Assumption College: Campus Ministry

Student Reflections on their Spring Break Mission experiences

Claire Lajoie '05 - Mission to the Bronx

You may have the same problem. The alarm goes off, and you open your eyes, willing time to go backwards so that you can have more time to sleep. I think that’s the worst part of my day. Not the actual day itself, but the moment when sleep leaves and the realization hits that I have to face the day and whatever the day will bring.

During Spring Break, I woke up before 7 every morning knowing the day ahead of me would be long and probably in some ways challenging. Me and 5 other comrades had journeyed to New York for one of the mission trips. We were working in the South Bronx tutoring elementary school kids in the morning, and planning a Spring Camp for over 30 kids in the afternoon. By the end of the day, our sleep felt well earned.

The week posed some challenges for me. It became apparent that these children lacked a lot of opportunities. Their family life might be a struggle, the school system seemed less than ideal, and they were living in an area in which parents constantly feared for their children’s safety. I remember one girl, a fourth grader, telling me that things were bad. They all knew. They knew there were better places out there and maybe one day they would make it there. However, I couldn’t promise them much myself. I could help them with math and reading, attempt to show them how to make origami cranes and the rules of Capture the Flag, but my ability only went so far. I couldn’t promise that they would make it to high school or to college, that they would have a house and a car and live happily ever after.

Part of our mission was the reaching out to these kids, but the other part was us coming together as a group in order to make our actual mission work meaningful. We cooked together, ate together, laughed together, faced the world of children together, and we had morning bonding time when we managed to squeeze all 6 of us into a much too small elevator, backpacks and all.

As the week went on, I came to realize that we were making a difference. The kids were excited to see us everyday, eager for whatever attention we would give them. They adopted us as their friends. Perhaps we ignited a bit of hope and encouragement in them, but they ignited in me a deeper love for life. Things weren’t great for them, but they were kids satisfied by a game of musical chairs or red light green light. On our last day there, a little girl named Danielle came up to me and gave me a necklace she had made, which was a piece of macaroni on a string. “It’s for good luck,” she said. As if I was the one who needed good luck. And I was amazed. It was like the woman who gave away her last three pennies. They were kids, but in some ways knew more than many adults.

Our call to mission doesn’t mean you have to travel to the South Bronx, or D.C., or West Philly. Everyday we have the ability to make choices, to have a good or bad attitude about the day in front of us. We aren’t always able to see the effect we have on others, but it is there, in one shape or another. The real challenge isn’t just giving up Spring Break to serve others, but to serve others when it’s easier not to; when you have classes and homework and tests and papers and a million and a half other things to do. It is a conscious decision to wake up each morning even though you’d rather be sleeping, and facing the day, not in a gloomy, tired, hopeless kind of way, but waking up and giving each day your all despite what might stand in your way. When the day is over, you will know your sleep was well earned.

Nicole Morin '03 - Mission to West Philadelphia

When I first considered going on a Spring Break mission, I had no idea what I was in for. I imagined traveling to another state, working hard, seeing the fruits of my labor, and overall, truly helping other people. This picture was not entirely accurate. My experience in Philadelphia taught me so many lessons about myself, other people, and life in general.

One of the greatest lessons that I learned in Philadelphia was that in giving to others, you end up receiving much more than you gave. My experiences in Philly made me realize just how blessed I am and how many gifts God has already given me. I saw this the most when volunteering at Inglis House, a wheelchair community that is home to over 900 residents. While Kim and I were watering plants for the residents, one woman stopped me and asked me, “Have you ever not been able to walk?” I answered, “No, not since I was a baby.” She asked again, “Never?” For the second time, I said, “No.” Finally, she looked at me with a pained look across her face and told me, “You’re very lucky.”

That same day, Kim and I spent an hour getting to know Maria, a resident who had suffered a stroke and was now paralyzed from the neck down. Maria is one of the most intelligent people that I have ever met in my life. She had such a drive to learn and loved to read and use her computer. However, she needed Kim and I to turn the pages of her politics book and to highlight the important parts so she could study them later.

The residents at Inglis House, particularly Maria and the woman who stopped me, made me realize just how many things I take for granted in life. Not only can I walk and run whenever I choose to, but I can also read a book without assistance, or play MP3s on my computer without having to ask for help. I may not always enjoy having to read for classes, but I do appreciate that I am lucky enough to be able to do so.

Similarly, I walked away from New Jerusalem, a rehab community, with much more than I contributed. There were times at New Jerusalem when I felt that I was not doing anything to be of help. Instead, the residents were baking us cookies and spending their time trying to entertain us. Several residents, like Kelly and Barbara, shared their life stories and their struggles with us. It may not have been much, but they appreciated our willingness to listen. I received a lifetime’s worth of knowledge and experience just from a few hours with these two wonderful women. They reminded me that we can only live one day at a time and that we must trust the rest to God. They reminded me that you can’t get caught up in the small things in life, or you miss the big picture. And most importantly, they reminded me of what life is all about: love.

So I set off for Philadelphia with the goal of saving the world, but instead the people I met saved me and I can never thank them enough. I can only hope that I will always remember just what it’s all about: love.

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Last update 26 June 2008
by Stephanie McCaffrey