Three women with ties to the Atlanta area have spent a year in volunteer service.

Two recent graduates of the University of Georgia in Athens and members of the Catholic Center at UGA served with the Franciscan Volunteer Ministry, an organization of lay people whose members live together in faith and community as they minister to those in need.

Kathryn Kirkpatrick, of Valdosta, and Amanda McKenley, of Snellville, have each given a year of service. Kirkpatrick is working with St. Francis Inn in Philadelphia, a more than 30-year-old soup kitchen. McKenley is volunteering with St. Paul Parish and its ministries in Wilmington, Del. The volunteers started their year of service last summer.

More information about FVM and joining the program can be found at www.franciscanvolunteerministry.org.

Another young person spent time in service with Regnum Christi Mission Corps. Missionaries, who are 18 and older, work with local parishes leading service projects, spiritual retreats and mission trips. The experience also includes a pilgrimage to the Holy Land.

Laura Gonzales, from the Archdiocese of Atlanta, completed a year of service in the Detroit area.

Gonzales said, “This year has been a great journey. It’s helped me to really see myself for who God made me to be and set my convictions for continuing to define myself and grow closer to Christ once I return home.”