My Brother’s Keeper has long been ‘a ministry of education,’ providing transformative Christian service experiences to more than 500 student-volunteers annually.

In recent years, we’ve also become ‘a ministry of formation’ offering retreats and ministry opportunities for future priests and deacons.

Every May we host ‘Deacon Plunge,’ a 2½ day service retreat for men in the Diaconate Formation Program of the Archdiocese of Boston. Each day begins with Mass and is filled with prayer, direct service and evening reflection. At night, the men sleep on mattresses on our warehouse floor to live in solidarity with the poor and homeless.

In a letter of thanks, formation director Deacon Dan Burns wrote: “The work of My Brother’s Keeper is truly diaconal and such a beautiful lived-experience of serving Christ and meeting Christ in each person we meet during a delivery, and also within the My Brother’s Keeper community itself. The plunge has become such an important part of our formation program, one that leaves lasting impressions on each of the men.”

My Brother’s Keeper also provides summer and winter ministry opportunities for men studying to be priests with the Congregation of Holy Cross (CHC). Their fulltime ministry lasts from 4-8 weeks and focuses on direct contact with the families we serve. Their time at My Brother’s Keeper includes a weekly reflection period led by co-founder, Jim Orcutt.

We look forward to hosting 3 CHC men in formation this summer: Tim Mouton from Texas, Dan Cruickshank from Michigan and John Whittaker from Georgia. All three are graduates of the University of Notre Dame.

My Brother’s Keeper is ideal for formation because our work is Christ-centered, rooted in prayer and upholds the dignity of each person, a core principle of Catholic Social Teaching.