By james art
A new “I crave” club serves the poor and emotionally vulnerable
This year, University of Dallas students have a new opportunity to serve the needy and vulnerable in the greater Irving community. Thirsty, a student-run service club started by juniors Violetta Marovich and Mary Mezier, and senior Claire Safranek, offers students an opportunity to serve the emotionally vulnerable, especially those confined to nursing homes who often have no one to visit them.
“Our main thing is we want to have consistency with people there so they can really build relationships,” Marovich said.
The idea for the club began when Marovich, Mézières and Safranek went on a mission trip to Calcutta, India, through Project Finding Calcutta, a nonprofit charitable organization in Dallas. Marovich said: “We all went to Calcutta together and it was such an amazing journey for us. And then Anand, who is in charge of Project Finding Calcutta, gave us the idea to start a club here on campus, and above all to involve all the students.”
The club brings to Irving the missionary spirit of Mother Teresa and her emphasis on the poorest of the poor and the emotionally distressed. Marovich said, “Mother Teresa always said to find your own Calcutta wherever you are.”
The name of the club “I am thirsty” comes from one of the last words of Christ on the cross in the Gospel. Marovich said, “This is His thirst for all of us, and we want to bring the light of Christ to every person we meet and see Christ in them and help them see Christ in us through our love, even if they are not Christians.”
When asked how the club has impacted its members, Marovich said that “every meeting with every person is really impactful, hearing their stories. We had a man, Burt, who has cancer and is in pain and after talking to him we asked if he would like to pray with us and he began to pray with so much hope and gratitude to God even though he was in so much suffering .”
Marovich spoke about the benefits of serving those in need as a group, saying, “you learn from everyone else you volunteer with, like how to react to things and because some people are better at noticing certain needs of the people there , you learn how to love the people you serve better through the people you serve with.”
Marovich then said people don’t have to be at the club to participate in the service. She said: “We have a GroupMe where we’ll say if we’re going to do a favor somewhere, but anyone can come with us all the time.”
The club’s main activity right now is visiting nursing homes on Thursday afternoons from 3:30 to 4:45 p.m. Marovich said in addition to those visits, the club will soon begin doing other missions during the week, including serving the local homeless. Those wishing to participate in the missions can contact any of the club leaders.
Participating in I Crave is an excellent way for UD students to engage with the local community in serving the most vulnerable in Irving. The club provides a group with which one can learn to help the poorest of the poor and joins Mother Teresa in calling everyone to find their own Calcutta wherever they are.