Loyola University Chicago

Loyola4Chicago is a program of Ministry in which students provide 4 hours a week of volunteer service in Chicago during the academic year.  Students work in service teams at various sites including work with children, teens, refugees, low-wage workers, persons experiencing homelessness, and others.  Each team is led by a student CORE leader who coordinates meeting times, and facilitates the group’s reflection on the service experience. 

The aim of Loyola4Chicago is twofold:

1)  To give students the opportunity to experience Chicago’s diverse populations and needs through an extended urban service experience that provides reliable, consistent assistance from the Loyola community;

2)  To provide the opportunity for students to reflect on their experience, analyze the social systems impacting the lives of the people they work with, and foster a commitment to creating a more just society.   

Fundamental to the program is Ministry’s commitment to fostering a “faith that does justice” among members of the Loyola community.  Service with reflection is the best and most direct way that students begin to fulfill the Jesuit educational goal of becoming “persons for solidarity for the real world.” Working among the poor, the ill, and the marginalized raises the universal questions of life’s meaning and purpose. Our religious traditions offer rich resources for addressing these questions.  People of all faiths are welcome to participate in Loyola4Chicago. And while a faith perspective will be part of reflection, more than anything an openness to grappling with the questions that consistent volunteer service inevitably raises is a must. 

Monthly reflections organized by the student Core Leaders consist of informal gatherings among individual groups that may include a dinner, attending a lecture, or even bowling.  Any forum that breeds room for discussion and fun is welcome and encouraged.   Two gatherings each year bring all the Loyola4Chicago groups together and share their experiences through a relaxing, supportive environment that is bound to breed friendships and present continued opportunities to become involved with working for justice through service.

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"We cannot do everything, and there is a sense of liberation in realizing that. This enables us to do something, and to do it very well."

-- Oscar Romero    

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 "The people I worked along side with and the kids I helped with were awesome. I can't wait to do this again next year!"

"I found every person I met to be warm and welcoming. Being a freshman this program made the transition into college so much easier."

"Loyola4Chicago has allowed me to form a family with my volunteer group. It has helped me meet others who are passionate about serving the greater Chicago area."

Places We Volunteer