Saturday, May 28, 2011

Getting Ready!

Hello friends and family,

I am almost done with college and on to my next adventure.  Santa Clara has been beyond amazing and has taught me more that I could have ever imagined about myself and the world.  I have been inspired and filled with love for the people around me and the lives I will be apart of in the future.  As most of you know my passions have taken me to the Jesuit Volunteer Corps. 

The Jesuit Volunteer Corps (JVC) is a program similar to the Peace Corps in that it is a year of service work with food and housing provided.  After going through the long application process I was placed in New Orleans to work/volunteer at the Harry Tompson Center—a homeless day center in New Orleans.  The center is exactly the type of service that I want to be giving for a year and New Orleans sounds like a city I will love!  The Harry Tompson Center provides day to day needs for the homeless population in Louisiana.  They provide things like showers, phones, lunches, toiletries, laundry machines, and—most importantly—human interaction.  It is a small, family like, staff consisting of the director, assistant director, a nun, one other JV and myself.  

 My first duty as a JV is to raise money for the Jesuit Voluneer Corps.  At first I was not very happy that they were asking me to donate money when I am about to donate a year of my life but then I learned more about where the money goes and how it helps the program to run.  There is more information about it here [ https://www.jesuitvolunteers.org/default.cfm/PID=1.68.1 ]  The JVC has made it really easy to donate and has set up a website so that you can donate online, in my name, and see the progress I am making.  Here is the link for the donations page [ https://jesuitvolunteers.myetap.org/fundraiser/smts/ ] At this page you can click on the "Find a JV to support" button on the left side of the page, type in my name, and click on it when it comes up.  

Thanks again to all of you who will be supporting me and fallowing me on my next adventure!  And I hope this blog is a place where you can come, read, and be updated on my life in LA ;)

With Love!