Experience Making a Difference

Experience Making a Difference

Stories from New York/North Jersey

Self-Care in the Age of Chaos

Self-Care in the Age of Chaos

The recent Presidential election has certainly been the most contentious in our lifetimes. Our nation endured a steady stream of vitriol, hate, and even an assassination attempt on one candidate. People on all sides, it seems fair to say, were angry and stressed.

Thrive for Life and IVC: Transformation is for Us All

Thrive for Life and IVC: Transformation is for Us All

Prisoners and formerly incarcerated individuals do not immediately invite empathy or even sympathy. Yet, a Jesuit-led prison ministry, Thrive for Life, has committed itself to the transformation of members of this oft-neglected population, accompanying them in their...

Empowering Young Women of Color

Empowering Young Women of Color

Laura De Boisblanc has always been aware of racial inequity in our society, but when her sons were young, that awareness began to have a greater impact on her life. She was troubled by the advantages her children, as white males, would have over persons of color,...

Frontline to Online:  Volunteering in the Time of COVID

Frontline to Online: Volunteering in the Time of COVID

Barbara Flynn loved her IVC placement in Chicago. From 2017 through 2019, this former librarian served two days a week at Accolade Adult Day Care, companioning people with dementia. A move back to Southern California in late 2019 had her seek out the IVC San Diego regional office, and she began 2020 eager to find a new social service agency placement. Then came the stop sign that is the COVID-19 pandemic!

Following Dorothy Day to a Life of Faith and Service

Following Dorothy Day to a Life of Faith and Service

Dr. Joe Sclafani wasn’t motivated by faith when he moved to Malawi in 2014 to help improve the health of poor women in the developing county. Mostly he went for pragmatic reasons: to broaden his use and understanding of his obstetrics/gynecology specialty outside the...

An Author’s Unfinished Story

An Author’s Unfinished Story

At 80, Barbara Lee has had her first book published and is embarking on a new career in spiritual direction. She rightly declares that neither she nor God is finished with her life yet.

Encounters through Philanthropy

IVC is blessed to have several individuals and foundations who have given tremendous support to the growth of our work.  The Raskob Foundation is a benefactor that has enabled IVC to grow significantly by our being the recipient of a high impact three-year grant. ...

“Barbara’s Class Gave Me Hope”

Retired Judge Barbara Lee has taught English as a Second Language at Cabrini Immigrant Services in New York’s Lower East Side through IVC since 2000 and expresses gratitude for this opportunity. What inspires her 15 years of service? She says, “Things get to be...

New Paths toward More Fulfilling Lives

IVC Volunteer John “J” Langdon works as Program Coordinator for the Life Skills Training and Empowerment Program (L-STEP) in New York, which empowers individuals who have experienced homelessness to identify and pursue new paths toward more fulfilling lives.  The...