Last week, the newly formed Stevens chapter of Habitat for Humanity went to the town of Monck’s Corner, South Carolina, just outside Charleston, for community service. I talked to Victoria Rotberg, President of the Stevens chapter of Habitat, and organizer of the trip.
What made you choose Monck’s Corner?
Although many students go on this trip with the focus on doing community service, we do try to give them a little reward by picking a location that is warm and has a lot of activities to do. Monck’s Corner is only ~30 miles from Charleston, SC and boasts wonderful weather this time of year. Financially, we also have to look at transportation costs i.e. plane tickets, and flying to CHS airport was one of the cheapest destinations we could pick. It was a win-win.
Can you describe the trip?
We left Sunday March 15 from the Howe center at 4am. We flew out of JFK to CHS on a 2 hour flight at 7:30. Sunday, when we arrived in Charleston, we immediately went to the beach and spent our days on one of the barrier islands along South Carolina. After that we headed to the Charleston Korean United Methodist Church where we would be staying for the week. Habitat usually finds a local church to accommodate groups for the week, free of charge.
Girls had one classroom to sleep in, and the boys another. There were two showers in each bathroom as well. There were 10 of us in total: 9 students and 1 faculty from Student Life office, and we lived as a family all week long. We shared showers and bathrooms, cooked, and ate together. We got up early every day for breakfast and spend seven to eight hours at the work site.
On Monday night we went to a dinner with local Stevens Alum. We had 6-7 alumni and their spouses join us for an italian dinner in downtown Charleston. Some as young as class of 2012 and the oldest was class of 1950 or 1951. Michael Governor from the Howe building Alumni Dept also joined us.
Monday through Friday were work days.The first day we went to the Habitat “ReStore,” a chain thrift shop of sorts that resells donated items and all profits go back into costs for the houses they build. On Tuesday,Thursday, and Friday, we were on site, helping work on a house they were in the middle of constructing. We did not do anything structurally important for obvious reasons but throughout the week we helped to lay sod (rolls of grass, roots and dirt) to help start a lawn. On Thursday it was raining, so we assembled the kitchen and bathroom cabinets so that they would be ready for the installer. On Friday we helped clean mostly, finished sodding, and recycled any on site materials for reuse. Wednesday was a free day. Any leisure time we had after work and on Wednesday we spent in the heart of downtown Charleston. We visited the college of Charleston, Fort Sumter, Rainbow Row and Battery Park. We also took a nighttime Ghost Tour as well as went to the local flea market. Friday afternoon we finished work, packed quickly, stopped at Rita’s for free icees, and boarded the plane back to JFK @ 8pm. We landed in JFK at 10pm and were back at Howe by midnight.
What is something you learned from the trip that you didn’t know going in?
You always learn a lot about yourself on trips such as these; living in such close quarters to many people for a week, you learn to be more flexible for sure. Having 10 people with 10 different wants and personalities, you really learn how to compromise and just go with the flow. It loosens you up.
Meeting new people is also one of the great things about the trip, be it the locals of the town or the families and volunteers that you meet through Habitat. You don’t see true gratitude until you’re given a hug by one of the families who will be living in the house you’re helping to build. They truly are people who have been down on their luck and they know the opportunity they’ve been given and are extremely thankful.
Were you able to see any resulting change from your trip, or was it too early to tell?
There’s immediate gratification in the work, the construction superintendent is there to instruct, guide and monitor throughout the week. At the end of the day you take a step back and now there’s a lawn that wasn’t there that morning or there was a kitchen where it was only a blank room a few hours before. Habitat also is very good about keeping in touch with volunteers, they post pictures constantly so you can witness how the houses or store are progressing and are always free to contact and are in fact happy to hear from you. We’ve even become friends with the individual members on Facebook.
Would you say the experience was positive or negative overall?
Absolutely positive overall. 5 stars. This was my third Collegiate Challenge, as it is called, and it was the best one yet, especially as a graduating senior it was great as a final send off.
What are some of the other locations your group has been to?
Previous locations have been Portland, Oregon; Lake Hiawatha, Michigan; and Pineallas County, Florida.
Where are you planning on going next?
Habitat does not list sites for registration until October, so we cannot tell at this point. However, Colorado and Texas are also always high on our list so we hope to get there eventually.
What should people know about Habitat that they might not already?
In my opinion, there’s something extremely satisfying and relaxing about physical labor. Many people that I tell about Habitat look at is as more work but it’s so much more than that. It clears your mind of whatever your stresses are and like I said previously, you can see the results of your labor immediately. It’s also a great learning experience; sometimes people find their more resourceful or strong than they thought previously.
If any students are interested in joining Habitat for Humanity, how should they go about that?
Orgsync. That is where we post all information and the list of contacts that we send emails to.
Interview has been edited for clarity.
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