In my year of experience as an AV, there have been countless people and ideas I have run into to challenge and mold my understanding of what it means to practice service. The most inspirational of which has constantly been my supervisor at my placement at HIAS Pennsylvania, Shaloo. When I first got to know...
One thing that is unique to this experience thus far that I was not anticipating… I laughed when I saw this prompt in the midst of this pandemic. I volunteer as a Registered Nurse at St. Vincent de Paul Village Health Center in San Diego, CA. We serve people at risk of or experiencing homelessness....
Sitting down to write this blog seems like a precarious use of my time. The world is currently enduring through a remarkable period full of unknowns. Yet that is entirely why I want my blog to respond to the question “Where have you seen God present in your week?” This question holds new meaning for...
In college, I found myself leading a lot of different groups. I love planning and organizing events and I did so many things that I almost always had the answers to questions. My senior year of college, I received a paper plate award for “The One Who Keri’s the Team”. I love a good pun...
When I decided to do a year of service and became an Augustinian Volunteer, I will admit I was nervous to be living in a new city and to be working so closely with the homeless population in a small town in California. I had volunteered many times over the years and interned at a...
Waking up at 4:10 each morning, I begin my morning routine to the local YMCA pool where I swim a few laps followed by running a few miles outside in shorts. It’s a funny feeling that I can do both of these things in the winter, but that is one of the many things I...
When I accepted my year of service with the AV’s I had this picture of a three-person community already instilled in my brain. Then the news came in that I’d be living with one person and who to my surprise would be a man. I had this moment of panic because never in a million...
When I first began the process for applying to this program and read the words “intentional community” in the description, I must admit I was nervous. Intentional community seemed so forced, and I started to think I would be walking into an entire year of discussion topics and ice breaker like events planned with two...
Coming into the AV experience I was most nervous for community living. I studied education in University and I was raised Catholic, so I was not concerned about the service or spirituality aspect. I had lived with four different roommates throughout my University experience. I just wanted to live with people who cared about each...
As I prepared to begin my year of service with the Augustinian Volunteers, I met up with an AV alumni to ask her some last minute questions and talk about the year to come. We talked about many things but one thing she said that stuck out to me was, “you learn that you are...
