We Care: WML Volunteers at the Pedro Arrupe House

On Wednesday, Jan. 10, a group of Library staff members spent the morning at the Rev. Pedro Arrupe, S.J., House, preparing a hearty lunch of turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing and corn to be delivered to 50 local residents of senior living and low-income housing communities. Under the direction of Lorena Pacheco Jimenez, Coordinator of Local Service for the Center for Service and Social Justice, and third-year student Abby Casal, the Library volunteers cooked and then portioned out the food, assembly-line style, as well as preparing snack bags to accompany each meal. The volunteers were inspired by a presentation given by Center for Service and Social Justice Director Pat Vaccaro at a recent staff retreat. Vaccaro described the Wednesday morning program, known as

“We Care Wednesdays,” and explained that it can be difficult to staff during intercession, as students usually prepare the lunches. The Library team, coordinated by Sharon Finnerty and consisting of Barb Kreidler, Rebecca Dzikowski, Pat Savitts, Jean Lenville, Mary Fran Galat and Tiffany Ash, contacted Vaccaro immediately after her presentation and offered to help. The volunteers brought along several dozen home-baked cookies and brownies to add to the snack bags, and compared notes after their morning of service over turkey lunches of their own, provided by the Center for Service and Social Justice as tokens of thanks. All agreed that spending a morning at “We Care Wednesdays” every January would make a wonderful post-holiday Library tradition!

—Rebecca Dzikowski, Cataloging Assistant