Service Through the Lens of Kindness
By Luke Dolan ’ 19
Every morning I would start off with a coffee and then commute to work . By the time I arrived at the Red Cross building in Midtown , there would be a line of asylumseekers stretching down 49th Street and onto 10th Avenue ; many had been camping on the street since midnight in the hope of receiving an appointment at our overcrowded Asylum Application Help Center . I had the privilege of helping those lucky enough to navigate the NYC appointment scheduling system with their asylum cases . My days were spent interviewing refugees and organizing their accounts into a clear narrative for their asylum application . The process was simple : I would speak to an asylum-seeker about their reasons for fleeing their country , translate their story from Spanish to English , chronologically organize their experiences , then write a narrative for their application . The work was incredibly demanding , and there were nights I was unable to sleep after hearing harrowing stories , but I understood these feelings of shock as the inevitable consequence of working in service of people who have been the victims of some of humanity ’ s worst moments . I was honored when I was asked by Saint David ’ s to provide a reflection on my experiences as both a volunteer and legal assistant , and I thought it would be an opportune moment to look back at my work through the context of Dr . O ’ Halloran ’ s theme for this year , kindness . With a presidential election this year , increasing domestic polarization , and growing global conflicts , kindness is an increasingly necessary skill in our modern world . I believe that kindness is formed at the intersection of intellectual curiosity and communication , two themes present in every facet of Saint David ’ s .
Before ever working to address the immigration crisis in New York , I had the privilege of visiting the Mexican-American border . While there , I was able to talk to ranchers , nuns , migrants , and many other people who all had differing opinions on migration .
Through these conversations , I sought a better understanding of the needs of those affected by immigration , and began to realize that while many groups disagreed , no group was entirely right . Many ranchers in Arizona felt that the United States did not have sufficient border security , and many others felt that the United States was not doing enough to support refugees and asylumseekers . I do feel that we need to divert more resources towards supporting refugees , but I also feel that border security is one of the hallmarks of any advanced nation . My intellectual curiosity —
Luke Dolan ’ 19 reading at the 2022 Advent Service of Lessons and Carols .
22 • Saint David ’ s Magazine