Serve Together Project

More than 70 St. Joseph’s Academy juniors and seniors participated in the second-annual Serve Together project, held February 9-11. The project, created and sponsored by the Sisters of St. Joseph, enabled participants to “circle with city of Baton Rouge with love” as they discovered the causes and realities of poverty and social injustice in Baton Rouge. The students, who gave up three days of their Mardi Gras holiday to participate in the project, learned about, reflected on and gave service in three areas of concentration: education, health care and criminal justice.

Serve Together is undertaken in the spirit of the first Sisters of St. Joseph, who in the 1650s, divided French cities block by block to discover the needs of “the dear neighbor” and work to meet those needs.

Day one of the project began with a prayer service in the SJA chapel, followed by an inspiring talk by SJA alumna Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ. Renowned for her work to abolish the death penalty, Sr. Helen recently published a second book, The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account of Wrongful Executions.

“The deepest things we do come out of relationships with one another,” Sr. Helen told the large gathering. “What you are doing here, circling the city with love, is all about that. You have given up three days of your holiday to be here. That says a lot about you. The soil of your soul is tilled, and you are ready.”

Following lunch, Serve Together participants boarded busses for a tour of Baton Rouge, making short visits to Earl K. Long Medical Center, Eden Park Elementary School and Joseph House, a transitional facility for men leaving prison. On Thursday, students were immersed in day-long service opportunities at one of four sites: Earl K. Long, Eden Park, St. Paul Adult Learning Center and the Louisiana Correctional Institute for Women at St. Gabriel. The girls were accompanied by a number of Sisters and faculty members.

Junior Courtney Maxson, who spent the day at Earl K. Long, said the Serve Together experience was invaluable. “My goal in life has always been to help people and make a difference in the world,” she said. “This project reminded me that no matter how young I am, I can make a difference. The saying, ‘change the world one person at a time’ never really meant much to me until after Serve Together. Now I know that it truly does work.”

Senior Amanda Gulino, whose immersion experience took her behind the walls of the women’s prison, said meeting the prisoners is something she won’t soon forget. It also taught her the importance of reaching out to others. “It was important for me to be involved because SJA girls have so much to offer the community, but often times, there is a barrier as to how to go about service and helping others,” she said. “Serve Together helps juniors and seniors to bridge that gap. Now, several girls have made arrangements to have prison pen pals and tutor at Eden Park. It’s amazing what two-and-a-half days can do in people’s lives.”

Junior Kellie Geoffrey, who spent Thursday at Earl K. Long Medical Center, expressed similar sentiments. “I think it was important that I was involved in this project because I got to learn and experience new things that others had not,” she said. “This project really made me think of how I can serve others and continue my journey in doing so.”

Senior Alex Rabalais said she most enjoyed hearing a presentation by Eddie Samson, chief U.S. probation officer, Middle District of Louisiana. “I know I wanted to go into the criminal justice field in college, but I didn’t know what job I wanted,” she said. “I am actually considering being a parole officer because of the personal contact with the prisoners, and that is exactly what I am looking for.”

Junior Melissa Rolfsen, who spent the day at Eden Park Elementary School, also enjoyed exploring issues with career implications. “We got to read to the kids, help them with worksheets and even teach in the front of the class how to round numbers,” she said. “I want to be a teacher, and so this was right along the lines of what I want to do. It was great.”

Junior Heidi Becnel, who worked with clients at St. Paul Adult Learning Center, said the experience was well worth the investment of time. “I was interested in the program when I first heard about being able to sign up for it this year,” she said. “It sounded like it would be a really great experience. Apparently, it was God’s will for me to be there since I ended up there and got so much out of it.”

Senior Kathleen Lee, who spent Thursday at the women’s prison, said the day served as a wake-up call. “Most times, we think that poverty is ‘out there,’” she said. “I found out that poverty and people in need are less than five minutes away from St. Joseph’s. Sometimes, I think I get too involved in my own life. I take for granted the gifts I have. I needed Serve Together to give me a reality check, and it did. I needed to become more aware of my surroundings, and I did.”

Senior Lindsay Southwick said that spending Thursday at Earl K. Long changed her perception of the medical center. “I had a preconceived notion that Earl K. was for poor people who didn’t make enough money to go to a nice hospital, but when we went, we saw poor people, people with insurance, young, old, sick, healthy people,” she said. “My eyes were opened to the reality that people just like us go to this hospital. They have the best doctors and care and the newest technology.”

Senior Christa Chance worked with third graders at Eden Park. She said she was moved by their desire to succeed in the face of challenging circumstances. “Thanks to Serve Together, my experiences at Eden Park enriched my understanding of education in the public schools,” she said. “I learned that while that community is blessed with a strong sense of community and purpose -- a sense of which they impart to their children in the elementary school -- it is also afflicted with serious setbacks. My experience in Serve Together allowed me to witness both the blessings and setbacks firsthand and to try to find a way to help them.”

Sister Lucy Silvio, CSJ, Serve Together coordinator, was assisted in the planning of this year’s project by 12 seniors, who participated last year as juniors. Some 35 Sisters of St. Joseph also participated in the three-day event.

“Serve Together helps the girls to know what the needs are in Baton Rouge,” Sr. Lucy said. “The girls want to provide the hands-on service, but with this experience, they also gain awareness of the needs which exist. Now that they have both seen and done, we hope they will continue to be involved in giving back to the community.”

Mindy Averitt, Communications Director, St. Joseph's Academy
Baton Rouge, Louisiana

Posted 3-3-05