As a Good Shepherd Volunteer, Charlotte Vogel is on placement as NGO Representative Associate at the New York Office of Good Shepherd International Justice and Peace. Here, she shares with us something about her journey since it began with us in August 2025.

My one-year experience as a Good Shepherd Volunteer (GSV) began with a week-long orientation with our sisters in New Jersey. I felt like this was the perfect crash course in everything Good Shepherd. In the beautiful convent on the scenic property of Collier High School, my fellow volunteer, Charles, and I learned about the rich history and spirituality of the Congregation and how the Good Shepherd charism continues to be expressed today through extensive programs, projects, and ministries.

Our conversations started globally; learning about the Good Shepherd mission as carried out by sisters and partners-in-mission in 67 countries around the world and the role of Good Shepherd International Foundation, which supports many of the Congregation’s programs in some of the most impoverished parts of the world; and then moved local, with a visit to the Collier Group Home for youths aged 14 to 18.

At the end of the week, Sisters Virginia, Fran, Debby, and Judy welcomed us into their home filled with paintings, figurines, and other images representing the Good Shepherd, where, after an uplifting commissioning ceremony in which we made our year-long commitment of service, we exited through the green door, crossing the threshold into our new journey ahead.

As a Good Shepherd Volunteer, we commit to the four tenets of social justice, simplicity, community, and spirituality, following in the footsteps of St. Mary Euphrasia and the many sisters who have dedicated their lives to the mission. As an intern on placement with Good Shepherd International Justice and Peace, I can see how I will be able to put these tenets into practice.

The six priorities of the Position Papers, having studied them during orientation, have come to life as I witness how Good Shepherd engages with the UN and advocates for girls and women to influence meaningful policy change in development and justice. This journey of discovery has been made easier thanks to Kimberly Happich Moloche, GSIJP’s Main NGO Representative, who has taught me the ropes of how the UN works in New York.

From written and oral statements to mission visits, I’ve already been fortunate to collaborate with other civil society organizations through NGO Committees on shared goals and values to best work with and create space for those suffering injustice and marginalization around the world, including with the Committee on Migration and Religious at the UN.

During October we joined the Working Group on Girls to shape Girls Speak Out 2025 for the International Day of the Girl Child in the Economic and Social Council Chamber at the UN.

The teachings we learned as GSVs have been a strong basis in guiding my work here, as well as a motivation to pursue this work every day. Being a volunteer reminds me to live in solidarity with those we serve by practicing simplicity and working with compassion. I am able to bear witness to the strength and ingenuity of those working to address the systemic injustices they face and present in their community.

During the year, fellow volunteer Charles and I will live in the GSV apartment towards the top of Manhattan in Washington Heights. Here, I am also able to connect the broader international scope of my work with the inequalities present in New York City when Charles and I sit down to debrief each other after our day’s work, and I get to learn about his work in public policy, mission, and values at Good Shepherd Services.

This journey hasn’t always been easy, but the strong community built through GSV has enabled me to overcome any challenges, which, coupled with the guidance and support from the entire GSIJP team, has strengthened my understanding of and commitment to the Good Shepherd network.

I am so grateful for this opportunity and feel extremely excited about what the rest of the year will bring as I continue to serve the Good Shepherd mission through my work at GSIJP and explore new and strengthened connections between GSV and GSIJP!