By Clare Pressimone, Salesian Lay Missioners   Mission has a way of getting under your skin. And it doesn’t go away when you return home. It sticks with you forever after. I discovered that after I returned home from being in Cambodia for twenty months as a Salesian Lay Missioner. While I was in Cambodia I […]

By Gabrielle Prieto, Volunteers in Development, Education and Services (VIDES) Dear Future Volunteer, I hear you. The commitment is hard and there are a million reasons why you shouldn’t volunteer. The truth is if you want an excuse to avoid volunteer work, you will undoubtedly come up with one: I have no time; It’s too […]

By Maria Shibatsuji, Bon Secours Volunteer Ministry   “You’ll come back next month, right?” Alice, one of the residents of the Senior Buildings I visit suddenly asked me. The question took me by surprise. I had finished taking her blood pressure and a few moments earlier we had been discussing our current crocheting projects. As a […]

By Brian Bayer, Rostro de Cristo Volunteer    Before I knew nothing, I knew everything. I had just graduated from John Carroll University and knew exactly where my next year would lead me – with a Bachelor’s degree in hand and two week-long immersion trips to El Salvador under the belt, this social justice warrior was […]

2017 Volunteer Story Contest Winner By Andrea Haller, Mercy Volunteer Corps     Dear Future Volunteer, This soon-to-be title of yours makes you so much more than you now know. Yes, you will be volunteering as a nurse, or teacher, or social worker, or care provider. These are all important roles – but as your […]