Neumann Students Embody Franciscan Tradition of Service

By

Sydney Hayes
Sydney Hayes, a sophomore at Neumann University, helps clear fallen trees at Newlin Grist Mill.

In keeping with the Franciscan tradition of service, Neumann University students, like their peers at Franciscan colleges across the country, will clock hundreds of hours performing community service in October.

The Association of Franciscan Colleges and Universities (AFCU) has organized the nationwide initiative this month in honor of St. Francis of Assisi, whose feast day was Oct. 4.

“Even if you’re not Catholic, you can identify with St. Francis, with his love for creation, the Earth, the animals,” said Megan Camp, Neumann’s Director of Service Learning and Community Engagement. “His message speaks to a lot of people.”

Neumann’s service projects include:

  • Urban gardening, as well as trail repair, weeding, and planting at local parks throughout the region during a fall break service immersion trip from Oct. 7-11
  • Serving meals to the homeless at St. Francis Inn in the Kensington section of Philadelphia on Oct. 18 and 25
  • Providing hospitality and meals to residents of Anna’s Place (a hospitality center in Chester) on Oct. 6 and House of Joseph II (residence for homeless men and women with AIDS) on Oct. 24
  • Helping Overbrook School for the Blind with its annual Alumni Bingo event on Oct. 22
  • Preparing sandwiches for Catholic Charities of Chester as part of Operation Hunger on Oct. 17 and 31
  • Supporting the Fair Acres “Senior” Prom on Oct. 7
  • Assisting Aston (Oct. 1) and Upper Darby (Oct. 22) community day celebrations and the Delaware County Fall Festival (Oct. 23)

“We always get a wonderful turnout from the students,” said Camp. “And they come back year after year for as long as they’re in school. That community service is a great way to reinforce our Franciscan ideals.”

Established in 1997, the AFCU includes 24 member colleges and universities serving more than 50,000 students in the United States.

The organization nurtures collaboration among academic institutions committed to the Catholic and Franciscan spiritual and intellectual traditions and promotes scholarship and curricula that, in keeping with the vocations of Saints Francis and Clare, address the needs of the poor, attend to the environment, and promote peace.

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