alumni feature, international service
By Michela Bryne
(Peru 2005-07)
I WAS INSPIRED TO MAKE EDUCATION MY FULL TIME CAREER through my two years serving as an international JV in Tacna, Peru. Though challenging, I found teaching to have a beautiful two way rhythm of give and take. I loved trying to tailor lessons to students who were struggling and I was inspired by students who took information I gave them and were hungry for more.
When in Peru, many students I taught lived without running water or electricity, some were eager to learn English and some were not. As much as I was initially confounded by how to teach, I began to be delighted by their varied personalities and willingness to teach me about themselves, their families, their culture and their country.
Now, my students in the US come from various backgrounds and poverty here looks different. Poverty here is two families crammed into a small apartment, it’s having to move schools when the rent runs out, it’s having to stay home from school to take care of your little sister so an adult can go to work. I love that teaching puts me in touch with students from all different backgrounds, allows me to know experiences that are different from my own in a personal way and gives me a direct opportunity to help.
I wouldn’t have considered teaching as a profession had I not been a JV. 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.
fjv, fjv engagement
What I didn't know at the time was everything else I would gain from a year in the JVC Portland community: Lifelong friendships, a love of the sea in all seasons, and a broader perspective as a result of living intentionally with five other volunteers.
fjv, alumni feature, love stories
"Living in a community of parallels, marred by trauma, supported by deep love, helped us recognize how much responsibility we carry in this world as stewards of social justice."
fjv, alumni feature, love stories
"We credit JVC for giving us a strong foundation for our relationship and the values that we are actively passing on to the next generation of F(uture) Jesuit Volunteers."
fjv, alumni feature, love stories
"The four values of JVC, simple living, social justice, community, and spirituality have been infused in our relationship and marriage, sometimes intentionally, sometimes not. We are at our best when we are surrounded and supported by community; the best and worst moments of our relationship have been made better when shared with the people we love."
fjv, alumni feature, love stories, international program
"JVC showed us how to care for each other more in radical ways, in more soulful ways. Together, we still ask the questions. How can we live in this world that is always demanding so much of us with a sense of abundance rather than depletion? How do we exist in a community with a sense of all of us belonging to each other?"