Within the collaborative and celebratory spirit of the Ignatian Year, the Ignatian Volunteer Corps of New Orleans joined with Loyola University New Orleans in the Currie Alumni Partnership for Service to offer the Jesuit university’s retired staff, faculty and alumni a unique opportunity to serve people in need who are trying to overcome poverty while continuing in the tradition of Ignatian Spirituality they encountered while at Loyola.
“I call myself the matchmaker because I work with our partner service organizations to identify their immediate needs and then match them with the Ignatian Volunteers who have the specific skills to meet those needs,” said Lisa LaFleur Schillace, director of IVC in New Orleans and alumna of Loyola. “We ask our service corps members to humbly offer their skills where they are needed most. In return, I help these individuals find a regular, meaningful service position that expands the capacity of their partner organization to combat poverty and the suffering it causes.”
In addition to serving eight or sixteen hours a week with a local nonprofit, volunteers also attend two retreats, participate in monthly meetings with other service corps members, and connect regularly with a spiritual reflector well-versed in Ignatian Spirituality. IVC partners with a variety of local organizations for service opportunities including YMCA of Greater New Orleans, Catholic Charities Office of Justice and Peace, Covenant House, Project Lazarus, ARC of Greater New Orleans, the Harry Tompson Center, Good Shepherd School, Jesuit Social Research Institute, Raphael Village, Promise of Justice Initiative, Catholic Charities Prison Apostolate, and Iggy’s Cupboard — a food pantry on campus at Loyola.
If you are retired and are looking for a way to deepen your spirituality with a peer group while also serving the needs of the vulnerable in our community, you are encouraged to attend the next information session offered at Ignatius Chapel on the campus of Loyola New Orleans on Tuesday, July 13 at 12:30 p.m.
Daily Mass is available at noon also in Ignatius Chapel. Parking is available in the West Road Parking Garage on the 2nd and 3rd floors. For more information, see www.ivcusa.org/neworleans or contact Lisa LaFleur Schillace, Director of IVC New Orleans at lschillace@ivcusa.org / 504-264-3438 or John Green, Vice President of Partnerships at jgreen@ivcusa.org / 215-839-8415.