June 22, 2023
More than 70 St. John’s University employees from the Queens and Staten Island, NY, campuses participated in a special day of service marked by opportunities throughout the local area, on campus, and at one international site.
Held on May 25 and sponsored by the Office of University Mission, the day was hailed as a return to in-person service.
Lucy A. Pesce, Executive Director for Mission Initiatives, noted this was the first in-person Service Day in three years. “We were wondering if we should bring it back?” Those of us who work in Mission are doing good things, but we can get caught up in the reports and the emails. We have to put that down and meet the people we say we’re serving.”
Several participants were current and former members of the Vincentian Mission Certificate (VMC) program, in which employees learn about the Vincentian heritage of St. John’s and engage in direct service.. Some were new employees who wanted a practical experience of the University’s Vincentian mission. All came to serve.
Service sites included St. John’s Bread & Life, Brooklyn, NY; Rose of Sharon Baptist Church, Jamaica, NY; the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s Dismas House, Roosevelt, NY; and Sunrise Senior Living, Staten Island, NY. Service opportunities on the Queens campus included the Sustainability Garden, the Career Closet, as well as organizing food and supplies in the Residence Village for a Midnight Run.
“I love doing service,” said Althea Brown, Assistant in the Office of Advancement. “When you’re given so much, you’re supposed to give back.”
On this day she was tasked at Bread & Life with helping clients find the supplies necessary for maintaining the home. “Helping others has always made me feel good.”
Adriana Dino, Associate Director, Gift Administration, Office of Advancement, and a VMC graduate, said, “I am just so glad service is back. It was such a long time that we couldn’t all be together due to the pandemic. I loved being part of VMC and being able to serve in person.”
Ms. Dino also served at Bread & Life. “I like doing things where I can see the result. That’s why I keep coming back whenever there’s an opportunity.”
Maureen Noble, Business Analyst in the Office of Admission, was grateful there were on-campus opportunities that fit well with her busy schedule. “I served in the garden, and it was so nice to meet like-minded people from other departments whom you may never encounter otherwise.” Vegetables harvested in the garden will be distributed to clients at Bread & Life, Ms. Noble noted.
The Career Closet, an initiative sponsored by University Career Services, collects clothing donated by employees and alumni, distributing them free of charge to students in need for interviews, conferences, and other professional opportunities. Pat Ambrose, Senior Assistant in Career Services, was part of a team sorting through a massive amount of donations.
“It was a wonderful collaborative effort between people across all departments,” she recalled. “As a team we were deciding whether to keep certain items for student interviews, etc., or putting them to the side for distribution during Midnight Runs or the thrift shop.”
On the day of service, Rachel Burgos, Residence Campus Minister, was participating in the cultural immersion plunge to Panama, but she and her team wanted to acknowledge the day by doing something special. “We had a celebration for the children of the indigenous people that included games for them to play, dancing, and singing. What I love about Vincentian service is how we reflect on service afterward and how the experience touched us. Being in another country, it was great being connected with everyone here doing service on that day.”
Yonette O’Neal, Staff Account, Office of Business Affairs, recalled she became “hooked” on service after her first Midnight Run. “Now I am the first to sign up when one is offered, and I always invite my colleagues to join me.”
“Service brings joy to my heart,” noted Ethel Liang, Executive Assistant to the Executive Vice President for Mission, but she didn’t experience service at St. John’s until joining the latest VMC cohort. “It has opened my eyes to a whole new level of volunteerism that is open to me.”
Ms. Liang and her colleague Nadia Laya, Associate Director of Budgets and Planning, Office of Business Affairs, participated in the Big Hearts Walk benefiting St. Mary’s Hospital for Children in Bayside, NY. “We transported kids from the hospital to the park—and that absolutely broke my heart. You realize how blessed you are. Those children can’t sleep in their own beds or watch TV in their own house. We got to see who we were serving. I brought my son that day to expose him to serving the community. It’s really good for the soul.”
Leticia Romero, Associate Director for the Office of Multicultural Affairs, Staten Island campus, served at Sunrise Senior Living. “Our team spent the day with a feisty group of five women who were very happy we were there. We exercised, played word games, and it was really nice to just be with them.”
Michael Fontana, Campus Minister for Music Ministry, has only been at St. John’s a short while and knew little of St. Vincent de Paul outside being the inspiration for the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
“When I came here and talked to these incredible people, you start to understand his mission and vision, and I have fallen in love with this idea of, ‘What must be done?’”
Director of Liturgy and Faith Formation Dennis Gallagher, who served at Bread & Life, explained that St. Vincent de Paul emphasized the Corporal Works of Mercy and Spiritual Works of Mercy “and getting others to help you so that you’re sharing resources and working in community. I find Christ in the eyes of whom I serve. I find Christ in the human experience, and I try to share that experience with others.”
“Sometimes you just need that one colleague who says they’ll do service with you to give you the comfort level to try it,” observed Kathleen A. Siano, Executive Assistant to the Provost. “This year we had more people than ever from the office. It can be scary to do it by yourself. Working with people who have the same mindset really makes it fun.”
Sr. Patricia Evanick, DC ’97GEd, Campus Minister for Faith Formation and Leadership, who coordinates the VMC program with Ms. Pesce and is a graduate of the program herself, stressed that her faith demands she see God in other people. “If that’s true, then I’m going to work to help change their situation and change my own heart. You have to walk the talk. I learn more from the people I’m in community with.”
Ms. Pesce summed up the experience: “We’re making really important, human connections with those we serve and with those at St. John’s outside our own offices.”