“If you have come to help me, you can go home again. If you have come because you see our struggles as part of your own survival, perhaps we can work together.”

These words, spoken by Lila Watson, an Aboriginal woman from Australia, are difficult for those of us in this culture to understand. We so often like to “do” for others. The age-old argument over a bottle of beer in college was, “there are no true altruists. Anyone who does something for another, does it because it makes them feel good.” Rarely does a person volunteer out of a desire to understand and be part of the daily struggles of another.

The exceptions need to be noted. For the past 10 months, the Wenatchee area has been home to four Jesuit volunteers who believe that “a year of service makes a world of difference.”

In 2010, the 50-year-old Jesuit Volunteer Corps Northwest program partnered with AmeriCorps. Volunteers commit themselves to a year or more living in solidarity with people on the margins of society — those in poverty, those with disabilities, the abused and hungry. They also work in areas of advocacy and environmental justice.

In North Central Washington, there are six volunteers in Omak. This past year was the first time Wenatchee has been home to Jesuit Volunteer Corps (JVC) Northwest.

The values these young people embrace are at the core of what it means to be a Jesuit volunteer: simplicity of living, spirituality, social justice and community. They live together in a small, donated house, have a food allowance, use bikes and buses to get to work and live on a monthly stipend of $100. Learning to live in intentional community can be in itself a full-time vocation.

“The support provided by living together is invaluable,” says volunteer Carrie Heiberg, a graduate of St. Olaf College in Northfield, Minn.

Heiberg says she was drawn to JVC Northwest because of her interest in advocacy. She is serving with the Northwest Justice Project, a statewide legal firm providing free civil legal services to low-income people. The firm advocates for clients and helps them understand their rights and the resources available to them.

Volunteer Elena Barreto was born and raised in Puerto Rico and graduated from Boston College. Learning to navigate Wenatchee winters proved to be a particular challenge for Barreto and the other volunteers.

Her first year with JVC Northwest was spent working with an affordable housing program for farm worker families in Hillsboro, Ore. In Wenatchee, her assignment was with the Bruce Transitional Housing Program, assisting in case management as she worked with homeless families.

Housemate Liz Haney, another Boston College graduate, takes a bus five days a week to Leavenworth where she works with Upper Valley MEND, a nonprofit group building affordable homes in the area. Haney works with present land-trust home owners and assists in the selection and education of potential home owners.

Volunteering has been part of Haney’s life since beginning college. Next year, she will travel to Washington, D.C., and the Center of Concern as coordinator of ecology and development, researching global ecology movements related to climate change and resource use.

Angela Bagnasco’s JVC Northwest experience in Wenatchee was spent at The Mustard Seed Neighborhood Center. This center is a preschool and child care facility for families who cannot afford to pay for these services.

Caring for children, many who come with deep anger, has been a big learning curve for Bagnasco. Bringing her red worm composting skills to work enabled the children to learn and to ask many questions about environmental issues. Angela, a graduate of Villanova University in Pennsylvania, says she has gained emotional and spiritual tools that will help her life in the future. Next year, she plans to live in Austin, Texas, and use her creativity in programs relating to the environment.

In religious circles, the concept of vocation refers to “a called life of service.”

These young women are very articulate about their vocation. They are passionate about the work they are doing and hopeful the Wenatchee area will continue to have a Jesuit Volunteer presence. Each has commented on the joy of living in Wenatchee — not only because of the natural beauty, but the beauty of the community of people who live in the area who have supported and affirmed them in their work. They will leave the area by the end of August, and new Jesuit volunteers will take their places in the fall.

Mary Schramm has lived in Leavenworth for 18 years, where she managed Jubilee: Global Gifts, a fair-trade store. In her retirement, she enjoys returning to writing.