Emily Dorward, a Lockport resident, was among nearly 50 Canisius College students who participated in the college’s Winter Service Week, helping at a Catholic Youth Organization (CYO) site in Syracuse.

Dorward is a sophomore early childhood and childhood dual major at Canisius College expected to graduate in 2016.

Volunteering to help refugees from all around the world adjust to their new lives in the United States was Dorward’s main goal at Syracuse Northside CYO.

“I will never forget the faces I saw there, especially those of the children who attended the After School Program,” Dorward says. “I always say ‘there are no kids like refugee kids’ because refugee kids are so remarkable: they have gone through so much in their lives, yet they still find the strength to carry on with a glowing smile on their faces.”

She plans to go on a similar trip with the Campus Ministry at Canisius this summer. She will be one of 11 girls going to Zmiaca, Poland, to work with children at an orphanage.

Organized by the Canisius Office of Campus Ministry, Winter Service Week provides students with opportunities to serve, work and learn in some of the poorest communities across the country. All trips are centered around the cornerstones of spirituality, solidarity, social justice and simplicity.

“We want our students to serve others but more importantly learn about and with others,” explains Sarah Signorino, associate campus minister. “This knowledge has the power to transform our students in many ways. They feel affirmed in their vocations, sometimes change majors, or even commit to a year of post-graduate service.”

Other Canisus students traveled to Erie, Pa., New York City and New Orleans for Winter Service Week.

Canisius is one of 28 Jesuit universities in the nation, and the premier private university in
Western New York.

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