Not all college students believe that the road to success leads to a cushy job and material wealth. A group of 120 students from DePaul University in Chicago will spend spring break seeking life’s deeper meaning while engaging in community service work in 10 cities and towns across the United States from March 20-27.

Students will plan a demonstration in Baltimore and assist refugees in Toronto. They will work with physically disabled children in Montgomery, Ala. and lend encouragement to people living with HIV and AIDS in New Orleans. The intricacies of grassroots community work and social justice will be taught to them in Brooklyn and Philadelphia. In Cranks Creek, Ky., the heart of Appalachia, they will repair homes, while they help to build them in Memphis through Habitat for Humanity. Students will advocate for the homeless in Washington, D.C. and help to maintain the connection between nature and spirituality in Plymouth, Wis.

"There are hundreds of students who want to spend their break lying on a beach, but there are students out there who are looking for fulfillment of another kind," explained Scott Gross, assistant coordinator for DePaul’s community service programs, who planned this year’s spring break service trips. "The circumstances that students are in today don’t always allow for volunteering. There’s pressure to go to school, get a job, to succeed financially; the emphasis is on money."

DePaul has sponsored the alternative spring break activities for 11 years. The program demonstrates the university’s Vincentian mission, which seeks to instill in its students a commitment to the service of others. Frequently, Catholic organizations in the project cities arrange the students’ meals and accommodations, housing students in parishes, shelters and community centers.

Ten teams that consist of a staff leader, a student leader and anywhere from 10 to 20 students have been assigned a destination. The groups will gather at DePaul to leave for their sites on March 20. They will travel by van to their destinations. One of the benefits of community service is forming relationships with fellow volunteers. According to Gross, the long rides to various cities and towns help the students to bond.

Any student enrolled in the university who wants to do service work is eligible to participate. "Our goal is to create teams that work well together and are well-balanced in terms of experience level, ethnicity, race and gender," said Gross.

Students contribute $100 toward their individual expenses. They raise half of the money by selling raffle tickets and the other half comes out of the their pockets. Students sold tickets to this year’s fundraiser, a suitcase party, where party-goers came packed in preparation of winning the grand prize – an all-expense paid trip to Ft. Lauderdale donated by Southwest Airline.

Immersion in community service work is a learning experience in itself. However, the community service project allocates time specifically for education and reflection. In Montgomery, half of the students’ day is devoted to the discussion of race relations and following the civil rights trail, according to Gross. Students who take the community service trip to Memphis also take in a chapter from the civil rights movement when they tour the civil rights museum housed in the hotel where Martin L. King, Jr. was killed.

Gross will accompany the group to Toronto where they will assist refugees and immigrants with housing, job training and educational and medical services. One of the educational activities taking place in Toronto is a late-night "streetwalk," during which the group will observe what happens to runaway youth and prostitutes, many of whom are refugees, on the streets at night.

In Baltimore, students will study peace activism with a Christian social justice community, and then research and plan a demonstration on a social issue. On Friday, they will travel to Washington, D.C. to hold a peaceful demonstration. "Last year the students held a vigil to oppose U.S. sanctions against Iraq after they learned that 4,500 children starve to death every month because of these sanctions," said Gross.

According to Gross, the students at DePaul and those like them who participate in community service trips around the country are really not that different from young people anywhere. It’s what happens to them after the week of community service ends that makes a difference. "Last year they may have done the beach thing, but after this experience, they will probably look at the world differently," said Gross. "Like the director of our Community Service Office always says, ‘it’s human nature to try to find meaning in life.’"