Well, I decided to start posting before my next trip - to get a head start! :)
There are quite a few differences between my trip to Guatemala and my upcoming trip to Maryville, Tennessee. The trip to Tennessee will be taking place over the course of my week-long Spring Break, from March 17th to March 24th. Unlike my trip to Guatemala which I embarked on alone, I'll be heading to Tennessee with 4 of my friends; Faith, Melissa, Steph, and Mike. I was lucky enough to meet these guys last year on my Alternative Spring Break, which all of us (minus Mike) participated in through UMass.
Last year, Faith, Melissa, Steph, and I all went down to Georgetown, South Carolina to help renovate an older woman's house. We had no idea what to expect! Our friend Danielle (who unfortunately can't join us on our trip this year) and our 'Team Leader' (who will remain unnamed) and the 4 of us ventured down to the South, making the trip over the course of two days. Once there, we were introduced to the church members of the Methodist church that we would be staying in; and welcomed with open arms. We became very close with a few members of the parish, because once we got there it was discovered that the showers that had been arranged for us had broken. We were welcomed everyday into the homes of some wonderful people to let us shower once we were done working. Without them, we would have been a miserable, smelly bunch of college students!
We also made some great relationships with our contractors, Sean and Lee, who helped teach us how to rip up floorboards, use the table saw (Melissa's favorite activity), secure the outside of the house from animals, and many other skills to help improve the house. One very important person we met on our trip was Ms. Rue, who's house we were working on. Ms. Rue was an older, African-American woman who lived on her own in a small house in a poorer neighborhood. All of the houses along her street were very small, and they were all built in the middle of the 20th century to house workers for the giant paper mill that operated close by. Many of the houses had not been updated in a very long time, and clearly showed the wear and tear of time. Ms. Rue's house required a lot of work; we worked Monday to Thursday from around 9am until 3pm until we had finished all of the work that was scheduled to be completed that week. We even bought Ms. Rue paint, and surprised her by painting her living room for her! The trip was eye-opening, which is why we decided to go again this year.
We decided that although we had great experiences going through ASB, we did not want to travel with the program again this year for a few reasons. So we took it into our own hands to find a way to volunteer over our Spring Break, and then we found the Collegiate Challenge through Habitat for Humanity.
The Collegiate Challenge is a program specifically for college students; essentially any group of college students can create a team and choose a place to go to volunteer over their break. The catch is; the groups themselves are responsible for all of the finances of the trip. WHOA. Although we realized that we would face many struggles from finding transportation to actually raising the amount of money necessary to make this possible, we decided to go for it. I don't mean to brag; but I will say we are very determined college students. So far, we have cashed in bottles from a friend's party for money, written countless letters to friends and family, sold pizza in the dorm, will be hosting Trivia Night at The Harp, and having a Bertucci's Fundraising night. We have organized transportation (which will be official tomorrow!) and also been in contact with our host in Blount County, Tennessee.
None of this would be possible without the love and support of our family and friends; so this is a shout out to all of you who have encouraged us either with words or donations! Without you guys, our goal of helping to build affordable housing in low-income areas of the United States would not be possible. So THANKS :)
I will continue to update this blog as we get closer to the trip, and while we're on it.
Party Llama, World Traveler says: Tennessee, here we come!
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