Sometimes the next step after graduation isn’t about rushing into a career, it’s about taking a different kind of risk. In this piece by Frank Rajkowski, we hear from two seniors stepping into that space through the Benedictine Volunteer Corps.

Cormac O'Connor and Robert Adderly share what led them to say yes to a year of service, community, and life in places far from what they’ve known. Their stories offer a simple reminder: sometimes the best decision is the one that stretches you.

Alec Otte ’24 recently appeared in an episode of Seeking Beauty on EWTN, as David Henrie visited Subiaco and stepped into the prayerful rhythm of Benedictine life. Around the 7:55 mark, Alec helps welcome Henrie into the monastery with the kind of calm, grounded presence that has marked his year of service. It is a small moment in the episode, but a meaningful one for the BVC, seeing one of our own quietly representing the Benedictine tradition in the place where it all began.

You are invited to the United States premiere of Something to Smile About, a documentary by Benedictine Volunteer Corps alumni Sam Rengo and Peyton Reece, on Sunday, May 3rd at 6:00 p.m. in the Stephen B. Humphrey Theater.

Born from a simple but unsettling question, how joy persists amid hardship, the film follows the lives of young men in Mathare, Kenya, revealing a world marked by struggle, yet sustained by resilience, dignity, and unexpected hope.

Join us for an evening that asks something deeper of us: to see more clearly, to listen more closely, and perhaps to leave changed. East African food will be shared following the screening.

RSVP here

As the night unfolded, we looked ahead, sharing updates, hopes, and the unfolding vision for what the Benedictine Volunteer Corps is becoming. There was a sense, unmistakable and steady, that this work is far from finished.

On April 18th, more than fifty Benedictine Volunteer Corps alumni and friends gathered at Park Tavern for an evening that felt less like an event and more like a homecoming. Conversations picked up where they had left off, across years, continents, and callings, woven together by a shared experience that continues to shape lives long after the year of service ends. Amid laughter and familiar faces, stories resurfaced, new ones took root, and the quiet thread of the BVC’s mission revealed itself once again: enduring, expansive, and deeply personal.

One cool night in mid-March, the evening routine at the Abadía de Jesucristo Crucificado in Esquipulas, Guatemala, was in full swing. The general hubbub of dinner cleanup had calmed down, and like any other night, I took a few minutes to bounce around and mingle with some of the monks. On this particular night, I found myself sitting across from Padre Juan, one of the veteran priests and somewhat of a “fun uncle” figure in the monastery. Many of the younger monks look up to him for his mentorship, warm sense of humor, and well-timed words of wisdom.

After shooting the breeze for a bit, he asked how I was feeling as my time as a volunteer in Esquipulas was reaching its end. I shared that it was a mix of emotions and that I was torn between my longing for home and my love for Esquipulas and the people I’ve met here. Padre Juan gave a gentle, understanding nod and started his response how I expected he would. He affirmed that it was normal to have those conflicting feelings and that it was important to take it all in and enjoy the time I have left here.

Then, he went in a direction I wasn’t expecting. He added something to the effect of, “You will carry all the good things you’ve gained here back with you. Your life will be so different in beautiful ways because of your time here.” That caught me off guard. I knew he was right, but I hadn’t given much thought to the aftermath of my volunteer year.

I left that conversation thinking about the BVC mission statement: “Prayer, service, and community living worldwide to transform lives.” I had been given a new question to ponder: Whose life was being transformed? Before my chat with Padre Juan, I had been so focused on how my work was transforming the lives of the monks, my students, my fellow teachers, and the general Esquipulas community. However, this wise Guatemalan monk, who has become a good friend, had shown me a new understanding of that phrase, “to transform lives.” I had never really stopped to consider that maybe the life undergoing the biggest transformation through my volunteerism was my own.

After some reflection, I realized I had undoubtedly felt that transformation. Seeing the joy and curiosity in my students, gaining insight from my colleagues, making music in a gorgeous basilica, and swapping stories with the monks have all been nothing short of life-giving.

Now, as my time as a volunteer in Guatemala reaches its final days, I find myself tackling the daunting question, which I’m sure is familiar to many of you: What’s next? As my gaze has shifted from my life here to my fast-approaching life back home, it has left me wondering how life will be different because of these priceless past few months. My time in Central America has certainly changed me in the best ways, but how will this experience make my life different back in the States? How will my life back home be transformed because of this past year? I suppose those aren’t questions I can completely untangle right now, but what I do know is that I can’t wait to spend the rest of my life answering them.

As we enter the part of the year defined by bittersweet endings and new beginnings, I invite you, Bennies and Johnnies, to be open to the ways your life in the upcoming months and years will transform you, especially through opportunities to serve others. If there is one thing this past year taught me, it’s that service is transformational. Whether it be through a volunteer program like the BVC or a smaller service opportunity in your local community, serving the greatest needs of the world does indeed transform lives for the better, on both the giving and receiving ends.

As we step into this summer and beyond, find those ways to reach out and give of yourself. The opportunities to do so are everywhere. All you have to do is say yes, show up, and let the transformation take shape.

Yeah. That Arnold Schwarzenegger.

So do Codie Sanchez, Scott Galloway, Colin & Samir, Shaan Puri, and Jay Shetty. And none of them are doing it for fun. They're doing it because a list you own compounds in ways that social media never will.

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