While many college students were spending spring vacation sitting at home or relaxing at resorts in Cancun, Orlando, and the Bahamas, 14 members of RPI’s chapter of Habitat for Humanity International volunteered their time to build houses for low-income families in Johns Island, South Carolina, a town southwest of Charleston. The group worked in coordination with the Sea Island Chapter of Habitat for Humanity. The Sea Island Chapter, the third oldest Habitat chapter in the U.S, typically builds about 20 family homes a year. The RPI students assisted in all phases of building construction at five work sites including laying out the floor plan, building the frame, doing the roof, and creating insulation.
Rensselaer’s group arrived at Johns Island on March 10 and worked diligently at building construction sites from 8:30 am to 4 pm throughout the next week. When the group had time off during the evenings and on Wednesday, they were able to spend some of their vacation having fun at the beach and touring downtown Charleston. The project was “an awesome way to relieve the stress of rigorous RPI [coursework],” said Nathan Walsh ’03. The students stayed at a hotel near the work sites in a neighborhood populated with numerous Habitat homes. Three other Habitat chapters from the University of Pennsylvania, Virginia Commonwealth University, and East Carolina University also participated in the volunteer work.
RPI’s Habitat chapter has already budgeted for 21 people for next year’s spring break trip because the interest in the program this year was higher than the number they could take, said Walsh. “We shouldn’t have any problem getting interest [next year].” They have asked Millard Fuller, president and founder of Habitat for Humanity International, to speak at the Chapel + Cultural Center on April 7. Fuller’s visit is scheduled as an official event in the upcoming GM Week festivities.
In addition to the annual spring break trip, RPI’s Habitat chapter also organizes a Habitat project for freshman to participate in, during the Navigating Rensselaer week and coordinates with ROTC, fraternities, and other campus organizations to send student groups to construction sites at least three weekends a month. “A lot has happened in the first year of our club. We’re still trying to get awareness up,” said Walsh. “Our goal is to raise awareness and begin fundraising to have [another] new house [built] close to campus.”
The Rensselaer Habitat for Humanity program was revived last year by Walsh, Silas Schrader ’02, Ben Cangeleri ’02, Nate Dickinson ’03, and Matt Toback ’03. The chapter at RPI, with help from the Rensselaer County Chapter, became the 700th campus chapter in the nation last year with 75 members. “Since we’re a young club, we’re very motivated. We have a lot of great ideas,” said Walsh.
People that receive Habitat houses are required to contribute at least 500 hours of work toward the building of their homes and to make mortgage payments for seven to 30 years. Many people don’t realize that families for whom Habitat builds homes are “hardworking people.” It just gives them a chance to own their own home when they couldn’t otherwise afford it, said Walsh.
