Jesuit Volunteer Corps

alumni feature, jvc magazine

Scranton Native Brings JVC’s Values Back to His Hometown

By JVC Staff

(Washington, DC 1979-80)

Former Jesuit Volunteer, Patrick Brier (Washington DC 1979-80) at law firm in Scranton, PA. (2018)

After helping Mother Teresa open an AIDS clinic nearly three decades ago, Pennsylvania lawyer Pat Brier starts an Esperanza immigration clinic in Scranton

PATRICK BRIER CONTINUES TO LIVE OUT THE MISSION AND VALUES OF THE JESUIT VOLUNTEER CORPS as a leader committed to justice within his native Scranton. As a volunteer with the newly-formed Jesuit Volunteer Corps East, Brier served alongside Jesuit priest Horace McKenna accompanying persons experiencing homelessness in Washington, D.C.

“We worked out of the basement of the Saint Aloysius Church on North Capitol Street at an organization called The Line. Every day, a large group of people who were homeless would line up outside of our doors, and we would give them whatever we had.”

Brier poses in front of Saint Aloysius with Father McKenna and colleagues.
Brier poses in front of Saint Aloysius with Father McKenna and colleagues.
JVC continues to place volunteers at the Father McKenna Center, a social service agency serving men struggling with homelessness and very low-income families in Ward 6 of Washington D.C.
JVC continues to place volunteers at the Father McKenna Center, a social service agency serving men struggling with homelessness and very low-income families in Ward 6 of Washington D.C.
Mother Teresa’s thank you letter to Former Jesuit Volunteer Patrick Brier.
Mother Teresa’s thank you letter to Former Jesuit Volunteer Patrick Brier.
Mother Teresa’s thank you letter to Former Jesuit Volunteer Patrick Brier.
Mother Teresa’s thank you letter to Former Jesuit Volunteer Patrick Brier.

After attending law school at Catholic University, Brier returned to Northeastern Pennsylvania to work for justice in his home community, representing clients that included Mother Teresa and the Missionaries of Charity.

“The Missionaries of Charity were working diligently to get a Pediatric AIDS home opened in Philadelphia, despite a number of delays and pushback. We were able to complete the project successfully and get the AIDS home opened.”

In 2017, Brier, now a healthcare lawyer, started an Esperanza immigration clinic in Scranton to support DACA recipients and others who require assistance navigating the immigration process.

“There is such a large need here, especially among this group that has been terrified by recent events. We are now hoping to expand the clinic and add additional services for this vastly underserved population.”

Brier and his wife Kate have raised five children in Scranton, two of whom have gone on to become Jesuit Volunteers themselves. He thanks JVC for inspiring him to build care for the poor and marginalized into his personal and professional life.

“JVC was a cathartic experience because it was the first time where my eyes were really opened to all the opportunities for remaining involved in social ministry.”

STORIES

  • JVC staff visit to Peru (2011)

    alumni feature, international service

    "JVC's International PRogram gave me the confidence that I had something to offer students and continues to be both a foundation and a hope spring for what I do now."

    Learn more about Michela's time teaching in Peru become the catalyst for a career in education
  • Tomy Christin (Belize City) headshot

    alumni feature, international service, community

    "The four core values of JVC can be and are lived out in each of our post-JVC lives in a multitude of ways. For me, life as a Dominican Sister is the way I’m choosing to be a woman for and with others as a contemplative in action."

    Learn more about Sr. Christin's relationship building on porches
  • St. Clara Chapel where the congregation used to use for mass, vows, prayer. (2019).

    vocational journey, alumni feature

    "By joining JVC I didn’t mean to substitute religious life, but my call to discern religious life clearly played a role in God calling me to JVC. To my surprise, my three years in Phoenix as both a JV and as a staff person at my placement site laid the foundation for what was to come."

    Learn more about Amanda's vocational discernment journey
  • Sr Rhonda Miska, OP (Nicaragua 2002-2004)

    alumni feature, vocational journey

    "Clearly, the values of spirituality, simple living, social justice, and community were still central. This wasn’t something I was going to 'get out of my system' in my twenties. Rather, these values continued to shape my life and my choices well into my thirties."

    Read more about Sr Rhonda's shift in perspective

  • alumni feature, healthcare

    "My JV experience continues to nurture my vision for the future of the healthcare system. Even now, I find myself leaning into the four values in the work I pursue, the continued education I seek out, and in communities that I help to build and strengthen."

    Read More