Re-Unioned with Life Bill Kelly (Omak ‘69 -71)   Yeah, I was there ’69 – ’71. I went to teach but was taught: how to play when to be silent innocent curiosity radical simplicity unflinching fairness true fatigue what to watch for excitement of exploration ridiculous optimism.   I was reunited with what had been educated out of me by degrees: my original spirit.   My passion released burned…

Zac Oldham (Woodburn ’18-19) spoke to a small crowd at an event JVC Northwest held at the University of Portland on January 19, 2019 prior to the UP versus Gonzaga men’s basketball game. Zac is serving at the After School Club in Woodburn, OR. I am a Gonzaga Grad with a mechanical engineering degree and a current JV in Woodburn OR. So you might be wondering, why I would choose a program like JVC…

#JVReflects by Cat Driscoll (Missoula, MT ’18-19) serving at Family Promise as Housing Advocate Navigator. I am embarrassed to admit what has surprised me the most in the past four months that I have been serving at Family Promise in Missoula, Montana. What has shocked me is not the difficult conversations I have had with my roommates about social justice, or the copious amounts of expired milk,…

#JVReflects by Gabby Hiestand Salgado (Bethel, AK ’18-19) serving at KYUK TV/Radio as Wellness Programming Producer. Climate change is coming to the Yukon Kuskokwim Delta. In fact, one could easily argue that climate change has already made its way into the very way of life of the people here. The planet is changing. Storms are devastating the southeast United States at rates that are unbelievable.…

#JVReflects by Diego Jones (Gresham, OR ’18-19) serving at El Programa Hispano Católico (EPHC) as Sexual Violence Prevention Educator & Domestic/Sexual Violence Interventionist. When I first decided to do a year of service with Projecto Unica, an organization that focuses on providing social services to Latinx survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault in the Metro-area of Portland…

#JVReflects by Caroline Fenton (Ashland, MT ’18-19) serving at St. Labre Indian School as Dormitory Mentor 1. “Home” is a powerful concept at my service placement with JVC Northwest. I serve the residential students of St. Labre Indian School as a “dormitory mentor,” providing academic and emotional support to Native American students living on campus. Each week, dorm students travel…

A compelling reflection by former Jesuit Volunteer Dan Misleh (Fairbanks, AK ’82-83) who shares his own lived experiences and the importance of community. First published on June 13, 2018. This is a reflection on the loss of our son Zachary who died by suicide over a year ago. I offer this reflection to the JVC Northwest community for a number of reasons, not the least of which is that Susie…

September 2018 Dear JVC Northwest Community, In light of the deeply distressing, extensive sexual abuse report from the Pennsylvania Grand Jury, the board and staff of JVC Northwest express our great pain and empathy for the victims and survivors of sexual abuse at the hands of priests, their superiors and other representatives of the Church who chose not to protect the children. This is a time of…

On May 20th the JVC Northwest community gathered to celebrate another year of service with Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson (Portland, OR ’89-90) and Brother Fred Mercy, S.J. Ferguson spoke on this year’s theme of “Extending the Table” and how his year with JVC Northwest influenced his decision to go to law school and his work as Attorney General today.     This…