Class of 2026 Serves in Community for Freshman Service Day

The Freshman Day of Service was a great success. Wednesday, October 12 was a gorgeous fall day, and the entire freshman class served in our community, with most groups working to Care for Our Common Home, one of the four Universal Apostolic Preferences, the guiding principles of the Society of Jesus for the next ten years. 

Freshman Day of Service is the final day of a two-day retreat called “Ignite your Spirit” and centers on the ideals of St. Ignatius. During the retreat, there is time for personal reflection and community building. This overnight retreat is led by seniors and campus ministry staff who also accompany freshmen serving in the community, along with faculty and staff volunteers, putting our mission into action as “people for and with others.”

Thank you to our Campus Ministry team (Ms. Woodard, Mr. Cilley, and Mrs. Fitzpatrick), senior leaders, and all of the teachers and staff who served as chaperones, working shoulder to shoulder with members of the Class of 2026 and guided by our service site hosts. Groups put community gardens to bed, cleared brush, gleaned apples, and made crafts with children, among other tasks. Thank you to our community sites for welcoming us: City of Portland, Maine Boyd, Payson Park, and Brentwood Community Gardens, Children’s Museum & Theatre of Maine,  Falmouth Land Trust Blackstrap Hill Preserve, and Orchard Ridge Farm.