Serving the Local Community

Earthen Vessels Inner-City Tutoring

Earthen Vessels (EV) is an inner-city tutoring program that pairs one undergrad with one inner-city student for weekly tutoring sessions.  A tutor and tutee can stay paired together for several years, enabling them to build a truly meaningful relationship.

EV is a faith-based non-profit  and long-time partner with the Harvard Catholic Center that gives hope to children and teens from Boston’s inner city by providing a community of support.  They  strengthen academic and life skills through multi-year one-on-one tutoring and mentoring relationships with university student volunteers, supported by school and family advocacy and a life-changing summer camp experience in Vermont.

They also support the personal and spiritual development of their volunteers in their own journeys to become positive social change agents.

EV has transformed the lives of hundreds of inner-city youth and university volunteers.  In 2010, 100% of their high school seniors graduated and went on to college.

***EV SUMMER CAMP OPPORTUNITY***

5 weeks (June 20 - July 26): Leadership & guidance for 12 EV youngsters (11-14 years old) including activities involving music, art, sports, crafts, swimming, talking, cooking...

You get room & board + a stipend if you need it, transportation from Cambridge to Vermont, new friendships with both kids and adults, training in intensive work with inner-city adolescents, and an experience that thoroughly enriches the spirit, mind, and body.

For the application or more information, contact Marie-Claude at marieclaudethompson@yahoo.com or 617-497-0759. 

For more information about EV, please visit www.evkids.org.

Teaching English as a Second (or Other) Language

St. Paul's parish offers multiple opportunities for service in the community including a St. Vincent de Paul Society, food pantry, homeless outreach and teaching English as a Second Language.  Volunteers are always needed.  Please visit the parish Social Outreach page (http://www.stpaulparish.org/social.html#stvincentdepaul). 

Any volunteers interested in teaching English as a Second Language should email Barbara Flannery at barbnflan@aol.com.

Teaching Religious Education to children (Sunday School)

St. Paul's needs instructors for their youth catechesis programs.  Please see the website (http://www.stpaulparish.org/education.html) or contact Patty Lee, Director of Religious Education at 617-491-8400.

St. Paul's has just begun a Children's group at the 9:30 AM Mass. There are already 21 families enrolled and there are typically about 8-13 children ages 0-7 in attendance. St. Paul's really needs volunteers to help teach. The program only lasts 20 minutes during the Mass, and includes many fun ways of teaching for the kids! For more information, please contact Daniele Olveczky (dd.olveczky@gmail.com) or Janine Duffy (janinemduffy@gmail.com). 

Social Justice

To find out more about what the Catholic Church has to say to the world about social justice, see The Social Agenda.

Alternative Spring Break Trips

Every other spring, the Catholic Center sends a group of students to a place in need.  Recent past trips include:

2011: Solidarity with Migrant Farm Workers in Apopka, Florida

Students and staff worked alongside migrant farm workers in Florida, hearing their stories and learning about what life is like for this population of people struggling to make a life for themselves.  Students worked in cabbage fields, in a replanting nursery, and interacted with a community youth group.




2009: Restoring Beauty to Katrina-battered Homes in New Orleans, LA

Though the government helped residents with damaged property to repair the interior of their homes, restoration of the exterior was considered cosmetic and therefore not covered.  Poorer communities took the hardest hit and many still looked as battered as they had right after the hurricane had hit four years prior!  Students and staff from the Catholic Center brought a much-needed morale boost to communities by repainting the exterior of houses under the direction of Catholic Charities.



2007: Rebuilding Homes in Poverty-Stricken West Virginia

Students and staff road-tripped down to West Virginia to work with the Appalachian Service Project to offer aid to local residents suffering from inadequate housing.  Projects included re-building a rotted-out trailer floor for an elderly woman and digging a drainage ditch for destructive mountain run off.
Other ideas?

The CSA is open to participating in new and different Social Justice and Community Service opportunities! To suggest one, or if you have any questions, please contact Carlos Sanchez at carlos_sanchez@college.harvard.edu.