Mission: Possible Reflection
Kelly Alvarado, First Year Experience Programs
“Goodness is the only investment that never fails.” -Henry David Thoreau
Being “men and women for others” is a value of all Jesuit institutions. At Gonzaga, we welcome our students into the opportunity to live this value through a weeklong service immersion program called Mission: Possible, where over 100 Gonzaga students travel to 10 sites around the country to serve local communities. I was approached by members of the Center for Community Action and Service Learning (CCASL) to be an advisor because they knew of my passion for diversity and race issues. The person realized that as a staff member, I also wanted to continue living out the value of being a woman for others through service, walking alongside our students dealing with issues of race, and in the process, the students help me learn more about homelessness.
In the spring of 2015, I traveled with one other advisor and 12 students to St. Louis, Missouri to do service at three different sites. The work we did was with organizations that focused on ending the homelessness and poverty cycles for Missourians. One of our service locations took us on a walking tour of an extremely socio-economically divided area of St. Louis. Standing on one side of the street was primary section 8 government subsidized housing and the other side was a very affluent historical section of the city. The only thing dividing these two areas was a four-lane street. Taking the tour affected the students because they had not seen a divide so blatantly around race and socio-economic status. I spent many nights unpacking the role of racism and systemic oppression that people in America still face. My willingness to sit with them as they said things that “were not ok” or “messed up” talking about racism let them know that I was not judging, thinking less of them, or hurt by their comments, but I was proud of them for reflecting so deeply on their own communities and the importance of being aware of privilege.
The trip provided me a learning opportunity to grow personally as well as serve with the homeless population. Our student leader, Molly, had dedicated all her time at Gonzaga servicing the homeless population of Spokane through various CCASL programs. She supported me with what to say and how to interact with the chronically homeless. When I lacked the effort to speak to someone, Molly would start the conversation and walk alongside me. Being able to see a student find their life’s vocation and live it out in their work is the hope and dream of any student affairs professional. This trip allowed me to be a student of life and be my full self with our Zags who taught me so much about the world.
This spring break I will be traveling to Knoxville, Tennessee with one of the students from last year’s trip that is now the trip leader. Seeing him grow in his world view and deepening his passion for becoming a leader for the common good through service was the magic combination to get me to agree to go. I look forward to the challenging days, the long nighttime reflections, and the silliness that accompanies walking alongside students. Mission: Possible Knoxville here I come!