Faith in Action
Service
St. Joe’s students are called to complete 20 service hours each year.
Through service, our students make a real impact and grow in compassion, deepening their sense of Brotherhood and sisterhood, especially with those who are in need.
Campus Ministry offers local service opportunities and full-service immersion trips to engage students and inspire them to live lives of service at St. Joe's and beyond.
Service Hours Reporting:
Students should use the online form linked below to report their service hours throughout the year, upon completion of the hours.
Service
Immersion Trips
Our Service Immersion Program is a unique experience, offering students the chance to expand beyond our Buffalo community and serve with organizations doing incredible work in their communities. As a fully immersive experience, our students form deep connections and return from these trips with a zeal, ready to put their faith into action.
La Salle Education Center | Homestead, FL
During February break, students escape the cold in Buffalo and travel to Homestead, Florida, to work with the Lasallian Educational Center. We partner with this Lasallian school, which serves students from migrant families.
In an era of suffering for immigrants, going to Homestead inspires our students to be in solidarity with those seeking a better life and see the young people we serve as brothers and sisters in Christ.
Bethlehem Farm | West Virginia
Bethlehem Farm is a Catholic community in rural Appalachia that provides services to the residents. Students spend the week living the Gospel principles of service, prayer and simplicity by completing home repairs in impoverished neighborhoods.
Oscar Romero Center | Camden, NJ
This immersion trip offers a powerful look at urban poverty—its causes and the daily challenges people face. Camden reveals the effects of urban decay, including struggling schools, scarce affordable housing, limited jobs, homelessness, hunger, violence, and environmental injustice.
Through a lens of faith, it encourages participants to grow in understanding, compassion and a lasting commitment to support the poor and vulnerable.
Br. David Darst Center | Chicago, IL
A ministry of the Christian Brothers, the Darst Center invites students to different service sites throughout the city of Chicago. Students reflect on historical and current forms of oppression as they immerse themselves in the lived realities of people who are marginalized.
Local Service Opportunities
Program Highlights
In April 2025, seven St. Joe's students travelled to the Romero Center in Camden, NJ, for an immersion retreat. Throughout the week, they volunteered at a wide variety of service sites, including soup kitchens, bread lines, after-school centers and homes for people with disabilities. Evening reflections included learning about the tenets of Catholic Social Teaching and the life of St. Oscar Romero, whose legacy calls on people to advocate for people on the margins of society.
"An immersion trip is such a valuable experience...It teaches you so much about yourself and others. You get to see the world through a new perspective."
Nico Pizzella, '27
