the conference for two years it became very clear to me that from year to year it wasn’t the lectures and PowerPoint presentations that stuck with me most, but the conversations I had with everyone in attendance. I didn’t recall all the answers from our Non-Profit 101 trivia game from the year prior, but when I met with Alumni for the second year in a row I fully remembered who they were, their vocation and the conversations we had on their life journeys. This really reminded me that our community engagement here on the Hill is what is going to impact our memories the most when we leave. Community-Based Learning has provided me with the skills to network, the ability to reflect on my service experiences, and the ability to recognize injustices and dig deeper into understanding the root causes of them. Lastly, CBL and all the people who partake in/are associated with CBL taught me the value of building relationships with our greater community.

Finding Power in Difference

This summer I worked at a non-profit in Boston, and every week we had different training days to teach us what life in a non-profit was like. One of the trainings that had the most impact on me, and I still think about to this day, was one that was all about privilege. One thing that came up was how marginalized people need to recognize the ways in which they experience privileges. As a Hispanic woman coming from a low-income community and student at predominantly white institutions since high school, this caught me a little off guard, to say the least. There is so much focus on how I am a minority in so many spaces, that I have given little thought to the ways in which I hold power, and am in fact privileged. Although I am a minority in many spaces, I also hold power because I am a citizen of the United States, I am college educated, I am straight, I am able-bodied, I am bilingual, I have access to health care, I have a roof over my head and I have a loving supportive family. It can sometimes be hard to recognize our own privilege, but I challenge you all to take a look at yourself, and recognize the ways in which you also hold power. Instead of placing so much focus on our identity as minorities, we need to use our privilege and our voices to create a more just and equitable world. Our difference is what makes us powerful. We are not a liability, we are an asset, and because of our situation we have so much to share with others who have different experiences. 

This training is so relevant to my work at CBL because my difference is what allows me to connect with the people that I meet. Through my years at Girls with Dreams, I was able to form connections with these girls because of the similarities that we shared. Like them, I grew up in a low-income community and could relate to the experiences and feelings that they had. In many ways they were able to see themselves in me. I think as a minority student and a woman I had a responsibility to allow these girls to recognize all that they could become. I wanted to share with them to not be afraid to dream, even if that dream seemed impossible. 

I started working at Ascentria in the first semester of my freshman year, through my Spanish 301 class. Being a tutor with the Unaccompanied Refugee Minors Program was my first encounter with refugee youth. It opened my eyes to immigration policy, the nonprofit sector, and my interest in working further with immigrant and refugee populations. I continued with the program for the rest of my freshman year and knew I had to go back in my sophomore year to further develop the relationships I had already made and learned so much from. I am now the leader of the tutoring program as a CBL Intern, and it has been so rewarding to have the students recognize me as a constant person in the program. I am grateful for my experience with Ascentria because it not only led me to apply to become a CBL Intern, but also to work as a JUHAN Fellow.

The Jesuit Universities Humanitarian Action Network (JUHAN) Conference is a bi-annual event, and Holy Cross will be hosting the conference for 2017. The theme of the conference is “Principles in Crisis: Refugees and Responsibility,” which fits well with my interest in immigrant and refugee populations. I applied to be a JUHAN Fellow because I wanted to further my knowledge of global immigration issues, related problems, and ways in which we can respond collaboratively and effectively as a society. The fellowship has allowed me to work more closely with the CBL Office, and JUHAN Fellows from Holy Cross and other Jesuit institutions. We have worked to advertise the conference through various websites, flyers, and newsletters. I look forward to all that I will learn from continuing to organize the conference, as well as attending the conference and hearing from experts in the humanitarian field.

My experience as a JUHAN Fellow has cemented my passion for social justice and humanitarian work. In part, it inspired me to apply for a year abroad in Peru, where I know I can pursue these passions. I know that no matter what I choose to do in the future I will have a mindset for humanitarian concerns and injustices because of my work with Ascentria, CBL, and JUHAN, and I am very grateful for all of these opportunities.