Wheeling Jesuit Students

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Conversations on Jesuit Higher EducationVolume 48 Article 17September 2015Stories of Debt and Service: Wheeling Jesuit MoJoWheeling Jesuit StudentsFollow this and additional works at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/conversationsRecommended CitationWheeling Jesuit Students (2015) "Stories of Debt and Service: Wheeling Jesuit MoJo," Conversations on Jesuit Higher Education: Vol.48, Article 17.Available at: http://epublications.marquette.edu/conversations/vol48/iss1/1732 ConversationsEvery Friday evening at5:15pm, around 30-40people leave the campusof Wheeling JesuitUniversity to travel to the“rough part of town,” where mem-bers of the Mother Jones House haveprepared a community dinner.Professors, campus ministers, neigh-bors, and fellow students gathertogether for weekly fellowship and ashared meal, while the six house res-idents ensure people feel welcomedand well-fed. First glance wouldshow amateur cooks bustlingaround, but if you stay long enoughyou will see the rich community thathas formed around six friends whohave chosen a distinctive way of liv-ing out our Jesuit mission.We are the Mother Jones House,an intentional community of under-graduate students whose everydaylife is focused around six pillars:faith, community, simplicity, socialjustice, learning, and service. Thehouse is a close partnership betweenWheeling Jesuit University andLaughlin Memorial Chapel, an after-school program for neighborhoodstudents. We also work closely withCatholic Charities NeighborhoodCenter to deliver meals to home-bound individuals. Our service sitesand neighbors have become just asfamiliar to us as our campus andclassmates.We have chosen to live in com-munity at “MoJo,” as we affectionate-ly call it, for a variety of reasons.MoJo offers a chance to get awayfrom the chaotic atmosphere of cam-pus and serves as a home away fromhome. Our interest in MoJo partiallystemmed out of a restlessnessacquired from our Jesuit education.Immersing ourselves in the reality ofour neighborhood has inspired us toWheeling Jesuit MoJoBy Wheeling Jesuit Studentssetting would be a good fit. Oftenthese students are pursuing the com-bination of “as perfect as possible”and “as soon as possible.”Conflicting narratives of “perfect” or“success” swirl around them,informed by a board room of peers,professors, family, cultural and gen-der norms, faith traditions, or finan-cial pressures; and it can be easy tolose one’s unique story or sense ofdirection in the noise. I also notice a heightenedexpectation among students thattheir first job will define their profes-sional identity in a permanent way. Ifthey don’t get it right, they imaginelong-lasting negative consequences.And as they try to get it right, stu-dents can experience paralysis cen-tered on the convergence of endlessinformation about options and thesense that no job description seemsto fit their interests and skills exactly.They constantly feel behind.I wonder, though, whether it’spossible both to make some concreteprogress on your search and also tobe intentional as you do so. Mywords find their roots in the Jesuitidea of contemplation in action.While it’s tempting to shoot from thehip when one’s graduation date islooming or is past – ten applicationsa day, no, twenty if I don’t write acover letter – the wisest and mostproductive steps forward will usuallybe informed by intentional reflection.Progress and intentionality lookdifferent for everyone. There are anumber of possible next steps to fitdifferent individuals’ needs. I suggestsome helpful ideas in the accompa-nying boxed text. Meanwhile, what about yourbills? Signing up to work for a tempagency or finding another stopgapoption can provide stability as wellas a professional experience thatcould further inform you reflectionprocess. St. Ignatius encourages usto pray the Examen consistently,whether we feel completely lost oras though we’ve arrived. As contem-plation forms your next steps, thosesteps will give you new ideas andexperiences upon which to reflect.Soon enough you may come tovalue the ongoing journey as muchas or even more than the first desti-nation. Hang in there! ■Beth Harlan is the associate directorof the career education center atGeorgetown University; she doescareer education and counseling.stories of debt and service1: Stories of Debt and Service: Wheeling Jesuit MoJoPublished by e-Publications@Marquette, 2015Conversations 33continue our search for social justice.By living together intentionally, we arefostering the communion between col-lege students and East Wheeling, whilecommitted to a lifestyle of service canbe both fulfilling and draining.M oJo pro-vides opportunities that living in a dormnever will. While we learn about solidar-ity and critical social reflection in ourclasses at WJU, here we have the oppor-tunity to put them to use in our interac-tions with housemates and neighbors.One of the most important things welearn is the value of community and ourplace within it. We learn about passionand dedication from our neighbors, thedifference makers in this city, and how ashared vision can transform a group ofpeople into a beautiful community.While we all agree that MoJo is anincredible and unique opportunity forwhich we are immensely grateful, ourtime here has not been without chal-lenges. As housemates, we find thatsome uncomfortable conversations areunavoidable and conflicts are nearlyimpossible to prevent; and our busyschedules leave little time for impromp-tu hangouts. Within the house, weattempt to resolve issues as soon asthey arise, but our neighborhood offersits own set of concerns that are moredifficult to confront. Sometimes we can-not assist our neighbors in the waysthey would like – such as monetarily –but we are learning to accept that ourmission has its limits. We have all come from differentbackgrounds, with different paths for ourfuture, but we have all found a homehere in East Wheeling. Whether it is forourselves or any of our beloved gueststhroughout the year, the Mother JonesHouse is a meaningful presence in thiscommunity and in our lives. What wehave learned here we will take with usthroughout our lives, especially thedesire to make a difference no matterwhere we are. In the words of our name-sake, Mary Harris Jones, “Pray for thedead and fight like hell for the living!”If you are ever in Wheeling, WestVirginia, on a Friday afternoon, pleasestop by for dinner. There is alwaysroom at the table. ■Wheeling Jesuit students involved withMother Jones House:  DJ Currence(senior, accounting); Brady Kukawka(senior, nursing); Elizabeth Nawrocki(senior, theology); Sarah Sleevi (senior,psychology); Wolfgang Zober (senior,physics); and also Tom Weinandy(house mentor)stories of debt and serviceMembers and friends at Mother Jones House pray together in community.2Conversations on Jesuit Higher Education, Vol. 48, Iss. 1 [2015], Art. 17http://epublications.marquette.edu/conversations/vol48/iss1/17

Stories of Debt and Service: Wheeling Jesuit MoJo

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Stories of Debt and Service: Wheeling Jesuit MoJo

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