IVC-NCA’s Rebecca C. Ruiz has served as a spiritual reflector in Northern Virginia since 2016. We asked her a few questions about her role with IVC, and what she enjoys most working with our Service Corps members!
About a year ago, Melita Biese embarked on an IVC service journey with the Thrive for Life Prison Project (TFL).
This organization is dedicated to offering spiritual development and educational resources to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals. Operating across New York State and New Jersey, the nonprofit serves a pivotal role in supporting incarcerated persons held in correctional facilities across these communities.
The blueprint for a potential Service Corps member to join the Ignatian Volunteer Corps (IVC) usually starts
with a source of information that peeks the candidate’s interest, who then makes a phone call or website inquiry about the program, followed by a period of discernment before the potential member joins and commits to an assignment through IVC. During that discernment period, great effort goes into finding the appropriate assignment where the talents and skills of the candidate can be put to best use. Such was the case with Joe Lorenzo, a new Service Corps member who just finished his first year assignment with the Society of St. Vincent de Paul New Orleans.
Vince Aquino supports the Capuchin Mobile Ministries (CMM) in providing essential services to the unhoused population in Greater Boston. His involvement includes volunteer coordination, food preparation, and driving the modified van that delivers meals and snacks to 10 service locations. CMM, inspired by St. Francis of Assisi, goes beyond providing food by offering a caring presence and human connection to those in need.
Growing up in Bala Cynwyd, Mary Noel Hall and Bob Fogarty didn’t know one another. They were six years apart in age—a lifetime to a child. However,
last fall they each joined IVC and now serve together at Divine Providence Village’s Day Program. Located in the former school of Our Lady of Fatima parish in Secane, PA, the Day Program’s mission is to provide a safe, caring environment that allows individuals with intellectual disabilities to create meaningful and independent lives.
Judi England lives in Albany and has been serving as an Ignatian Volunteer Corps member at Unity House in Troy since IVC Albany’s inception in 2019. Judi offers her reflection about her service with IVC.
