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SA���ʴ�ý’s University students travel to Los Angeles and visit Homeboy Industries.

Some of life’s most valuable education takes place outside of the classroom. For students from SA���ʴ�ý’s University, the recent annual spring break trip to Los Angeles-based was a chance to see faith, dedication and hard work in action.

Homeboy Industries is an employment and re-entry program for former gang members. Since 1988, Father Gregory Boyle, Dolores Mission Church and the Homeboy Industries team have worked with thousands of men and women to provide gang intervention, rehabilitation services and re-entry into society.

SA���ʴ�ý’s students experience community and rehabilitation firsthand through service at Homeboy Industries

Josiah Tiblow served as the SA���ʴ�ý’s University student lead for this recent visit. He chose to participate after speaking with students who had attended in previous trips. “The way that they lit up with passion spoke to me,” Tiblow recalls. “I attended the trip last year for the first time and was extremely shocked by how sheltered I was from reality as a result of my privilege. As a result, I wanted to come back as a student lead and continue to learn from the community.”

Tiblow believes such service immersion trips are crucial “because they reveal who you really are. For me, going on this trip made my vocation clear to me and it has done the same with my peers. By being able to go and face the rawness of the world in regard to social justice issues allows you to navigate those issues in a productive way.”

For John Hopkins, the University’s chief dignity officer and one of the trip’s faculty leads, these visits epitomize the fundamental Catholic belief “in the human person’s redemption and restoration. As Father Boyle says, ‘Forgive everyone, always.’”

From the faculty perspective, Hopkins believes “this course is transformative of students’ world and self-understanding. The person they were when they began, in some way, no longer exists. They have experienced something that changes them. We can see this in their encounters with others in the class, as well as their academic writing.”

Students gain new understanding through immersive learning spring break trip

For Emily Alberts, program manager of the SA���ʴ�ý’s Office of Campus Ministry, the trip to Los Angeles impacts her life differently every time. “My first experience was new and taught me a lot, and the second time deepened my understanding and love for the community,” says Alberts. “It is inspiring to see the transformational power of this trip for our students.”

She says that many students reevaluate their lives, field of study, vocation and understanding of service and community. “The individuals in the community are so loving and practice radical hospitality in a way we strive to, and it is so beautiful to see how it is lived authentically and the impact it has on everyone who experiences it, including our students,” says Alberts.

This was especially true for student Susana Diaz. She worried about stepping out of her comfort zone but found the sense of community around East LA’s Boyle Heights neighborhood, where Homeboy Industries is based, “was so tight knit and truly caring towards one another, and their hospitality and genuineness made me feel like I was part of the community there as well.”

Diaz is a social work major in her last year of undergraduate study. She says this visit “allowed me to see the systems and vulnerable communities that are being affected in today’s society. I saw the ongoing rise of homelessness in East LA and how individuals were in desperate need of basic necessities such as food and water; it is extremely devastating to witness. But it also served as a reminder that there are individuals out there who need our help and as a future social worker not only am I looking forward to helping and providing assistance to them but truly walking alongside these vulnerable communities and the obstacles they are facing.”

SA���ʴ�ý’s students learn how small acts can change the world

To date, Homeboy Industries has helped nearly 8,000 Los Angeles community members through tutoring, therapy, case management, substance abuse support, legal services, tattoo removal, an art academy and so much more. Their address the many needs of starting a new life after breaking the cycle of gang involvement.

For Diaz and several other participants, the main takeaway was a simple one: act of love and compassion go a long way and fulfill something everyone longs for. “Be that person who extends a hand instead of pushing them away,” she says, “offer your seat when someone is tired, give your extra coat to someone who is shivering. The Dolores Mission and Homeboy Industries are not only agencies established to help those in need but they truly are what some individuals call home, which I believe is something rare and very raw to witness.”

In the University’s mission statement, SA���ʴ�ý’s “honors both the sacredness of the individual and the significance of community in the ongoing journey of becoming…SA���ʴ�ý’s students learn to make a positive difference in their lives and in the lives of others through the interaction of faith, reason, and service.” Thanks to their partnership with Homeboy Industries, SA���ʴ�ý’s provides students and faculty with transformative opportunities to live out the University’s mission by engaging directly with communities, deepening their understanding of human dignity and service, and learning how to create meaningful change for generations to come.