This article was published in the winter 2025 issue of The Vincentian, the quarterly newsletter of the Congregation of the Mission Western Province.
Sye Berhe, 22, Denver, Colorado
Sye, whose family emigrated to the United States from Eritrea in East Africa when she was 11, found out about Colorado Vincentian Volunteers at Regis University in Dever, from which she graduated in May. A staff member there was an alumna of the program and recommended it.
As a teaching assistant at Annunciation Catholic School, she is able to work with the poor and marginalized students at the school and deepen her Catholic faith with the spiritual and formative aspects of the program, for which Fridays are set aside.
“I knew nothing about St. Vincent before starting at CVV,” she said. “I appreciate that he didn’t just give them food; he tried to change the system.”
She said her experience has helped shape her career plan.
“I still want to go to law school and become a lawyer in social work or immigration law,” she said. “I don’t want to be in an office without working with children.”
Hannah Thurow, 22, San Antonio, Texas
Hannah grew up in Madison, Wisconsin, moved to San Antonio 10 years ago, and graduated from Notre Dame University with degrees in liberal studies and global affairs. Pondering her next moves, she learned about CVV at a recruiting event.
“I wanted to continue my progress in the nonprofit world and build experience in a more personal way,” she said.
Her CVV assignment is at Work Solutions, which offers job training, specifically in the culinary area, as well as job search training and help dealing with barriers to employment. She helps clients apply for jobs and prepare for interviews and teaches classes on occasion.
“I thought I wasn’t good with people and did my best work serving in indirect ways,” she said. “I love being with my clients and helping them through the process. I gain a lot from that and serving in a different way that I find very fulfilling.”
She said learning about the Vincentian charism has resonated with her.
“I really connect with the pillars, seeing the world in a holistic way, and doing something about it,” she said. “I feel the most spiritually connected to God in acts of service. Seeing a saint live that out has been really affirming to me.”
Debbie Adekunle, 21, Providence, Rhode Island
Debbie graduated in May from College of Holy Cross in Worchester, Massachusetts, a small Jesuit school where she studied neuroscience and education, specifically how one affects the other.
For CVV, she volunteers at Stout Street, a health center run by the Colorado Coalition for the Homeless.
“The biggest takeaway for me is that most patients just want someone to talk to and to feel human,” she said. “They need someone to make them feel human and listen to them.”
Though not Catholic, she has appreciated the focus on spiritual development. She admits she was not aware of St. Vincent before now.
“I think that humility and generosity and the outpouring of one’s self has really inspired me,” she said. “I love giving gifts. That has always been to people that I know. Now, I am learning to be generous and give of myself in different ways, even to people I’ve never met before.”
She hopes to determine whether to pursue a Ph.D. or an M.D. CVV has shown her she has a passion for patient care.
“I am definitely drawn to patient care, even if it is not as a doctor,” she said. “I want to tie my passion for research into that.”