307 Free-Write-Habitat for Humanity!

Spring break is a time for relaxing, having a break from school, and recharging your batteries to finish out the rest of the semester. My sorority sisters have gone to Florida to disney, a cruise to the bahamas and other fun things. However, for the past 2 spring breaks i've gone away with SCSU Habitat for Humanity! i will be graduating next may 2013 and when i look back on my college career i remember habitat as one of my favorite experiences hands-down! Last year i was the treasurer of SCSU Habitat For Humanity and the treasurer of Southerns Future Teachers Organization. I have to say that although i really enjoyed SFTO i more so enjoyed Habitat.

In high school i really wished we had a habitat chapter or habitat club, but we didn't. As soon as i got to SCSU i really sought out habitat and went to as many events as i could. It wasn't until my 2nd year in habitat that i went on the spring break trip. My first year going on the spring break trip myself and 12 others ventured to Harrisburg Pennsylvania to help the habitat for humanity chapter work on hundred year old houses or fix up already finished habitat homes in the area. Our group split into 2 teams, 1 team went to fix up the already finished houses and my team went to completely gut hundred year old habitat homes! I absolutely LOVED this-i got to use power tools that my parents would have never let me go near before this experience, i learned new skills, conquered a few fears, got really messy in dirt and dust and had an absolutely phenomenal time with my fellow SCSU habitaters! We ripped up old floor boards and could see straight into a basement, climbed a latter into the basement because there were no stairs, ripped out walls, sawed out posts and boards, cut out floor boards, ripped up a deck and installed new boards in a deck. I also sawed the long ways through a nail and got to keep it as my souvenir-its sitting proudly on my bookshelf at my house. For this trip we stayed in a church rec-house and slept on air mattress' on the floor, played ping pong in the church rec house basement, played old school N-64, played pranks on each other and our advisors, went to hershey chocolate world on our day off and made friendships into a habitat family i will never forget. We were exhausted this week, we didn't sleep much, and we worked a lot but i wouldn't trade this experience for anything in this world. Looking at a finished product of what we did to help someone else in need is a feeling that cannot be replaced or forgotten. While my sisters were soaking up the sun in Florida i was wearing a hard hat and ripping up floor boards in the freezing PA cold-it was wonderful! 

My second habitat trip was to west palm beach florida! This was only the second time i had been on an airplane and when we got to florida i had to drive the other van of our habitat members around for the week. We stayed at Florida Atlantic University in their dorms-which was a nice change to have a bed but it wasn't as fun because we were in rooms of 4 people and all of our habitat family was split up in a dorm hallway-we wanted to all be together like we were in PA-one house all of us. We spent the majority of the time all in the same small dorm room all 13 of us-playing games late at night. Our work this week consisted of painting the exterior of 2 houses-trim and boards in the sweltering 89 degree florida sunny heat. Sunscreen was our best friend that week. I had never been to florida before so it was a great experience to go somewhere new! SCSU also got to work all week with UCLA habitat-it was so interesting to hear all about where they were from, what their school was like and how they were different from us! on our day off we went to the beach, and took a boat taxi to a little island for the day, we went to some really neat restaurants and had a great time!  it was such a wonderful experience that nothing can relate to and nothing can top that feeling of satisfaction of a spring break well-used! 

This year however, i haven't had time to volunteer with habitat, so i won't be going on spring break. This thought upsets me so much just because i want that experience again and i know that people wait to have that experience and i need to let someone else have the habitat experience and the habitat memories of their own-its just something i really love to do. I'm lucky i was able to go twice! This spring break for a few days my sister and i will be going up to boston to visit one of my best friend who goes to Boston University. It won't be the same as helping habitat families but i know it will still be fun for the time we have away from CT staying in her apartment and exploring our favorite city! 

I still love habitat for humanity and hope that some day i'll have the time and the money to contribute even more to such an awesome cause!