In the early morning hours of March 9, six Marquette students gathered outside the AMU to leave for Erie, Pennsylvania, on an eight-hour road trip. As the students stacked their bags and pillows in the trunk, curiosity rang through them as they were unsure what the week and drive ahead would bring.
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These students were participating in the Marquette Action Program, spring break service immersion trips focused on social justice. This year’s trip was spent volunteering at L’Arche Erie, a community for those with and without intellectual disabilities sharing their lives together.
The first night they arrived, the six were split into two groups; each spent their week living in a home with core members of L’Arche Erie.
“Living in the homes gave us the opportunity to really see how the members live, function and see the responses of the assistants. It also helped MAP members grow closer since we were living in a formal house together,” says Elaina Akre, a freshman in the Klingler College of Arts and Sciences. “That environment can make people feel more like a family, which is what L’Arche is all about.”
Every day, the six students would travel together to different L’Arche homes across the Erie community. During their stay, they did a variety of activities like cleaning cars and organizing basements, playing Uno, and dining with the core members.
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Teams would also participate in two large gatherings: “Chat and Chew,” where they ate and watched a movie with core members, and a Taizé Prayer session at the end of the week.
“The most memorable moment on the trip for me was getting to know one of the core members named Linda. Although there were communicative barriers between us, we both were able to overcome these challenges and form a deep connection,” says Connor Seidl, a junior in the Opus College of Engineering. “At the end of the week, we gathered for a prayer service. Linda spent the service with the biggest smile on her face and just showed her love for all of us in such a genuine and pure manner. In this moment, I felt the love of God present in her.”
MAP focuses on the idea of service immersion, spending time living in and understanding a community.
“Service immersion gives us an opportunity to reimagine how we might show up in the world. To experience how another lives, what they love, their joys and struggles, gives us a unique insight from which to live our lives,” says Vevette Hill-Nwagbaraocha, assistant director of Campus Ministry who oversees MAP. “If we only commune with people like us, we limit our possibilities to grow deeper in our humanity. The service-immersion experience can bring world views together providing insight through another’s cultural lens.”
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The trips usually focus on one of six different justice issues: urban poverty, human dignity, health, education, building or eco-justice. This spring break, the MAP team focused on human dignity as they immersed themselves in L’Arche’s community.
“This experience just added to my capacity for love, showing me more and better ways to care for those around me,” Akre says. “I always saw service as doing physical labor, but this showed me it can be as simple as sitting next to someone in prayer, showing to them that you love them.”
After an impactful week, the students headed home early the following Saturday, already missing their new friends.
If looking to get involved in Marquette Action Program, students can contact Vevette Hill-Nwagbaraocha at vevette.hill-nwagbaraocha@marquette.edu. MAP also runs a local immersion experience, with options for students to experience a community in Milwaukee for a day. There are also plans for an International Marquette Action Program trip.