March 24, 2009
Combining “Greek life” with St. John’s University’s Vincentian
tradition of service, a group of St. John’s students and
administrators spent their spring break helping others as
volunteers at a unique “resort” for children with life-threatening
illnesses.
Serving food, handing out gifts and offering their time to
children and parents, 12 students from St. John’s Queens and Staten
Island campuses spent a week at Give Kids the World Village in
Orlando, Florida. Each year, the 70-acre, non-profit resort
provides activity-filled, week-long vacations for thousands of
ailing children and their families.
Students described the experience, from March 2-8, as
“life-changing.” Three University administrators joined them on the
“alternative spring break,” a Student Life effort to help Greek
societies fulfill their own commitment to service while engaging
students in St. John’s mission of improving the world by serving
those in need.
Photo Gallery
A Broad Commitment to Service
Serving at home and around the world is central to a St. John’s
education. Through alternative spring breaks, “plunges” and other
activities, students of all faiths embrace St. John’s focus on
service. This focus is rooted in the example of St. Vincent de
Paul, the 17th-century priest who revolutionized efforts to improve
the lives of those in need. Vincent founded the Congregation
of the Mission, which guides St. John’s to this day.
Give Kids the World let students experience St. John’s mission
through the eyes of children with serious illnesses. The program
began three years ago, when Mary Pelkowski and Chad Sandifer began
searching for new ways to expand Vincentian service opportunities
for students in the Greek societies.
“Even after three years, it’s still a deeply rewarding experience
that touches every aspect of St. John’s mission as a Catholic and
Vincentian university,” said Mary H. Pelkowski, Director of Student
Leadership Development at the Queens campus.
Seeing the Mission in Action
Ms. Pelkowski was one of three administrators on the trip. The
others were Chad Sandifer, Director of Campus Life at Staten
Island, and Rev. Tri M. Duong, C.M., Campus Minister to Athletics
at Queens.
“St. John’s is a mission-driven university,” said Mr. Sandifer.
“Mary and I teamed up to help the Greek organizations live out the
University’s focus on service — a mission that many Greek societies
share.”
Students had to apply for the opportunity. On Friday, February 27,
selected students met at the Manhattan campus for a “Formation
Meeting,” featuring “ice breakers,” videos about the Village and
discussions about their expectations. Students and administrators
boarded an airplane for Florida that Monday morning.
Giving Something Back
For Alyssa Nowak, a Queens-campus junior in Gamma Phi Beta, the
experience was “beyond description.”
“It’s an amazing feeling to brighten a child’s life — especially
when the child is ill,” said Alyssa. “To see them so happy, and to
know you’re helping to make them happy, helps you to appreciate
everything life has to offer.”
Alyssa and her fellow students worked in two shifts each day —7
a.m. to 1 p.m., and 5 p.m. to 9:30 p.m. They spent time with the
children in varied activities, but Alyssa’s favorite was dressing
in costume with four other St. John’s students at a “Christmas”
parade the village holds for the children every Thursday throughout
the year.
“They had me dress as a princess,” said Alyssa. “I was just
overwhelmed by how happy it made the children. They would run up
with these big smiles and ask to take pictures with ‘the princess.’
If I could have stayed there, I would.”
Joseph Bonomo, a senior at the Staten Island campus, said he
applied for the alternate spring break “to give something
back.”
“I wanted to do something meaningful,” said Joe, a member of Iota
Alpha Sigma. “I’m grateful I did — there were moments that simply
took our breath away.”
For Joseph, like Alyssa, one of those moments was during the
Village parade. Dressed as a prince, Joseph was astonished by one
child’s delight at meeting him. “He was only about six years old,”
Joseph recalls. “He said all he wanted was to be a ‘prince.’”
Together, Joseph and the boy honked the horn of a Ford Model T in
the parade. “It was one of those loud, 1930s sounds, and he loved
it,” said Joseph. “That night, his mother brought him over to say
goodbye to me — he was leaving the next day. It was
humbling.”
Along with Alyssa and Joseph, the other students were Kristen
Dallek, Gamma Phi Beta; Yesenia Francisco, Theta Phi Alpha;
Samantha Polanzi, Kappa Phi Beta; Mary Scanlon, Gamma Phi Beta; and
Alysha Velez, Theta Phi Alpha (Queens campus); Deana Guarella,
Delta Epsilon Beta; Khadijeh Karaein, Delta Kappa Delta; Christie
Rossiter, Delta Kappa Delta; Anna Teryek, Delta Epsilon Beta; and
Erika Theus, Delta Epsilon Beta (Staten Island campus).