“A GIFT FROM CRS”– Our Volunteer Intern Christine Smeby!

Our office has thoroughly enjoyed getting to know Lay Missioner Christine Smeby, and we thank Catholic Relief Services for sharing her with us. Christine will be volunteering her time here at the Center for Mission Office this summer.

You’ll enjoy this interview...read on...get to know Christine for yourself.

KJRZ: So, Christine, tell us about your family of origin and your call to mission.

CS: I come from a small family, by African standards: it’s just my parents Mike and Lynne, my sister Jennifer, and me. I grew up in St. Rita’s parish in Cottage Grove and attended Cretin-Derham High School and the College of St. Benedict. Without the strong support (and care packages!) from family and friends that I received while living abroad, I would have never been able to do this. As for my call, I have a degree in Computer Science and worked in the Information Technology field for over 4 years after college. I had felt restless during this time and was searching for my next step; I tried many paths but it always seemed like I was trying to force two non-matching puzzle pieces together. I finally had to let go of my own plan, and that’s when I found this volunteer program with Catholic Relief Services. From then on, the process was easy- even renting out my house and detangling myself from this American lifestyle that I had built up. Talk about the Holy Spirit at work!

KJRZ: Where have you served and in what cappacity?

CS: I am a volunteer with Catholic Relief Services, which consists of 18 months abroad working with a CRS “partner”, followed by 6 months here at the Center for Mission in my home archdiocese to share my experiences and to work on promoting Global Solidarity in our community. I lived in Burkina Faso, West Africa, working with OCADES, which stands for Catholic Organization for Development and Solidarity. I worked on an agriculture project funded by CRS to provide vegetables both to nutritionally supplement the villagers’ diets and to give them a revenue-generating activity, which is so important for villagers to be able to pay for schooling for their children and purchase medicine, food and other basic necessities.

KJRZ:: What have you learned from other cultures?

CS: In Burkina Faso, the people have so little, yet they always sought to share what little they had with me. They truly welcomed me into their homes and into their lives.

This overwhelming sense of hospitality permeated my experience from the moment I arrived in Burkina; it has made me examine how I welcome people and how I share what I have with others: do I give from the pool of all that I have as the Burkinabé people showed me?

KJRZ: What have you been working on at the Center for Mission?

CS: Global Solidarity Sunday! I am currently organizing parishes to celebrate Global Solidarity Sunday, on the feast of Corpus Christi, June 10th, in a special way. Parishes are getting involved in many ways: by inviting missioners from their own communities to share their experiences, serving Fair Trade coffee after Mass, learning about Catholic Social Teaching, and creating a global partnership with a parish or deepening existing relationships. Another big activity for me as a stateside Catholic Relief Services volunteer has been to speak with schools, parishes, and other organizations around the theme of Global Solidarity and my own experiences. I’m still available and eager to share with all who are interested.