apublicationofelizabe - Elizabeth Seton High School

SERVICE (continued)
Urban Plunge (continued)
twice a month. The beauty of this
ministry is the time students take to
listen and to share stories. Often, all
it takes is a smiling face or just sitting
with someone to let them know that
they are cared for and not forgotten.
This is learning that lasts a lifetime:
give even an hour of your day to make
someone else feel joyful.
Hunger is defined as the uneasy or
painful sensation due to lack of food.
Sandwiches for S.O.M.E. (So Others
May Eat) are a service to relieve this
terrible sensation: sandwiches are
made each Thursday in Seton’s school
kitchen by students. After many
years of doing this, the process has
been perfected: Sr. Catherine knows
just the right type of bread, jam, and
peanut butter to acquire, and just how
to organize her girls in the making
of 400 sandwiches in an hour’s time.
Once the sandwiches are made, Mr.
Anthony Kirwan, Seton’s beloved
bus driver, takes them to S.O.M.E.
Our Seton students are blessed for
serving the poor, the disadvantaged,
and the forgotten whether it is face to
face or indirectly. These experiences
help them grow as individuals who
can later offer the best of themselves
in the spirit of Vincentian service!
the struggle of those who survive with
nothing. Next, they stop at the Father
McKenna Center, a shelter near Union
Station. The Seton faculty members
provide dinner for everyone, and the
students gather to serve and eat with
those who visit for the night. After
dinner, the retreat participants return
to Seton for their own version of
staying overnight in a shelter. They
spend the remainder of the evening in
reflection and prayer, and then retire to
makeshift beds that simulate sleeping
on uncomfortable surfaces. Early
Saturday morning, they continue their
experience of service and implementing
social justice as they break into groups
and spend the day at different local
shelters. They, then, come together in
prayer and thanksgiving and conclude
with mass.
The Urban Plunge retreat teaches
students how to effectively give back
to their community. During their
experience, they are challenged to
evaluate each situation using the “See,
Judge, and Act” method. This method
urges them to stop and explore the
facts of being homeless, in order to gain
a greater understanding of the people
whom they meet, and to sit beside
them, if only for a day. This may lead
to debunking any ideas and stereotypes
they may have carried before the retreat.
Afterward, they decipher the rights
and the wrongs of the situation based
on their understanding. Lastly, they
discuss and build strategies for helping
the growing population of homeless
people. As part of Seton’s drive to instill
social justice in a world full of injustices,
the school encourages students to take
part in the Urban Plunge experience
to develop compassion for those who
are less fortunate, and to assure them
that they have the capability and the
voice to make a difference in the lives
of others.
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