Katherine Hackett ’11

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2011

Correctional Volleyball, Penguin Plunge, Best Buddies, Core Team Leader, and Service Trip Participant

What involvement did/do you have with MOVE? What program did/do you volunteer with and/or lead? What years?
2007-2011 involved with Apple Picking, Correctional Volleyball, Penguin Plunge (lead 2009, 2011 and still plunge today) Best Buddies (Core Team 2010, 2011) Attended service trips as both a student and a staff member to NOLA (both), Florida (staff), DR (student), Hartford (both) and oh man so many random things! A few Dismas House dinners the summer I worked at SMC. Slept in the Shack every year, helped organized the MOVE silent auction one (or two?) summers

What’s your MOVE story?
I love MOVE because you can dive right into something you love, or you can sign up for special events and annual offerings here and there. If you’re like me, you’ll do both! MOVE was a place that helped me learn more about my new community. People talk about the SMC bubble, but joining MOVE helped me to truly live the mission by thinking globally and acting locally. MOVE became my home within St. Mike’s, and I still call the directors of MOVE friends. It is within the walls of the tiny MOVE office that I cried on tough days, laughed every day, learned about my next job opportunities, and became a better person. MOVE celebrated my strengths and challenged my weaknesses. It made learning more exciting, and asking the tough questions easier. It inspired me in countless ways, and gave me the best of friends.

In what ways did/does MOVE impact you?
MOVE taught me to remember all aspects of service. The Head, Heart, Hands exercise stays with me to this day, always remembering to educate yourself and others about the situation, to understand those you are working with are helping you just as much as you might be helping them, and to always put in the effort to make a difference, big or small.

If you are an alumni, what influence does MOVE continue to have on your life today?
MOVE taught me that I am a better person when I am constantly challenging myself. To become comfortable feeling uncomfortable is the only way to grow. MOVE gave me those opportunities throughout my time at SMC as a student and a staff member, and reminds me to seek new adventures throughout my adult life.