Msgr. Raymond East, pastor of St. Teresa of Avila Parish in Washington, D.C. and a nationally known evangelist and preacher, was honored Sept. 29 by the Ignatian Volunteer Corps (IVC) with the Kathleen Curtin Spirituality in Mission Award.
The award, named in honor of the very first lay spiritual reflector in the IVC’s National Capital Area, honors the talented women and men, lay and ordained, who companion IVC members through their reflection on the experience of serving.
It was presented during IVC’s 30th anniversary and Evening of Gratitude celebration on Sunday, September 29 at Georgetown Visitation Preparatory School.
In accepting the award, Msgr. East said he was honored to be in the company of Kathleen Curtin and remarked about her own commitment to IVC. “God is good all the time, and it’s in that goodness that God has placed each one of us here with a mission and a purpose,” he said.
He reflected on his teen years in San Diego, where he first encountered Ignatian spirituality as a member of a Jesuit parish. “With that beginning, it’s just been amazing to be anchored in Ignatian spirituality,” Msgr. East said.
Here in Washington, D.C., Msgr. East said IVC changed his life when Living Wages – a nonprofit that helps those who never had a high school education obtain a diploma – was hosted for many years at St. Teresa of Avila Parish. Since partnering with Living Wages, IVC members have helped more than 400 adults achieve this milestone.
Looking towards the future, Msgr. East told the attendees that “we need to pass the baton. There’s a whole new generation of ‘younger’ older adults who need to join us.”
He promised to spread the IVC charism across the nation, and possibly even to Canada and Mexico “as we join together, leaning into the wind with the spirit of St. Ignatius to be people for others, community for others, and to bring along the next 30 years of endless possibilities.”
IVC also honored prominent Catholic leaders Joan Rosenhauer, who recently retired as president of Jesuit Refugee Service/USA, and Dan Misleh, founder of Catholic Climate Covenant with the Madonna Della Strada Award. The award honors lives that reflect the Ignatian values of direct service to the poor and working and educating for a more just society.
IVC President and CEO Mary McGinnity expressed her gratitude to the honorees and attendees by noting that IVC is looking to the future, focused on its growth, vitality, and expansion.
With more than 300 partner agencies across the country doing amazing work now, many need even more IVC members to support them. “It’s a wonderful treasure of men and women who have a lifetime of skills and wisdom to give into this community, and we want to bring that forward,” she said.
IVC is a Jesuit-sponsored organization that provides retired men and women, age 50 and older, with substantive opportunities to serve others and transform lives. Today, more than 600 volunteers from 16 regions in the United States (and a virtual region worldwide) serve those in need one or two days per week, participate in spiritual formation, and share their experiences in community with one another.
