How Are Alumni Making A Difference This Spring?
This spring, Jesuit colleges and universities hosted community service projects in their local communities for alumni to volunteer together. Through meaningful events open to all Jesuit-educated alumni, graduates across the nation engaged in shared service that demonstrated the life-changing and enduring power of a Jesuit education.
Gonzaga University (March 5)
Jesuit alumni volunteered with Gonzaga alumni for a service project at 3 Square Food Bank in Las Vegas, NV during the West Coast Conference basketball tournament this spring.
Loyola Marymount University (March 25)
Volunteers participated in the Food Drive Sort-A-Thon Project during the 2017 Alumni for Others LMU Day of Service project at the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank. This project involved sorting, labeling and packaging food at the Food Bank. Over 25,000 women with infants and children, as well as senior citizens in Los Angeles County, received the food packages that volunteers assembled.
Loyola University Chicago (April 1)
Volunteers worked with Northside Catholic Academy Middle School, a Big Shoulders Fund member, to beautify the school for the benefit of its students, teachers and staff.
Rockhurst University (April 1)
Jesuit alumni volunteered at Jerusalem Farm, a Catholic intentional community located in Kansas City, MO. From work in the gardens to minor-home-repair in the neighborhood, Jerusalem Farm's mission is to make itself available to the needs of the community.
University of Detroit Mercy (April 1)
Jesuit alumni joined members of the Detroit Mercy community for a day of service at multiple sites across Detroit, MI including local parks and gardens, as well as Detroit Mercy's Campus Kitchen, which provides food for marginal populations including women seeking relief from domestic violence and people recovering from addiction.
The Detroit Mercy School of Law’s Jesuit Day of Service was held on Saturday, April 22 and their work Their work benefited the Pope Francis Warming Center at Saints Peter & Paul Jesuit Church immediately adjacent to the School of Law.
University of Scranton (April 1)
The Office of Alumni and Parent Engagement at The University of Scranton invited all Jesuit alumni to celebrate the University's annual Day of Service on Saturday, April 1, 2017. On this day, the helping hands of the University community stretched from the city of Scranton, PA and beyond as alumni, parents and students gathered in shared service.
Boston College (various dates)
Boston College's Global Days of Service program invited the Boston College community - its alumni, parents and friends - to follow the call of St. Ignatius to transform the world through making a difference in the lives of others in the areas we live, work and play. This year's Global Days of Service program took place in the months of April and May. Alumni of Jesuit institutions who live in Chicago, Los Angeles and Nashville were invited to volunteer at three sites this spring: Chicago International Charter School, Los Angeles Regional Food Bank, Second Harvest Food Bank of Middle Tennessee (Nashville, TN)
Canisius College (April 8)
This spring, Canisius students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends spent Canisius College Community Day serving the needs of non-profit organizations in Buffalo, NY. Examples of service included preparing and serving meals at a soup kitchen; working with Habitat for Humanity; cleaning churches; and sorting donations for refugees.
Regis University (April 8)
Alumni from Regis University and other Jesuit institutions, parents and friends joined the Regis University Alumni Association’s 18th Annual “Alumni for Others” Easter Basket Collection. In the ongoing mission to be “men and women in service of others,” the collection benefited children at various Catholic grade schools and St. Ignatius Loyola Parish in Denver, CO.
Fordham University (April 22)
A team of Jesuit alumni partnered with New York Cares to participate in this spring's New York Cares Day. As part of this annual city-wide effort, teams around New York worked on projects in local parks, preparing these cherished public spaces for spring by clearing brush and leaves, repainting benches and buildings, and pulling weeds.
Le Moyne College (April 22)
Le Moyne College invited Jesuit alumni to celebrate the College’s annual day of service, “Dolphins Dive in to Serve,” on Saturday, April 22nd. The Le Moyne community joined together to serve those in need at various sites across Syracuse, NY. The day concluded with lunch in the College's dining hall (located in the Campus Center).
This spring, Le Moyne provided an additional service opportunity for Jesuit alumni in the Greater New York Metropolitan Area. On Wednesday, April 19th, volunteers helped Le Moyne alumnus Bill Buckley '75 serve a special dinner to residents of The Dwelling Place, a privately-funded transitional residence serving women from the Greater New York City Metropolitan Area who are experiencing homelessness.
Jesuit Alumni Chapters of Washington, D.C. (April 22 & 29)
This spring, Washington, D.C.-area alumni of Jesuit colleges and universities participated in a community service project with the Campus Kitchens Project at Gonzaga College High School. Volunteers prepared meals for 63 local senior citizens and organized pantry closets inside of the Horace McKenna Center at Gonzaga.
Fairfield University (April 23)
Alumni and their families joined the Fairfield community for a special day of service benefiting the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp. Volunteers created no-sew fleece blankets that will be delivered to the Hole in the Wall Gang Camp in Ashford, CT and distributed to the campers upon their arrival this summer.
Saint Peter's University (April 29)
Volunteers were divided into groups to prepare meals in The Campus Kitchen at Saint Peter’s University, participate on a clean-up crew for the streets of the local community or help the homeless at St. Lucy’s Shelter.
Santa Clara University (April 29)
Jesuit alumni volunteered at the City of Campbell's Great American Litter Pickup in Campbell, CA (border of San Jose). Projects included a trail clean-up, tree planting, and spreading fibar on the playground. At noon, all volunteers ate lunch together back at Campbell Park.
*Cited from: Association of Jesuit Colleges & Universities (AJCU)