by Brendan Corcoran

When people ask me how the Lasallian Volunteer Orientation was the second time around, I usually tell them flatly about my meeting with the President of the United States, exchanging secret information with men in black uniforms, dangling high above the earth by nothing but a rope and a prayer, and withstanding rigorous mental training, only to return home under the cloak of night, all in the name of touching the hearts of youth. No big deal.

When they proceed to question me, I generally leave out the parts about how I couldn’t tell which of the black motorcade SUVs Pres. Obama was actually in, that the high ropes course was located at a bible camp, that good conversation with the Christian Brothers can always be described as receiving important information on life, and finally that the only reason I got home at night was because the train broke down 15 minutes from my house. Nonetheless, Orientation was again a learning experience filled with great reflection and sharing.

I was the first volunteer to arrive at Lewis University for the Lasallian Volunteer’s 20th Orientation. At first, I was filled with great excitement and a wash of anxiety. One by one, the people who have come to be my great friends over the past year trudged in with over-cramped luggage and healthy smiles, and soon after, 33 new LVs joined our family.

Our week was flooded with nuggets of activity and energetic presentations. First, we attended the Brothers of the Midwest District gathering and witnessed Brother Jubilarians celebrate 50, 60, 70 years as Christian Brothers. It was the first reminder of the week that what seems like the lifetime of knowledge I learned in my first year as a volunteer was only a single seed in a wide field of what the Lasallian Mission can inspire.

We continued the week with the high ropes course (my two feet here on earth is fine by me), thrilling sessions on faith, community and service, training seminars in diversity and conflict resolution, and an exciting kickoff for our annual marathon fundraiser. We were able to explore Chicago, and even gathered as a community at our San Miguel – Back of the Yards location. If that wasn’t enough, having a retreat day with “Noble Brothers,” discussing what community life might be like with our housemates with the help of the Myers-Briggs personality test, and even finger-painting some excitements and fears we had for the coming year were further highlights of the week.

We concluded our time together with the 20th Anniversary celebration of the Lasallian Volunteer program. Over 150 volunteers, Brothers, LV Alumni, and friends gathered to celebrate the history of the 500+ volunteers who have served in Lasallian ministries, and to commemorate the influences and advocates for our cause. It was refreshing and exciting to see just how many people were not only dedicated but energized by the Christian Brothers and the Lasallian Charism.

My second time through orientation, I realized there are a lot of nuts and bolts in a volunteer program. There are also a lot of emotions and reflections on life experiences that are sometimes veiled by the mere pace of the week. Our 2009-2010 volunteer group has a unique personality – one filled with idealism, fear, zeal, faith, and the unknown. But one feeling I am really starting to get a grasp for is the notion that I am not a guest in the mission of the Lasallian world. Indeed, I am an important part of it. I have a plot of ownership in its future, and it’s those little incarnations of Jesus, disguised as rough kids with teenage angst, that help me realize my adjustment into the real world of education and service. Now as I enter another year, it is reminded to me that the complex and thick picture I started with last year is a lot more simple and clear. What a week of Orientation can reveal!