Community
Sioux Falls boasts a surprising amount of diversity and has been called the “Ellis Island of the Midwest” due to the thousands of refugees and immigrants from around the world who make the city home. Many MVSers get to know (and share tasty meals with!) people from countries like Iraq, Sudan, Nepal, or Eritrea. As the largest city in South Dakota with a population of about 150,000, Sioux Falls is big enough to have shopping and business districts yet still small enough to feel like a close-knit community with farming land nearby.

The unit house is centrally located and MVSers enjoy the local arts community, gardening, farmers markets, sports, city festivals, and game nights. During the summer, MVSers ride on the bike trail that encircles Sioux Falls and winds through many of the city’s 70 public parks. During the winter, MVSers take advantage of free rental of equipment for snowshoeing and cross-country skiing.

Service
The majority of MVSers serve as volunteers in various capacities at Lutheran Social Services Refugee & Immigration Center. The agency focuses on refugees—people who have fled war and persecution and are invited by the U.S. government to begin a new life in America. Refugee clients live out a story of hope—in a matter of months, they travel from war-torn regions of the world to the U.S., learn or perfect their English, receive medical care and housing, find employment, and become self-sufficient community members, able to support themselves and their families.

MVSers at the Refugee & Immigration Center find energy in the diversity, as hundreds of new refugees arrive each year from more than 15 different countries. In recent years, volunteers have worked as case aides, case managers, volunteer coordinators, childcare providers and ESL (English as a Second Language) teachers.

MVSers have also worked at Ten Thousand Villages, which is widely recognized as the world’s oldest Fair Trade retail store. Volunteers learn about retail, marketing, and the day-to-day operations involved in running a business.

The Bowden Youth Center has also welcomed volunteers to serve in their after-school programs.

New MVSers easily become friends with previous MVSers who have put down roots in the community—most find it hard (or impossible) to leave after their term ends.