|
Hammering For Humanity
It's not unusual for carloads of students to head south for spring break. What set one group apart from the denizens of sun-worshippers was their daily itinerary--rise at 6 a.m., drive to a construction site, and work all day in the hot sun, all for a good cause.
Junior Audra Barbour and sophomore Minety Abraham led Washington College's team of 20 Habitat for Humanity student volunteers, who spent a week helping to build a house for a family in Atlanta, GA. The WC delegation was part of a collegiate workforce of 350 students who built 15 homes in Atlanta during their spring break. It was the largest Habitat for Humanity campaign this year.
"This is the third year we have participated in the program and each year the number of students participating has doubled," said Vicky Sawyer, associate director of career development and coordinator of campus service learning. "It's a very popular program, and our students are always recruiting more people to do it for the next year."
Sawyer and Leah Newell, director of international students and programs, accompanied the students on the Habitat for Humanity Collegiate Challenge, which provides students the opportunity to help others build new homes, new hope and new lives, while bringing back skills, experiences and enthusiasm to share with their campus.
"The whole trip was a learning experience," says Abraham, who helped to raise nearly $3,000 to fund the Habitat for Humanity team. "It was great to have such a positive impact on someone's life. We met the owner of the house, and worked side by side with her. She told us, 'You don't know how much this means to me.' It was also really neat to see a house being constructed from the ground up. When you have to hammer in the nails one by one, it becomes something you really value, and you're proud of what you've done for someone."
|
