Personal Information

Full Name:
Last / First / Middle / Name you are called
Present Address:
Street Address / Apartment/Unit #
City / State / Zip Code
Phone: / ght
Email:
Birth Date: / Age: / Date Leaving Present Address:
Marital Status: : / Single Married* Separated* Divorced* Widowed* *(Date: )
Do you have a valid driver’s license? Yes No
Have you ever applied to Mercy Volunteer Corps before? No Yes, year

Permanent Contact Information (If Different from Above)

Address:
Street Address Apartment/Unit #
City / State / Zip Code
Phone:

Family

Please list the names and ages of your parents and/or children: / Please list the names and ages of your siblings:

Placement Information

I am applying for placement in the U.S.

I am applying for an international placement in Guyana.

If an international placement is not offered, are you willing to consider a U.S. placement?

Yes No

If applying for U.S. placement, in which region would you consider serving? Please check all that apply.

East Coast Southeast Midwest West Coast Southwest

If applying for international placement, please mark which discernment weekends you are able to attend.If you prefer to attend the March weekend, please submit your application as soon as possible and no later than January 15.

March 6-8, 2015 April 10-12, 2015

Service Interests

Health Care / Education / Social Services
Nurse*^
Occupational Therapist*
Physical Therapist*
Speech Therapist*
Patient Advocate+
Community Health Educator+
/ Teacher: General Education
Teacher: Special Education
Teacher Assistant
Tutoring
After School Program Coordinator
Computer Instructor
Job Coach+ / Women
Children
Homelessness/Housing
Counseling
Immigration+
Addiction/Recovery+
Community Outreach+
Domestic Violence+

Commitment

The one-year, full-time commitment begins August 4, 2015 for the 2015-2016 volunteer year. A member of Mercy Volunteer Corps must be 21 years of age or older, a high school graduate, able to work 40 hours per week at the assigned service site, able to live in an intentional community where there are persons of faith, and able to commit to living on a small stipend provided for personal and communal expenses. Are there any financial, family, or personal obligations or situations which may interfere with you completing the full term with Mercy Volunteer Corps? Please explain, using additional pages if necessary.

Possibilities

What other possibilities are you considering besides Mercy Volunteer Corps (e.g., other volunteer programs, employment, graduate school)? What is your status with these other options?

Transcripts

Please send us a copy of all transcripts for undergraduate and graduate work to date.

Résumé

Please submit a separate résumé that includes all of the following (no more than two pages please):
Name, current and permanent addresses, phone numbers, and e-mail address.
Education: Beginning with the most recent, list all schools attended including secondary school. List the name of
the school (city and state); major(s)/minor(s); years attended; degree(s) or certificate(s) awarded and
dates received or anticipated.
Professional Credentials (e.g., teaching, nursing, physical therapy, counseling, law): Indicate subject area, level,
state or area of certification, etc. and indicate dates received or anticipated. Please include a copy of
your most recent certification/license for your area of expertise.
Work Experience: Please give the name of the organization(s) and the position(s) held, beginning with the most
recent; briefly describe the responsibilities and indicate dates.
Volunteer Experience: Please give the name of the organization(s) or group(s) with whom you served and briefly
describe your role as a volunteer.
Experience Abroad: Please list any experiences abroad whether for service, school, or pleasure, short-term or long
term.
Related Skills and Experience: List any other experiences or activities that you consider to be valuable and useful
as a volunteer (e.g., service trips, caregiver to family member in need of assistance with daily living).

References

Please list the four individuals whom you’ve asked to complete a reference form. These individuals should currently know you well, be in a position to reflect on your general character and motivation, and be able to evaluate your compatibility with Mercy Volunteer Corps’ mission statement.
Please email the reference form to the following: 1) a person who knows you in a volunteer role, 2) a peer or friend, 3) an employer or work supervisor, and 4) an additional professional reference such as a professor, academic or organization advisor, or second employer or supervisor. Please do not ask relatives. Each reference should email the completed reference form to the address listed on the form.
VOLUNTEER:
Name: / Phone:
E-mail Address:
PEER:
Name: / Phone:
E-mail Address:
EMPLOYER:
Name: / Phone:
E-mail Address:
PROFESSIONAL:
Name: / Phone:
E-mail Address:

Reflection Essays

Mercy Volunteer Corps desires to partner with individuals who are committed to personal reflection and
discernment in preparing to serve as a Mercy Volunteer. With this commitment in mind, we ask you to please
share more about yourself and your life experiences in the following essay questions. Your candid and thorough responses will be helpful to you and to Mercy Volunteer Corps in exploring your readiness to make a one year commitment. There are no specific answers for which we are looking. Knowing you better helps us to make a successful Mercy Volunteer Corps match. Please begin your responses on the page after the questions or attach them together as one separate document.
Essay 1: Motivation (up to one page)
Why do you want to be a member of Mercy Volunteer Corps? How does 1 year with Mercy Volunteer Corps fit into your long term personal and professional goals?
Essay 2: Commitment to the Mission of Mercy Volunteer Corps (up to three pages)
MVC’s Mission Statement: “In partnership with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, lay women and men of Mercy Volunteer Corps enter into relationship with people who are economically poor or marginalized. In a spirit of mutuality, volunteers cultivate mercy and justice in the world by embracing compassionate service, social justice, spirituality and a simple lifestyle in community.”
How does the mission statement above resonate with your life experiences? Provide specific examples of how you have embraced the values listed in the mission statement: compassionate service, social justice, spirituality, simplicity and community living. How do you hope to live out the values during your year with MVC?
Essay 3: Self-awareness and Interpersonal Relationships(up to three pages)
Give a specific example of a recent conflict between yourself and a friend, peer, or co-worker that demonstrates your typical style of communicating while in conflict. From this experience of conflict, please share an insight that you discovered about yourself.
Describe how your behavior (particularly at work and in interpersonal relationships) is affected when under stress. How do you work through and relieve stress? How do you manage multiple responsibilities?
For what type of work are you best suited? What skills and experience do you bring to this type of work?
What do you like best about yourself? Is there anything you would like to improve while a Mercy Volunteer?
Essay 4: Autobiography
Note: Essay 4 is to be completed ONLY by applicants applying for international placement.
Guidelines for Autobiographical Essay:
The autobiography is an integral part of the international application. It is intended to assist you in your discernment process and preparations for cross-cultural transition. The purpose of the questions is to guide you in reflecting on your experience in a focused way and to recognize and own those persons, places, and events that have shaped WHO you are today. Please type about a page in each area.
(Continued on Next Page)
Childhood and Early School Years
Where did you grow up? Describe your parents and your relationship with each. Who were other significant persons for you during this part of your life (i.e., brothers, sisters, friends, teachers)? How did you like your childhood? Were there any particularly wonderful or difficult moments during these years?
Adolescence
How did you like your "teen years?" Who were the significant people for you then? In what were you interested? Did you date? What were the life issues that emerged from this time? In what ways does this period of your life impact you now?
Early Adulthood/Adult Life
What experiences led you to choose your present commitment? Who are the important people in your life? What motivated your decision to enter your current occupation/ministry/field of study? Describe some significant growth experiences you have had as an adult. Have you ever been in personal counseling? If so, please include for what length of time and with what benefit in your life.
Abuse/Violence/Trauma
Have you experienced any form of abuse, violence, or trauma in your personal life or been exposed to it in any way? How have you dealt with this abuse/violence/trauma? In what ways has the experience affected and/or continued to affect your life?
I understand that securing a placement with Mercy Volunteer Corps is contingent upon a medical examination by a physician and a criminal background check performed by Mercy Volunteer Corps.
If applying to the U.S. program and I am able to participate in the AmeriCorps Education Award Program, I understand that this application is part of the process in determining my eligibility for AmeriCorps.
My typed name or signature attests that the enclosed information is accurate and true to the best of my knowledge. While this application places no binding obligation on me or Mercy Volunteer Corps, it does indicate a serious intention on my part to join Mercy Volunteer Corps.
Signature: / Date:
Essay Responses
Please begin typing your responses to the essays below using additional pages as needed or attach your essays as a separate document.

MERCY VOLUNTEER CORPS

Identity Statement

Mission Statement

In partnership with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, lay women and men of Mercy Volunteer Corps (MVC), enter into relationship with people who are economically poor and marginalized. In a spirit of mutuality, volunteers cultivate mercy and justice in the world by embracing compassionate service, social justice, spirituality and a simple lifestyle in community.

About Us Statement

Mercy Volunteer Corps promotes social change by placing and supporting volunteers for one year of service with people who are poor and marginalized in the U.S. and South America. Volunteers work in education, healthcare, and social services while living together in a community and growing spiritually.

Vision Statement

Rooted in the spirit of the Scriptures and Catherine McAuley and challenged by the needs of a world in a new millennium, Mercy Volunteer Corps, committed to achieving a more merciful and just world, invites women and men to join with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas to:

• expand the boundaries of service to poor, sick, and uneducated persons within and beyond the U.S.;

• encourage multicultural diversity within the Mercy Volunteer Corps community and among the people served;

• participate in building community with poor persons and the other ministers of service at the service sites;

• embrace the growth inherent in the conversion process of acting in solidarity with economically poor or marginalized people;

• integrate the learned values of service, community, and prayer into their life experience; and

• develop new relationships with the Mercy community throughout and beyond their service year(s).

Theology of Mission

Called and missioned by God, the Mercy Volunteer Corps staff, board members, and volunteers commit to the values of compassionate service, a simple lifestyle in community, and spiritual growth. The mission of Mercy Volunteer Corps is rooted in the Christian tradition and inspired by Catherine McAuley's commitment to following Jesus through compassionate service. In partnership with the Sisters of Mercy of the Americas, Mercy Volunteer Corps is dedicated to connecting lay women and men with people who are economically poor or marginalized. Committed to this mission of mercy, we seek to respond as a community to the tremendous disparities of wealth and power in our world.

We seek to model service that is characterized by accompaniment, mutuality, and respect. We strive to respect the life and dignity of each person with whom we live, serve, and pray, ever conscious of God's presence in all of creation. In our service, community, and prayer, we reach out in love and mercy and learn to receive love and mercy from others. Opening ourselves to God’s transforming grace, we hope to be instruments of peace and agents of change in the world.