Holy Cross Alumni Volunteer a Year of Service with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps

Fourteen recent graduates from the College of the Holy Cross have dedicated themselves to a year of service with the Jesuit Volunteer Corps (JVC) and the Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest.  Over the course of the year, the volunteers will serve hundreds of thousands of people while addressing issues such as hunger and homelessness, poverty, domestic violence, end-of-life care, mental health, and food justice.  JVC has recruited eight volunteers from Holy Cross and JVC Northwest, which operates independently, recruited an additional four volunteers.  Two Holy Cross volunteers will be serving internationally with JVC in Chile and Tanzania.  Holy Cross graduates have a long history of volunteering with these programs: in 2014, 18 volunteers joined JVC and 13 joined JVC Northwest; while in 2013, 11 volunteers joined JVC and three joined JVC Northwest

“At Holy Cross we are grateful for the seriousness with which so many of our graduates engage the Jesuit commitment to 'the service of faith and the promotion of justice' that is at the heart of our mission," says Marybeth Kearns-Barrett, director of the chaplains' office. "Our graduates who devote themselves to one to two years of volunteer service in under-resourced communities around the United States and internationally in organizations such as the Jesuit Volunteer Corps are an inspiring witness to all of us to seek ways to place our gifts and talents in the service of the most vulnerable.”

Rooted in the core values of social and ecological justice, simple living, community, and spirituality, the JVC and JVC Northwest programs give young men and women the chance to work full-time for justice and peace.  Participants serve for one or two years, during which time they live among the poor and marginalized, and strive for social justice within these environments.

Jesuit volunteers work at schools, health clinics, legal clinics, parishes, domestic violence shelters and non-profit organizations in the U.S. and abroad.  Those working in the Northwest also teach in schools on Native American reservations.

Holy Cross graduates are among 267 Jesuit volunteers serving in 37 U.S. cities and six countries across the world.  There are 148 Jesuit volunteers serving in 24 locations throughout the five states of the Northwest (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, and Washington).

The following Holy Cross graduates are currently serving as Jesuit volunteers:

•    Hannah Grace Stokes ’15 - Native American Health Center, Berkeley, Calif. •    Carly McCabe ’15 - Back on My Feet Chicago, Chicago, IL. •    Barbara Silva ’14 - Loyola High School, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania. •    Maura Tracy ’15 - Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, Houston, TX. •    Samuel McGrath ’14 - Verbum Dei Jesuit High School, Los Angeles, Calif. •    Shane Garner ’15 - St. Francis Center, Los Angeles, Calif. •    Erin Reilly ’15 - Los Angeles Center for Law and Justice, Los Angeles, Calif. •    MaryGrace Brogioli ’15 - St. HOPE Public Schools, Sacramento, Calif. •    Casey Donahoe ’15 - South Bay Community Services, San Diego, Calif. •    Lauren Hammer ’14 - Hogar de Cristo & Jesus Obrero Parish, Santiago, Calif.

The following graduates serve as Jesuit volunteers in the Northwest:

•    Marielle McKenna ’14 - HomePlate Youth Services, Inc., Hillsboro, Ore. •    Erin Clifford ’15 - Southeast Alaska Independent Living, Juneau, Alaska. •    Naomi-Ann Gaspard ’15 - Catholic Charities of Spokane, Spokane, Wash. •    Connor May ’15 - Pretty Eagle Catholic Academy, St. Xavier, Mont.