Seven student service trips have taken place so far this school year, but their eighth and final trip is a little different than all the rest. The Washington, DC, service trip will take eight students and two chaperones over Easter break on a journey to explore some burning questions in today’s society. Unlike other Loras service trips, the DC trip will concentrate more on social-justice issues rather than acts of service and charity.

“There’s more of a focus on understanding the injustices that put people in positions where they need service,” said junior Stephen Brandt, student coordinator for the trip, “as opposed to another trip where maybe you are going in and constructing a house, but you don’t really know the social dynamics that go into that.”

This “social justice/social action” service trip will more specifically be concerned with advocacy for homelessness and the ethical issues surrounding nuclear weapons. Although participants will dedicate time to helping others while in the DC area, the trip is designed to help them out as well.

According to David McDermott, the coordinator of Peace and Justice, “It is more of a learning trip in the sense that we say, ‘Let’s look at why poverty happens. Let’s look at why homelessness happens. Let’s look at why we spend so much money on the military.’ There still is that service aspect of it, but it is much more about the learning and the learning between people.”

All of the activities that the service goers will participate in have not yet been finalized but some things that they will do include serving a meal at the DC Central Kitchen, partaking in a faith and resistance retreat, and spending a day in the Jonah House, where they will learn more about social-justice issues and about the role that nuclear weapons are playing in the world. Also past groups have traveled to Baltimore where they spent a day helping out in a poor community.

The preparation for this type of trip is also longer than any of the other trips. For example, participants must take part in a half day retreat where they are debriefed about the places they will be going, the tasks they will be performing, and other background information that they will need to know before leaving for the nation’s capital.

Loras has been offering the DC trip for over a decade but there has been a significant improvement in service opportunities at the school in the recent years. Ten years ago, the only two trips that were available for students were the DC trip and the Appalachia trip. But now Loras offers seven more service trips nationally and internationally in Haiti (which was cancelled this year) and Honduras. These trips have come about through the high demand from students and get filled up easily every year with enthusiastic participants.

This year’s DC trip will take place from April 15-23. Applications for next year’s service trips will be accessible next fall term at the Spiritual Life Offices.

When asked why it’s important for people to go on a service trip, McDermott said, “It is an experience, and in my opinion we learn most effectively through our experiences and any service trip you go on. Even if it’s a negative experience, it’s an experience and you can’t come back unchanged because good or bad you had an experience that either helps you see something you’ve never seen before or helps you feel uncomfortable in ways that you have never felt before, but the main reason is that you experienced something new.”

 

The Loras College men’s choir, Con Brio, was honored with the chance to sing for World War II veterans last Monday night, October 18, 2010.

The Dubuque Honor Flight, provided by the City of Dubuque, gives World War II veterans the chance to travel by plane to Washington D.C. for a day to see the monuments in their honor from the war. The veterans on the Honor Flight travelled to Washington D.C. on Tuesday, so a dinner was held the evening before in preparation for the flight the next day.

Con Brio sang “Who Are the Brave” by Joseph Martin and J. Paul Williams. Senior John Tyler said “It was a really neat event for us to go to because the song we sang is a patriotic song about soldiers in war as well as people who volunteer to help out the poor.”

“The entire experience was very surreal because the song was written about the men that we sang to” said sophomore Rob Coe. “The looks on the men’s and women’s faces after we finished the song made the entire experience, knowing that we gave a little something back to people who risked their lives to serve his or her country.”

Iowa Governor Chet Culver was also present to say a few words thanking the veterans for their service to the country.

Has it been a while or what?! We apologize for the very long pause in on our blogs, but with summer and the beginning of school, you have that! So this blog is going to catch you up on my life as a DM-er over the summer and into the fall!

Speaking of summer, myself and three other Dance Marathon Executive Board members had the AMAZING opportunity to go to Washington D.C. for the National Dance Marathon Conference. At this conference we met the directors, volunteers, and other students who live and breathe FTK and DM love, just like we do! The entire weekend was spent networking, sharing ideas, and attending sessions to help us create the best DM we can. Not only was the weekend enlightening, it was also so inspirational. I left the conference on, what I thought, was the BIGGEST Dance Marathon high (which I was warned of) and couldn’t wait to get back to Dubuque to begin working. I was excited to jump in and get to know the new E-board, the hospital, and of course our Miracle Families. I soon discovered through a few DM related events how much Dance Marathon REALLY means to me.

The first event was my first visit to Christopher Turnis in the Hospital. Christopher is one of Loras College Dance Marathon’s Miracle Kids who currently spends a lot of time in the hospital (but hopefully not for his upcoming birthday!). He was in and out of the hospital all summer and is now in and out of UICH during his kindergarten year. In meeting Christopher you could tell that him and his mother are both very familiar with Dance Marathon and look forward to it each year. While I couldn’t stay with them for long, it was great to finally make a connection with some members of what is truly our DM family.

The second event was a tour of the U of I Children’s Hospital given to us by a Children’s Miracle Network representative, Ashly. Ashly took myself and seven other Loras students around the hospital and explained all the services provided to the child patients and their families. I must say, that hospital has thought of everything! From play rooms, to the Room of Magic, to Wall of Fame for babies who spent time in the NICU, to pizza parties and coffee for families, everyone is given something to make their stay in the hospital a little bit easier. The atmosphere of the building and the attitude of staff make the Children’s Hospital a very special place for kids to not only heal, but be surrounded by family, and still have a piece of childhood that some of us take for granted.

The final event was the recent ‘Popsicles in the Park’ where Miracle Families came to meet the new DM E-board. Besides the fact that the only thing cold at the park was us, we had a great time! More importantly, I think the Miracle Kids who attended also had a good time. It feels good to know that you can be a part of an organization where acceptance and care for others happens even before you really know them!

Through all these recent happenings and encounters with everything that Loras College Dance Marathon supports, I find myself thinking that DM is no longer just an organization to put on an event to raise money for cute kids in the hospital who need our support. Dance Marathon is a small chunk of the love, care, and healing that the University of Iowa Children’s Hospital, the Children’s Miracle Network, and EVERYONE involved in can provide to kids and their families.

I am very excited for the remainder of our DM year. I look forward to providing what I can to an organization that I have truly fallen in love with. I invite you and anyone else you know to come learn and feel what I am talking about!

FTK!
Rachel Rolfes

Lauren Squires

Posted: April 17, 2008

WASHINGTON – Tuesday April 15^th, 2008 Pope Benedict the sixteenth arrived in Washington. It’s a momentous event and thousands of faithful are converging on the nation’s capital as Pope Benedict makes his first visit to the United States.

One of the many stops on his tour is the National Shine of the Immaculate Conception; the largest Roman Catholic Church in the United States. And although there are not enough seats inside for everyone to see the Pope, there are plenty of stores about their journey here.

Some traveled from coast to coast. “We’re from California” said one man.

Others have been in town for awhile. “Twenty five years” said Basilica volunteer Mary Jane Eldridge. She’s been volunteering here for twenty-five years. But in that quarter of a century, few days have been as busy as this.

Today she’s busy answering phones, giving directions and answering questions about the Papal visit. But all this hard work is paying off. Wednesday the Pope will arrive at the National Shrine to meet with United States Catholic Bishops. And “we will be there for that. That’s a great privilege that’s one of the big benefits that I’ve had all the years that I’ve been here” said Eldridge.

It’s clear that Mary Jane isn’t the only one here at The National Shrine that feels blessed to be here.

“We got tickets at the last minute…and we’re getting to see our holy father in the nation’s capital,” said Christina St. Hilaire. “The heart of our catholic faith in the heart of our nation,” said Christina.

It is the family’s first visit to D.C. but not their first time seeing Pope Benedict. They have traveled all the way from Nebraska’s Lincoln Diocese to see an old friend. “We met Pope Benedict when was still Cardinal Ratzinger . We found out we could attend his mass at the German college. We were able to talk to him there and tell him some of our concerns of things in this country,” said Christina.

The St.Hilaire’s lived in Rome for three years. “I got to hold his hand when we were walking in the Garden and I think we had just come out of mass” said their youngest son Daniel.

And then after following the advice of Cardinal Ratziner, they moved back to the states. But the friendship wasn’t over. “The year after we moved to Linocln we actually got a Christmas card from him.” Christina told us.

This trip though, there will not be any walks in the Garden. But the family will be at the mass in Nationals Stadium on Thursday.

And although the faces of the faithful range from old, to the young, everyone’s hoping to get a glimpse of Pope Benedict this week.

Lauren Squires can be reached at www.lauren.squires@loras.edu