The Moments & Memories of My Vincentian Mission
My fall quarter of my junior year, I found myself standing in awe before the MLK Memorial. I could not believe I was actually in Washington D.C. with the opportunity to travel from Chicago and learn about so many prominent historical figures particularly in the black community at the African American Smithsonian Museum. Organized through Sankofa and the Black Student Union, this educational experience was the first to remind me of the richness and importance of history and culture. The well-known quote of Dr. Martin Luther King, “Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere” prompted me to think about all the suffering and inequality that not only had happened during the civil rights era in the U.S. but also outside of that point in history as well. All over the world, people were hurting and facing social and political oppression. Knowing that this was a constant state of humanity, angered me but also motivated me to want to do something about the injustice that took my place in today’s world. Subconsciously, I was developing a spirit to be an actor of change.
Months later, I was able to understand the first step to answering the Vincentian question “What Must be Done” in my service immersion visit to Bogota, Colombia. I heard the stories and dialogue with individuals and organizations that were impacted and affected by the FARC violence in the country and many other social and political oppressions. We met other University students like ourselves and showed our support for their cause to promote peace in the streets of Colombia by “Standing in Solidarity” and creating posters with them that demonstrated our strong dedication to their movement. During this trip, I experienced the power of hearing the stories of other people and the vitality of providing that space. Beyond the meaningful dialogue, Father Memo encouraged us to recognize the supreme essence in each other and the raw value and essence that we carry as human beings that is often lost and forgotten in times of violence and conflict in the world. This service immersion enlightened me to the reality that personal human interaction and conversation is just as valuable as action and is many times necessary before effective action can be implemented.
Creating connections with others is something I began to desire and develop more and more through different communities at DePaul. I first embarked upon my first spiritual encounters through the DePaul Gospel Choir and Sankofa. Both student organizations endeavour to uplift and encourage spirituality and faith amongst DePaul students. Through DePaul Gospel Choir I was able to build long-lasting relationships with other students and join them in fellowship and ministry through Gospel music to bring light to the DePaul community even in the darkest chapters particularly during the Milo season on campus. I was able to further display leadership by becoming a member of the Eboard for the choir and finding ways to guide others and enhance outreach. In Sankofa, as a coordinator I helped with the preparation of Black student retreats that celebrate and reflect on black spirituality and culture as well as the challenges that the community faces. During these retreats, important spaces are provided for a powerful dialogue to happen for students who would not be afforded the opportunity to express these feelings and engage in these exchanges in the absence of Sankofa. Providing a bridge for black students on campus to connect creates stronger communal ties amongst each other and to the university as a whole.
Becoming a STARS Peer Mentor allowed me to be a Vincentian leader on a whole new level as I worked directly with 8 first-year students during the fall and winter quarter. STARS compliments the Vincentian mission as it intentionally works with marginalized communities on campus such as students of color, low-income, and first-generation students. In this amazing position, I was able to foster relationships with students in one-on-one and group meetings, tracking their progress and being apart of their first unfolding stages of college life. Students that the STARS program does outreach to are at higher risk of retention rates. Therefore I saw this as an opportunity to combat the obstacles and barriers that students from this demographic face by being a direct resource and support for them. I understand the difficulties that my students may face as underrepresented groups on campus because I identify within those same communities that STARS serves. My personal mission as a STARS mentor was to help my mentees transition smoother and even more successfully to DePaul than I did and to discover meaningful community quicker as well. I not only learned more about myself as a leader but I realized how much I loved making personal connections with others and being of service to them as I got to know my students more throughout the school year. As I progress to the light of commencement at the end of the tunnel this spring, I can look back now proudly and know that I have sown seeds both personally and professionally with my students who have just initiated their DePaul journey. I feel more complete that I have passed on the torch for them to create their own amazing experiences.
My stories and experiences only multiplied during my second service immersion trip in Los Angeles, California when I lived, volunteered, and interacted with residents of Skid Row. The severity of homelessness was not clear until I went to Skid Row and witnessed the raw reality of people living in the most unsanitary and unsafe conditions I have ever seen. It was heartbreaking to see that people in our own country were suffering to such a horrible degree and I further understood Vincent de Paul’s and Louise de Marillac motivation to help the poor and those in poverty. As we volunteered at several sites that week, participating in the soup kitchen at Midnight Mission not only allowed us to help prepare and serve meals to the homeless community but it also showcased the importance of organization to fulfill that mission. The staff in the kitchen received dozens of volunteers hourly and had a specific job for everyone to do so that the operation ran affectively and effectively, an ideology that Vincent de Paul was passionate about getting right. With the great numbers of people to serve, I thought Midnight Mission went above and beyond the cause successfully and strategically building a team of volunteers to feed those who are hungry. Being apart of this movement to be in service to those in need, helped me see the vision of the Vincentian mission come to life as I became involved in the change I wanted to see in the world of inequality and injustice.
Through these many reflective experiences and trips, as well as being a DePaul Leadership Scholar, prompting critical thinking of solutions and actions to take on social justice issues is something that comes naturally to me. However, as I found myself invested in the mission and I also knew that I still did not know as much as I wanted to and should have known about the history behind the mission and the founder of it himself: Vincent de Paul. This is why I intended to be apart of the Vincentian Heritage Tour. Immersing myself in the education and historical context of Vincent de Paul in his own time and learning how his impact and vision remains strong today was beyond fascinating. My experience in Paris made everything I knew about the mission come to life and piece together all the known and unknown aspects of Vincent de Paul holistically. Understanding the founding and foundational values of DePaul has helped me build a stronger connection to the legacy of the mission and also to the University as well. Knowing the full story of Vincent de Paul and his work has inspired me with my ambition and passion to tell stories through creative writing and film. I hope to inspire, encourage, and uplift others through the power of storytelling as I have learned carries so much value and dignity through all of my trips. I also believe what must be done is to provide spaces for others to talk about and tell their stories. Human interaction and recognizing the essence we all carry is so essential and there is no greater revelation then when we build those moments and memories by being present with one another and exchanging stories.
