The Wind Reminds Me of Erie, but the Compassion Reminds Me of Virginia

Today was a cold cold day in Abingdon, VA, and the 14 of us worked on many different projects.  The boys worked again the the underneath of the roof, can't tell you what they did but it was great!

 A group of the girls worked on the deconstruction of a shed. They showed great determination and perseverance in the difficult and dirty task.

Personally I worked on the building of the front steps.  At the start of the day there were no steps, by the end there was a full set of steps.  The children will now have steps to walk into their house with, and a place to sit waiting for the bus, and a place to place flower boxes.

A small days task will do tremendous things for this family.  Just a thought to remember that every big or small project done on this house or any house is meaningful to amounts we will never understand.

-Rachel

Practice Makes Progress

Nobody's perfect, and a bunch of mildly experienced volunteers giving their best at a construction job  is certainly something which yields imperfections! That didn't stop us today at the build site, though (and neither did the rain). Slowly but surely, and with many teachable moments along the way, we continued to make progress on the house and yard.

Personally, one of the most exciting things for me about our day was briefly meeting the single mom whose house we're currently building. Although she was only at the site for a small moment, I was instantly reminded of our purpose, and building this house for this woman and her children became so much more important to me. Even though we're all feeling the strain by day three (and let me tell you, my shoulders kill!) I would still rather be working even after the workday has ended.

-Hannah

Making Progress, One Tree at a Time!

Today, five of us girls took it upon ourselves to show the trees in the backyard who's boss, and let me tell ya, we did.

We got down at least five trees today. Looking up at the yard at the end of the day and seeing the clearing we did was a big accomplishment for us, seeing as that's not a usual day's work.

It was nice to see then progress we made today in the yard, and we look forward to seeing our hard work pay off at the end of the week!

-Keisha

Day One: Landscaping 👍👍👍

Finally! Today was the day that we really got to work. Our "build site" is a house located in Glade Spring, a little bit outside of Abingdon, and is being built for a local single mother. Since the house is mostly framework at the moment, there's a lot to be done, but we gladly jumped into the project this morning!

We were told at the beginning of our trip that we would leave Abingdon with stories to tell, and it's already clear this is true! For example...

Rhonna found an "ancient artifact" while we were leveling the backyard, and Summer and Rachel won the battle against a stubborn tree trunk!

It was great to see was Catie use a pickaxe which is almost her size. But she used it well in bringing out tree stubs. She made us accept that size does not determine skill but helps our skill.

I was so pleased to use the small electric saw to cut trees, for while I did it my hand vibrated and looking at it reminded me of 'The Flash'. When the flash want to pass through a material (wall, block, etc) he vibrates himself so it was so good and filled me with joy and that made me excited to do more work.

After a day's work, we came back home after working on the landscaping and roofing of this house and went over to the church that is lodging us for dinner, then took a tour of the facility which is accommodating to many.  We concluded our day with hanging out with each other and building a community.

-Michael Anubondem Awungnkeng Muanya

Exploring Southwest Virginia

On our first full day in Abingdon, we went to mass and then explored the city and surrounding areas. We walked Main Street in Bristol, which was the subject of a Geico commercial. The eastern side of the street is Virginia, while the western side is Tennessee. 

Then, we visited the Birthplace of Country Music Museum, and learned about the role that the town of Bristol, Virginia played in developing country music in the 1920s. 

After that, we came back to The Foundry, where Steve made us some amazing tacos. 

We had a lot of fun today, and we're super excited to start the work week out at the build site tomorrow. 

-Sydney

From Erie to Abingdon

Around 7:15 this morning in Erie, PA, our lively group of 14 piled into two vehicles (and out of the rain) on our way to Abingdon, Virginia.

8 tiring hours later, we finally made it to sunny Abingdon, VA. We then met with our energetic coordinator, Jeremy Blackwell, and learned a few things about our projects for the week. Additionally, we explored our beautiful volunteer house, met our friendly and welcoming housemates, and even got into a spirited game of cards.

Overall, I can safely say that we're all thrilled for the adventure ahead! Although we were all thoroughly warned about how sore we would be by the end of the week, the thought of demolition and construction is far more exciting than the challenge. More importantly, by the end of the day it was clear within our whole group that the change we're making here in Abingdon is extremely important to us. The work we have ahead of us is worth it because of the good that will come of it.

Wish us luck, and be sure to stay updated as we continue our adventure throughout the week!

-Hannah

Welcome to our trip!

Hello everyone and welcome to the 2017 Gannon Habitat for Humanity ABST blog! Over spring break we will be traveling Abingdon VA, to work with the Habitat Collegiate Challenge. We want to welcome to our blog and encourage you following it while we are on our trip (February25th-March 4th). We before we leave we want to introduce who we are!

Alfred Beckstorm is a junior Mechanical Engineering major and one of the students leaders on the trip. He is originally from Aurora, Ohio. Fun fact, he plays the viola. Alfred wanted to come on this trip because he likes building things and helping people.

Anna Swick is a junior Social Work major and one of the student leaders on the trip. She is originally from Erie, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, she was home-schooled before coming to Gannon. Anna wanted to come on this trip because she is passionate about  Habitat's mission and wanted to learn more about the role she plays in carrying it out.

Brian Collingwood is one of the Gannon staff members on the trip. He is originally from Cleveland, Ohio and received a History from Xavier University. Fun fact, he has a dog named Toby. Brian wanted to come on this trip because he wanted to be a part of Gannon's commitment to service and volunteering; it is important to him that he exercises his social responsibility through an ABST trip with students.

Rhonna Bollig is one of the Gannon staff members on the trip. She is originally from Washington, D.C. This will be Rhonna's 8th ABST but 1st time participating at Gannon. Whean asked why she wanted to be on this trip she said, "Participating and leading alternative breaks when I was a student, I built some incredible friendships with other students that I may not have otherwise had the chance to get to know. Now, as a staff, participating in alternative breaks gives me the opportunity to build relationships with the students I serve.  Being part of their learning, while serving another community, is a truly rewarding experience.  I was interested in this particular trip because I appreciate the mission of Habitat for Humanity and am looking forward to learning more." 

Summer Young is a sophomore Healthcare Management Major. She is from Kittanning Pennsylvania. Fun Fact, she loves antique and vintage things. She wanted to come on this trip because she is apart of Habitat and wanted to experience something new and do something good for others.

Jennafer Skarupski is a senior Occupational Therapy major from Erie, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, in high school she was awarded the most service hours in her class She wanted to come of this trip because she loves building things and learning how to do new things.

Steve Caulfield is a senior Computer Science major from Erie, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, Steve has nine siblings. He wanted to come on this trip because he has always been interested in the work habitat does and has wanted to volunteer with them, so when he saw this chance he tried to take it.

Rachel Amorose is a sophomore Electrical Engineering major from Moon Township, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, she has a pug named Rocky and she loves him very much. She wanted to come on this trip because she is on the board for Habitat and really enjoys the builds and sense of community the bring.

Keisha Winger is a sophomore nursing student from Oil City, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, she can play the clarinet and saxophone. Keisha wanted to come on this trip because she is apart of the Habitat group at Gannon.

Catie Strout is a sophomore Physician Assistant major from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, she is obsessed with dogs. Catie wanted to come on this trip because  she is a member of Gannon's chapter of Habitat for Humanity and she wanted to see how Habitat positively impacts areas other than Erie.

Hannah Rhodes is a freshman Psychology/ Social Work major from Raleigh, North Carolina. Fun fact, she was a vegetarian for a year. Hannah is super excited to work in Abingdon, Virginia!

Sydney Seabrooke is a freshman Sport and Exercise Science/ Pre-PT major from Erie, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, she dressed her dog up as a shark for Halloween. She wanted to come on this trip because she has always wanted to participate in a Habitat for Humanity build.

Chris Devine is a sophomore Mechanical Engineering Major from Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Fun fact, he plays Ultimate Frisbee at Gannon. Chris wanted to come on this trip because he wanted to get involved with Habitat and do something positive and helpful over spring break. He also wanted to meet new people.

Michael Anubodem Muanya Awungnkeng is a junior Philosophy major from Buffalo, New York. Fun fact, he is originally from Cameroon. Michael wanted to come on this trip because he was suppose to go on the Habitat trip last year, but due to circumstance couldn't so he decided to come this year. He wants to give to his community and build a fellowship with other students.