For the times when you needed solitude to collect yourself and appreciate how far you had come. You’re a little older and a little wiser, yet you still carry the same gratitude knowing that no matter what, you’ll always have people you can return to.

Assistant Vice President for Ignatian Leadership Formation Marie Joy Salita, PhD and Millie Salita (2 BS LEARN) share the same Ateneo space, but they move through it in different ways. Ma’am Joy has spent years in service work and behind-the-scenes roles, where decisions often meant careful discernment shaped by experience. Led by the same calling to serve, Millie puts service into practice as a member of the Sanggunian’s Department of Student Welfare and Services and other organizations. For Ma’am Joy, her work was never something kept separate from home. Her daughter grew up seeing how she made choices and how she carried both the mistakes and lessons that came with them. She shared how Millie was exposed to this way of working and how it shaped the way she now understands the world and herself in it. Over time, Ma’am Joy sees how this exposure formed the way her daughter understands both the world and herself within it. As a student-leader, Millie attunes her love for service through student organizations. Her journey in serving the Ateneo community begins by listening to students and extends to representing their needs. She emphasizes the perspective that one’s youth should not limit one from dedicating oneself to any cause. Instead, it is up to people to admit and know when they have little experience, yet still choose and commit to help others anyway. In the Ateneo, their paths do not run parallel so much as they complete different sides of the same work. Ma’am Joy holds the slower, structural weight of formation, while Millie meets its immediate expression in student life. Between the shaping of systems and the visible work of engagement, their connection shows how service can be carried across roles without losing its center.