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I want to thank Fr. Rooney for highlighting the Vincentian Leadership Institute: Faith and Service in the City, which held its final session of the year from August 5-August 11, 2018. This program at St. John’s University in New York City, which connects high school students to Catholic and Vincentian traditions and values, is funded for four years by a generous grant from the Lilly Endowment, Inc.

This summer, we hosted 56 high school students in three one-week sessions for a program of theological exploration, service, and discovery in New York City. Faith and Service in the City focuses on Vincentian spirituality and practice, and highlights great Vincentian figures such as Vincent de Paul, Louise de Marillac, Frederic Ozanam, Rosalie Rendu, and Elizabeth Ann Seton.

During their week at St. John’s, students engaged in classroom interaction with expert theology faculty from the University, participated in service on the St. John’s University campus, at the St. John’s Bread and Life Center in Brooklyn, and on a Midnight Run in various neighborhoods in Manhattan. They also toured New York City historical sites such as the 9-11 Memorial and the Lower East Side Tenement Museum, and experienced the religious diversity of New York City by sharing a meal and participating in a conversation with leaders of the North American Hindu Temple Society in Flushing, NY.   As participants in Faith and Service in the City, high school students put their faith into practice and grew as leaders who serve others in the tradition of Vincent and Louise, Rosalie and Frederic.

This year, students in attendance came from the Archdiocese of New York and the New York dioceses of Albany, Brooklyn, and Rockville Centre.  There also were students in attendance from Metuchen, New Jersey and Raleigh, North Carolina.

For Information about 2019 Faith and Service in the City opportunities, contact Dr. Joann Heaney-Hunter at St. John’s University:  heaneyhj@stjohns.edu.