In addition to strong academic offerings, a spectacular arts program, and an athletic program that has an unparalleled legacy, St. Francis Prep will, this summer, be holding its students true to the beliefs of their school. Students will have opportunities “to treat all with respect and dignity,” and “to lead lives of justice, integrity, and compassion.”
Prep’s Campus Ministry team is overseeing a number of distinct programs that will provide environments that emulate just how St. Francis lived his life. One program is Prep’s Franciscan Immersion Experience, or FIE. There are a number of trips each year, to places such as Camden, NJ. This summer, Prep students will travel to Peru to serve at the Hogar San Francisco de Asis, or the home of St. Francis. This is a facility outside of Lima that serves Peruvian children with significant needs who can’t afford medical care.
The students are able to work side-by-side with Dr. Tony Lazzara, a Florida pediatrician who, like the early Franciscans, sold his belongings and left a successful practice to serve. He didn’t even speak Spanish very well. Shawn Sempowich, Prep’s Campus Minister for Service Learning describes the experience that Prep students will have as a day-to-day ministry of presence. They support and help as they can, oftentimes for some tragic situations. This year’s trip will be led by Sempowich, along with first-year Campus Minister, and Prep alumna, Marissa Ruotolo.
According to her, she’s excited for a new experience. It’s her first time to traveling to South America, as the trip was not offered when she was a student at Prep. She has already traveled and worked with children who are either terminally ill or in compromising health situations. She hopes the students participating will have beautiful, transformative experiences. When they come back, she hopes they will tell stories to their classmates, in essence spreading the good news and encouraging students to do things out of their comfort zones. It’s something she still does herself. Rising juniors and seniors are able to apply for the trip during the school year. There is a cost for the program, but Prep’s Campus Ministry Program is able to offer scholarship and aid.
According to Sempowich, students come back changed. They all write about their experiences, and many use the trip as the basis for their college essays.
Prep will be offering a program closer to home, that being Prep’s annual Service Academy. In two one-week sessions, nearly 50 students will visit local service sites, such as, Presentation Soup Kitchen in Jamaica, and St. Michael’s Catholic Academy. Students share in discussions about poverty and social justice, and what they can do to help in the world around them. Students are able to utilize iPads, and keep video diaries. There is an application process for current students. The program is geared towards those students whose academic and extracurricular commitments don’t allow time for service during the course of the school year.
For More information, please contact Prep’s Campus Ministry Team: Dr. Christian Sullivan, director, csullivan@sfponline.org, 718-423-8810 x302; Marissa Ruotolo, mruotolo@sfponline.org, 718-423-8810 x249 and Shawn Sempowich, ssempowich@sfponline.org, 718-423-8810 x292.
Submitted by St. Francis Prep.
