BVM Sisters & Associates
Ecuador Immersion
April 25–May 4, 2016
Take part in an educational, service and spiritual immersion of the Ecuadorian culture, and the BVM ministries in
Quito and Guayaquil, Ecuador.
•
In Quito, participants will experience the Working
Boys’ Center, visit homes in the barrios and countryside, help build a local home, and visit Otovalo’s
world-renowned indigenous artisan market.
•
An optional two-day trip to Guayaquil, Ecuador,
offers visits to Nuevo Mundo School and Damien
House, a clinic for Hansen’s Disease patients.
Registration Deadline: March 7, 2016
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
Volunteers agree they receive much
more than they give during service
experiences.
Read their reflections and keep up
to date on volunteer opportunites
at www.bvmcong.org.
For more information about volunteer opportunities
or to register, contact:
VOLUNTEER
OPPORTUNITIES
BVM Volunteer/Outreach Coordinator:
Tricia Lothschutz
847-650-0464
[email protected]
To learn more about the
Sisters of Charity, BVM, visit us online:
www.bvmcong.org
www.facebook.com/bvmsisters
www.youtube.com/bvmsisters
twitter.com/bvmsisters
www.pinterest.com/bvmsisters
Sisters
of Charity
of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
Freed by Love, Acting for Justice
1100 Carmel Drive
Dubuque, IA 52003-7991
Phone: 563.588.2351
WWW.BVMCONG.ORG
“Be the change you wish
to see in the world.”
–Mahatma Gandhi
Sisters
of Charity
of the
Blessed Virgin Mary
Freed by Love, Acting for Justice
www.bvmcong.org
Who We Are
The Sisters of Charity of the Blessed Virgin Mary is a community of Catholic women religious, called to live the mission of Jesus through our core values of freedom, education, charity and justice.
We follow in the footsteps of our Foundress Mary Frances
Clarke, who answered God’s call to serve immigrants in the
United States more than 180 years ago. We serve wherever
needed in a variety of ministries, within a circle of friends
who help us reach out to others in love. Our lives are dedicated to “being freed and helping others enjoy freedom in
God’s steadfast love” (BVM Constitutions #10).
Experience Volunteer Opportunities
with BVM Sisters and Associates
Volunteering and outreach provide opportunities to share
our gifts and talents while learning from others. Often we
receive more than we give. Being with others in their life
situations, challenges, even struggles, opens our hearts to
our BVM core values.
BVMs sponsor volunteer and immersion opportunities
close to your home, throughout the United States, and in
Ecuador that integrate service, community and prayerful
reflection. We invite you to join us!
Who Can Participate?
Persons over the age of 18 who have the desire to learn
from and reach out to others, and are willing to give freely
of themselves in service. Those who are under 18 can participate if accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Mission of Our Lady of Angels
Chicago, IL | Nov. 6, 2015, 8:45 a.m.–1 p.m. & June 4, 2016
The Mission of Our Lady of Angels serves the poor on the
west side of Chicago, providing food, clothing and household goods to nearly 250 families. Volunteers will help repackage food for distribution, serve food, sort clothing, and
assist residents in collecting and carrying their items.
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
Arizona Immigration Immersion–Kino Border Initiative
Registration Deadline: Dec. 1, 2015
Contact: Mary Martens, BVM – [email protected]
Nogales, AZ/Nogales, Mexico | Nov. 18–23, 2015
Participants will gain a deeper awareness of the challenges
and reality of migration and its effects. The group will walk
in the Arizona desert frequented by migrants, attend a session of Operation Streamline court in Tucson, and serve at
the Kino Comedor and women’s shelter in Mexico. A passport is required to cross the border.
8th Day Center for Justice Good Friday Walk for Justice
Chicago, IL | March 25, 2016, Noon–2 p.m.
Registration Deadline: Oct. 12, 2015
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
Join the 8th Day Center for Justice and fellow justice
advocates on Good Friday for a procession through the
streets of downtown Chicago, paralleling the traditional
way of the cross with modern day injustices in our city,
country and our world. At each of the stops, participative
prayers or will be presented.
SOA Watch Vigil at Ft. Benning
Contact: Mary Ellen Madden, BVM representative to 8th
Day Center – [email protected]
Columbus, GA | Nov. 20–22, 2015
Join justice seekers to demand the closure of the School of
Americas (SOA/WHINSEC) at this year’s 26th Annual SOA
Watch Vigil. The SOA/WHINSEC is a U.S. taxpayer-funded
military training school for Latin American soldiers, including
some of the worst and most notorious human rights abusers
in Latin American history.
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
Immokalee Farmworker Immersion
Dubuque Arboretum & Botanical Gardens
Immokalee, FL | Jan. 13–17, 2016
Dubuque, IA | Oct. 24, 2015, 9 a.m.–1 p.m.
Participants will spend time with the Interfaith Action of
Southwest Florida and the Coalition of Immokalee Workers
(CIW), and tour CIW’s Community Center. The group will also
visit the orange groves and Casa San Juan Bosco farm worker
housing community in Arcadia, FL.
Registration Deadline: Oct. 16, 2015
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
New York, NY | March 13–18, 2016
As a delegate of the Loretto Community NGO at
the annual Commission on the Status of Women at
the United Nations in New York, participate in the
Commission general session, attend various workshops
and events to learn about global issues, and advocate
with and for women and girls worldwide.
2015–2016 Volunteer/Outreach Opportunities
BVMs, associates, friends and Clarke University students
will gather for the Dubuque Arboretum and Botanical
Garden Fall Cleanup Day. Work includes raking, pulling
weeds, and preparing the park for winter.
Loretto Community NGO Delegation to the Annual UN
Commission on the Status of Women
Registration Deadline: Dec. 7, 2015
Contact: Tricia Lothschutz – [email protected]
NETWORK Ecumenical Advocacy Days
Washington, D.C. | April 15–28, 2016
Join the 14th Annual National Gathering of Ecumenical
Advocacy Days for Global Peace with Justice titled, “Lift
Every Voice!—Racism, Class, and Power.” Those gathered
will face the reality of mass incarceration and corporate
exploitation, and call for national policies that bring liberation, culminating in the EAD’s Congressional Lobby
Day on Capitol Hill.
Contact: Marge Clark, BVM – [email protected]