Workfest: The Alternative Spring Break
For my first honors experience, I decided to travel with the University of Cincinnati Honors program to Whitley County, Kentucky to join with kids from several other schools and states for what is called Workfest: An Alternative Spring Break. My experience volunteering to build houses for a week with the Christian Appalachian Project was incredible. When I try to sit down and say what all I learned while I was there and what all I took from the trip, words do not seem to do the experience justice. I've done plenty of volunteering work before including building houses with Habitat for Humanity, teaching Sunday School, helping out at Altercare Nursing home, and Bearcat Buddy tutoring, but each volunteering experience brings something new to the table. I had also gone on week long mission trips to serve in the past, but again each is its own unique experience. Every summer I was in high school, I went on a mission trip with my church in Canton, Ohio. We went to Logan, West Virginia, Columbus, Ohio, Cincinnati, Ohio and then Endicott, New York. We helped refurbish an elementary school, volunteered at the Columbus Colony for the Deaf, served at a soup kitchen, and then built houses. Thus, going on this trip I had an idea of what to expect and what volunteering for a week entails. I also had experience with using tools and building houses from working with Habitat and with my church. Workfest was different than mission trips I had gone on before in that instead of going with friends I had known my entire life, I went with ten people I didn't know from the honors program at Cincinnati and then was put on a work crew with ten people from schools around the country. Meeting and serving with people I didn't know was actually one of my favorite parts about workfest. It was so powerful to see how total strangers can come together and work hard all day and laugh together for the benefit of others. It was amazing how close our group from Cincinnati became after just one week together. We all exchanged numbers and I found out that one of the guys in our group was in my differential equations class. It is nice to know such smart, motivated, and kind people. I hope that we will continue to see each other and help motivate each other to do awesome things.
We left for Workfest on Sunday March 17th, worked Monday through Thursday, and returned Friday March 22nd. I was a member of the orange work crew and we did siding for a woman named Amber and her family. The house was small and dirty. Clutter covered the yard and the inside of the house to the point where our crew leader had to ask Amber to clean some of it up around the house so that we could work. Our crew leader, Jay, was quite a character. Old military, gruff, hardworking, and God fearing, he ran a tight ship at our work site. We worked very hard and often had lunch late, and he made sure that we all learned how to do the tasks at hand rather than just letting one of the adults do it. By the end of the week, we were able to joke around with him and he took us out for lunch to Arby's. When we were taking out and going over the old siding, we realized how crooked it was. It is important to level siding carefully each step of the way so that the house is stable and the siding appears straight and meets evenly. I think this is an important lesson that can be applied to many things in life. In order to do something right, it is often important to work carefully each step of the way. One piece of crooked siding at the bottom set in the beginning can make the entire house look crooked. I learned so much about construction, Appalachia, people, and love while I was there. I went in to use my time and talents to help others, but I almost feel like I was blessed by them more than they were by me!
I am a big fan of volunteering and service, for I believe that it makes the world a little bit brighter. If you are an honors student at the University of Cincinnati reading this, I would highly recommend this trip! Additional details about the trip can be found on the honors website or the Christian Appalachian Project website.
We left for Workfest on Sunday March 17th, worked Monday through Thursday, and returned Friday March 22nd. I was a member of the orange work crew and we did siding for a woman named Amber and her family. The house was small and dirty. Clutter covered the yard and the inside of the house to the point where our crew leader had to ask Amber to clean some of it up around the house so that we could work. Our crew leader, Jay, was quite a character. Old military, gruff, hardworking, and God fearing, he ran a tight ship at our work site. We worked very hard and often had lunch late, and he made sure that we all learned how to do the tasks at hand rather than just letting one of the adults do it. By the end of the week, we were able to joke around with him and he took us out for lunch to Arby's. When we were taking out and going over the old siding, we realized how crooked it was. It is important to level siding carefully each step of the way so that the house is stable and the siding appears straight and meets evenly. I think this is an important lesson that can be applied to many things in life. In order to do something right, it is often important to work carefully each step of the way. One piece of crooked siding at the bottom set in the beginning can make the entire house look crooked. I learned so much about construction, Appalachia, people, and love while I was there. I went in to use my time and talents to help others, but I almost feel like I was blessed by them more than they were by me!
I am a big fan of volunteering and service, for I believe that it makes the world a little bit brighter. If you are an honors student at the University of Cincinnati reading this, I would highly recommend this trip! Additional details about the trip can be found on the honors website or the Christian Appalachian Project website.