Our #MyMagisMessage for the week comes from Madelene Lussier, a sophomore Biology major and Spanish and Chemistry minor!
At which service sites / community partners have you served or been a student liaison?
I have served with St. Francis After School Math Tutoring, St. Martin de Porres After School Credit Recovery, Esperazna ESL tutoring, and the Saturday Tutoring Program.
If you had to state your life mission off the top of your head, in one sentence, what would it be?
Always stay humble and kind.
As a second semester sophomore, many would say much of my college experience has been stripped away by the coronavirus pandemic; I learned fully remote for the second half of my freshmen year and the first half of my sophomore year. However, I tend to chafe against the expectation that I learned nothing or that nothing good came out of my two semesters online. During the time I spent at home, I deepened friendships and learned the importance of reaching out to others, regardless of distance.
If you had asked me during my senior year of high school what my life would look like now, I could never have imagined such a reality. Not only am I living through a global pandemic, but I have grown more as a person than I ever believed possible. Although I completed many hours of community service while growing up, those experiences never allowed me to build relationships with people from all walks of life as my service placements at John Carroll have.
One such experience that has radically changed the person I am, was the semester I spent tutoring Spanish English as a Second Language to students through Esperanza Inc. Esperanza was a placement I was hesitant to agree to, even though I have taken six years of Spanish, but my fears were unwarranted. The individuals I tutored through the program taught me about patience, strength, and motivation beyond what I ever thought was possible. Those individuals inspired me to continue learning Spanish, as I recently declared it my minor and also gave me the confidence to chase my dreams of becoming a Physician’s Assistant because I want to continue helping people beyond my time as a college student.
My ultimate goal in life is to leave this world a better place than I found it, even if it means helping one person at a time. Before becoming to John Carroll, I had no idea what my future career would look like, but my many service placements, especially Esperanza, have inspired me to pursue a career in health services. My experiences through the Center for Service and Social Action thus far have emboldened me to pursue new opportunities, regardless of how daunting they may seem. I will forever be grateful to John Carroll and CSSA because, without them, I would certainly not be the person I am today.