Class XIX Atlantic Region Yearbook by AmeriCorpsNCCCAtlantic Region

JAN窶年OV 2013

A T L A N TI C R E GI O N

XIX C L A S S Y E A R BO O K

Commit to Be More PERRY POINT, MD

10 MONTHS

96 PROJECTS

200,000+ HOURS

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

COLOPHON

Class XIX, thank you for your service. Carry the commitment from this moment forward.

Photographs and articles contributed by Class XIX members.

Atlantic Region Staff, thank you for your empowerment of members, year after year.

Publication designed and edited by Ben Dillon, Community Relations Support Team Leader.

Project sponsors, thank you for inspiring our members to be leaders in their communities. Without you, our service would be impossible.

Additional editing provided by Class XIX Support Team Leaders, Chandler Ballentine, Evan Berry, Stephanie Ferguson, Courtney Strother and Emily Tiffany.

STAY CONNECTED WITH THE ATLANTIC REGION NCCCBlog.AmeriCorps.gov Facebook.com/NCCCAtlanticRegion Issuu.com/AmeriCorpsNCCCAtlanticRegion @AmeriCorpsNCCC LinkedIn â&#x20AC;&#x201D; AmeriCorps NCCC Alumni (Official Group)

THE AMERICORPS PLEDGE I will get things done for Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x201D; to make our people safer, smarter, and healthier. I will bring Americans together to strengthen our communities. Faced with apathy, I will take action. Faced with conflict, I will seek common ground. Faced with adversity, I will persevere. I will carry this commitment with me this year and beyond. I am an AmeriCorps member, and I will get things done!

This book is dedicated to Joseph Massenburg, 1994â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2013 Class XIX Corps Member, Southern Region

CONTENTS

STAFF 04 TEAM LEADERS 08 THE CORPS 14 AMERILIFE 24 TEAMS & PROJECTS 34 FIRE PROGRAM 116 COMPOSITES 124 AWARDS 130 DIRECTORY 136

STAFFMEMBERS

LaQuine Roberson

Dave Beach

Denise Jenkins

Atlantic Region Director

Deputy Region Director For Unit Leadership

Deputy Region Director For Programming

A Letter From the Atlantic Region Leadership Team Best wishes, Class XIX. What an atypical year you’ve had! Your year started where Class XVIII ended, affected by the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. While the storm hit before you came, our commitment to the region lasted throughout your year. You picked up the torch of Class XVIII and continued through in our mission in serving communities affected by the storm through longterm recovery efforts. Your class experienced a monumental milestone in helping NCCC celebrate 20 years of service. We were thrilled that you were able to participate in the celebratory activities in our nation’s capital. This experience allowed you to get a glimpse of the vision of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC), of which you now continue the legacy. Some of you were able to develop yourselves into leaders while making lifelong friends, many of which you will cherish as you reflect on your experience for years to come. The leadership team and staff congratulate you on this year and wish you many happy endeavors and successes in the future. Sincerely, LaQuine Roberson Dave Beach Denise Jenkins

CLASS XIX • STAFF

Thea Becton

Jason Cangelosi

Amy Easter

Megan Hill

Mona Hillstrand

Assistant Program Director

Moose Unit Leader

Assistant Resource Manager

Program Associate (Former)

Assistant Community Relations Specialist

Jen Horan

Michael Howard

Patricia Jackson

Sharon Kellogg

Amanda McCarty

Raven Unit Leader

Fleet Manager

Terrapin Unit Leader (FEMA Corps)

Buffalo Unit Leader

Assistant Program Director

Sam McKenzie

Carlyn Payton

Trey Pettigen

Aaron Rosales

Valerie Scott

Community Relations Specialist (Former)

Assistant Program Director For Training

Residence Coordinator

Member Support Specialist

Program Associate

Beth Stewart

Kaliah Thomas

Laura Tuck

Dernard Williams

Otter Unit Leader (FEMA Corps)

Counselor

Support Services Specialist

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ STAFF

CLASS XIX • STAFF

TEAMLEADERS

Ryan Abdelnour

Chandler Ballentine

Evan Berry

Mignon Bryant

Laura Dennis

Moose 4

Operations

Buffalo Unit

Buffalo 3

Raven 2

Ben Dillon

Stephanie Ferguson

Leah Goodman

Rico Hernandez

Khaled Ismail

Community Relations

Raven Unit

Raven 4

Buffalo 1

Raven 5

Oliver Jacobs-Dougherty

Rosslyn Jordan

Rebeckah Moran

Michelle Pinter-Petrillo

Meganne Radway

Raven 1

Buffalo 4

Raven 3

Moose 5

Moose 2

Phil Schwartz

Courtney Strother

Emily Tiffany

Owen Wolfe

Moose 1

Program Office

Moose Unit

Buffalo 4

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ TEAM LEADERS

FIELD TEAM LEADERS Field Team Leaders were the coaches, captains, trail bosses and mentors who led Atlantic Region teams across the country in service for 10 months. They came from 10 different states; the Pacific Coast to the Atlantic Coast; the Gulf to the Great Lakes. Their backgrounds were as diverse as their geography. Before coming to NCCC, they were peer educators, camp counselors, and youth leaders. Several of them had served in the Corps already, while others brought fresh ideas paired with seasoned leadership. Class XIX presented daunting challenges to Team Leaders, but those who persevered displayed incredible courage, foresight and integrity.

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ TEAM LEADERS

SUPPORT TEAM LEADERS Behind the scenes, Support Team Leaders kept the gears of NCCC turning. They provided teams with the guidance and resources they needed to get things done in the field. They were there to take charge in the absence of Field Team Leaders. They were the bridge that connected Corps Members to staff members. From vans to vitals, helmets to hard copies, they kept track of the details. And along the way, they became a team of their own.

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ TEAM LEADERS

TEAM LEADER TRAINING (TLT) Team Leader Training was a veritable boot camp for the men and women in green. For the month of January, Team Leaders took a crash course in all things NCCC. From supervisory skills to diversity, WPRs to PCRs, they learned the ins and outs of team dynamics and project cycles. “Bears and Bunnies” gave way to Buffalo, Moose and Ravens on a weekend retreat to Camp Pecometh, where the cliché of picking up sticks was all too true. Training culminated on the MLK Day of Service in Washington, D.C., where Team Leaders’ flexibility with housing arrangements was put to the test, the “POC of Fun” had her moment in the spotlight, and the guest of honor wasn’t your average Joe. Perhaps the greatest lesson Team Leaders took from the month of training was to rely on each other; through thick and thin, “Team Green” would see each other through 10 months of getting things done.

CLASS XIX • TEAM LEADERS

FORMER TEAM LEADERS Jessica Arthur

Ebony Boney

Moose 3

Moose 2

Anna Henzy

Chelsea Mitch

Jeff Smith

Buffalo 2

Buffalo 3

Buffalo 1

CLASS XIX • TEAM LEADERS

THECORPS

WHERE DID THEY COME FROM? The 112 graduating members of Atlantic Region Class XIX came from 34 states and the District of Columbia. For many, arriving at the Perry Point campus marked a first visit to the northeastern United States. For others, the service term was an opportunity to discover the hidden corners of the region or to shed new light on familiar places. No matter where they came from, the Atlantic Region became home for 10 months.

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ CORPS MEMBERS

—— The ——

GRADUATING MEMBERS —— of ——

CLASS XIX

Victor Alvarado

Courtney Amburg

Denasia Avery

Buffalo 3 Dragon 1

Buffalo 4 Phoenix 1

Moose 4

Brock Barbosa

Jahari Barker

Adriana Battle

Adriana Bayona

Josh Bracken

Raven 5 Peter Pan 1

Raven 3 Phoenix 1

Raven 5

Moose 4

Moose 3 Patriot 1

Melodie Briscoe

Michael Brown

Louis Brown, Jr.

Katie Buckle

Glenn Campbell

Raven 5

Buffalo 4 Peter Pan 1

Raven 1

Raven 3

Moose 1 Dragon 1

Mayo Campos

Jacob Clark

Nordel Clarke

Devaughn Clayton

Lewis Cuthair

Moose 4

Buffalo 1

Moose 1

Moose 5

Raven 2

CLASS XIX • CORPS MEMBERS

Ryan Devoe

Carissa Domenech

Keiana Eskridge

Jeremy Flores

Erin Foley

Moose 1

Raven 4

Raven 2 Phoenix 1 Sasquatch 1

Raven 4 Sasquatch 1 Phoenix 4

Garrett Ford

Kiara Gales

Justin Gandy

Bradley Gardner

Gabrielle Gardose

Buffalo 1

Moose 4

Raven 5

Raven 2 Patriot 1

Raven 4 Dragon 1

Gabriella Golzarian

Emma Graves

Liz Griffin

Travis Hanes

Kayla Hanson

Moose 5 Phoenix 1

Buffalo 1

Moose 4

Raven 2 Dragon 1

Buffalo 1 Phoenix 4

Natalie Hillmann

James Hubbard

Jarvis Jones

Meagan Julian

Alyse Kearns

Moose 4 Phoenix 1

Raven 2 Black Bear 1

Moose 3

Buffalo 1 Phoenix 3 & 5

Moose 4 Dragon 1

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ CORPS MEMBERS

Sean Kenyon

Bridget Kimbell

Jeremiah King

Andrew Kingery

Sarah Kolb

Raven 4 Peter Pan 1 Phoenix 3 & 5

Raven 1 Phoenix 1

Buffalo 4

Moose 1

Buffalo 3

Skylar Larsen

Jessica Lawrence

Eddy Lee

Kaitlyn Liafsha

Kayla Lickey

Raven 2 Phoenix 4

Raven 1 Sasquatch 1

Buffalo 3 Patriot 1

Buffalo 4 Phoenix 1

Raven 1 Black Bear 1

Max Limeberger

Nicole Lomalisa-Allen

Bryan Lundholm

Laura Mahoney

Amir Matthews

Raven 3 Phoenix 4

Raven 1

Moose 2

Moose 5 Phoenix 4

Raven 4 Patriot 1

Chris May

Alex McDonald

Gavin McGimpsey

Ury Melton

Tyrell Moore

Raven 5 Phoenix 1

Buffalo 1

Moose 1 Sasquatch 1

Moose 5

Moose 4 Phoenix 2

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ CORPS MEMBERS

Tiffany Murphy

Alexa Naudziunas

Jazmyne Newsome

Jimmie Perkins

Rebekah Peroutkah

Raven 3 Phoenix 3 & 5

Raven 2

Raven 3

Buffalo 1

Moose 1

Jaemia Pratt

Victoria Pridgen

Ben Quimby

Megan Racine

Brienna Rainey

Moose 2 Patriot 1

Moose 1

Moose 2

Buffalo 4 Phoenix 4

Raven 5

Anthony Requena

Ross Rinehart

Cindy Robertson

Megan Ryan

Silpa Sadhujan

Moose 2 Phoenix 2

Raven 5 Sasquatch 1

Raven 1

Moose 1 Firefox 1 Phoenix 3 & 5

Raven 5 Firefox 1 Phoenix 3 & 5

Carson Scherer

Jared Schopp

Genevieve Shepard

Stephen Silber

Alex Slater

Raven 2 Phoenix 2

Raven 4 Phoenix 2

Raven 2

Moose 4 Firefox 1 Phoenix 4 (TL)

Buffalo 1 Peter Pan 1

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ CORPS MEMBERS

Ian Slingsby

Cameron Smith

Alicia Spack

Greg Starling

Wayne Sun

Raven 3 Phoenix 3

Raven 1

Moose 2

Moose 5 Sasquatch 1

Buffalo 3 Phoenix 1 (TL) Black Bear 1

Sierra Taylor

Shane Tulp

Erik VanCleve

Ray Vassar-Semanchik

Cecilia Veloz

Buffalo 1 Sasquatch 1

Moose 3 Firefox 1 Phoenix 4

Moose 2 Phoenix 5

Buffalo 3 Phoenix 3

Moose 2 Black Bear 1

Dimitar Venkov

Meghan Wheeler

Reniecea Wiggins

Whitney Wooten

David Wright

Raven 1 Firefox 1 Phoenix 3 & 5 (TL)

Raven 1 Phoenix 2

Moose 5

Buffalo 3 Sasquatch 1

Buffalo 4

“ 20

CLASS XIX • CORPS MEMBERS

It is not the strongest of the species that survives, nor the most intelligent that survives; it is the one that is the most adaptable to change. — Charles Darwin

”

FORMER CORPS MEMBERS

Louis Bufford

Brittany Castellon

Peter Conley

Annie Davis

Patrick Davis

Buffalo 3

Moose 3

Raven 3

Moose 3

Moose 5

Aunesti Dennard

Fletcher Freeman

Jessica Green

Kris Hall

Natalie Hanisch

Moose 2

Raven 5

Moose 5

Raven 3

Raven 4

Kadesha Hayes

Shannon Herr

Mariah Hoke

Delano Jenkins

Tatiana Jenkins

Buffalo 3

Buffalo 4

Moose 3

Raven 2

Justin Leiby

Blake Mershon

Mickell Nedd

Andy Phongphiou

Tyler Reyes

Buffalo 1

Moose 5

Moose 3

Jordian Rowe

Katherine Schuster

Ashley Silver

Montae Snead

Dymond Winkfield

Raven 2

Buffalo 4

Raven 3

Moose 2

Buffalo 3

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ CORPS MEMBERS

CORPS TRAINING INSTITUTE (CTI) In February 2013, Corps Members arrived at the Atlantic Region’s Perry Point campus and were propelled into four weeks of intensive orientation and training. Members quickly formed bonds through inprocessing paperwork, meals at Perryville’s renowned American Legion, and ice-breakers on their temporary teams (a.k.a. “pods”). As much as they resisted, members became attached to their podmates and hearts were inevitably broken when permanent teams were revealed a week later. From physical trainings at the crack of dawn to four-hour exercises on team dynamics, from CPR to CCRs, Corps Members were challenged to prepare themselves for the months of service ahead. Although the details of each training have long since faded from memory, Corps Members are sure to remember being “motivated, motivated, down right motivated” every morning, or their first caws, stampedes, or prideful displays of antlers. They are sure to look back on those first few weeks in February and realize that, although they may never come this way again, they have grown as leaders.

CLASS XIX • CORPS MEMBERS

AMERILIFE

CLASS XIX TIMELINE JAN. 3 Team Leaders arrive at Perry Point and begin four-week Team Leader Training (TLT) FEB. 5 Corps Members arrive at Perry Point for in -processing and begin CTI, Corps Training Institute

FEB. 1 Team Leader Installation

MARCH 8 Class XIX Induction. Teams deploy for Round 1 on March 9 MARCH 10–16 Wildland Firefighter training in Kinston, N.C.

APRIL 26 Mayor’s Day of Service in Baltimore APRIL 29 Teams deploy for Round 2

JUNE 19 All Corps Day JUNE 21 Teams deploy for Round 3

AUG. 3 “Initiative” teams deploy for Round 4

JULY 11–31 Six teams support the “Reaching the Summit Initiative” in West Virginia JULY 26 “Non-Initiative” teams deploy for Round 4

SEPT. 21 Nine teams deploy to Colorado to aid in flood response and recovery. All other teams deploy to Round 5 projects

OCT. 12–18 Eight teams return to campus from CO OCT. 20 Eight teams from CO deploy to final projects

NOV. 6 Corps returns for close-out NOV. 14 Class XIX graduates

CLASS XIX • AMERILFE

RED BAGS A symbol of the minimalist, nomadic lifestyle of the Corps Member, the red bag must carry everything one needs to survive an NCCC spike.

What were your must-have items in your red bag? My running shoes, an additional belt, and my green Puma sweatshirt Greg Starling Moose 5

My spirit rock, Old Bay, headlamp Ross Rinehart Raven 5

Kindle Touch with lighted cover for reading anywhere and at night, Vibram barefoot shoes for running and everyday use, and my X-Mini Speaker for surprisingly loud sound for my iPod shuffle and laptop. Ryan Abdelnour Moose 4 Team Leader

My Teddy Bear, Bearth Vader/Bearnikin Skywalker, for cuddles sake! Leah Goodman Raven 4 Team Leader

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ AMERILIFE

$4.75/DAY Adjusting to AmeriLife means learning to live on a food budget of $4.75 per day. Alone, a person would have to subsist on instant noodles and generic cereal, but when combined with the food budgets of teammates, a Corps Member can practically create gourmet feasts for 10 people. The real trick is re-learning to how to cook for yourself after the service term is said and done.

What was your most memorable team meal? Pretty much every Saturday, the STLs would make a fancy brunch together— everything from waffles to eggs to breakfast potatoes. It was something that really kept us a family. Stephanie Ferguson Raven Unit Support Team Leader

My most memorable meal was during mini spike when I made shepherd’s pie. I only had one pan to use and what should have taken 45 minutes took 2.5 hours! David Wright Buffalo 4

“Greg’s Chili,” as everyone on my team calls it. Greg Starling Moose 5

CLASS XIX • AMERILFE

TRAVEL Whether experiencing the northeast for the first time or finding some of its well-hidden gems, NCCC affords its members opportunities to be immersed in environments that they might never otherwise visit.

Where was your favorite destination in the Atlantic Region? Frost Valley YMCA in the Catskill Mountains of New York. We lived in rustic cabins, had the bubbliest and most accommodating and kind sponsor in the world, and received training by the Student Conservation Association to crush rock, build timber bridges, and repair the drainage of the trail. Ryan Abdelnour Moose 4 Team Leader

Martha's Vineyardâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;we were on an island! And we were helping a kind and good sponsor continue teaching about sustainable agriculture. Travis Hanes Raven 2

The Rockaways were nice because we were in a city and we had access to a beach. David Wright Buffalo 4

TRANSITIONS Project transitions were a time to unwind from the previous spike, swap stories with friends from other teams, wipe the slate clean, and prepare for the next foray into the field. Community meetings allowed Corps Members to put their personalities on display, debriefs gave staff members a glimpse into the staggering accomplishments and obstacles of each team, and all corps events—even the dreaded PTs— brought unity to Class XIX.

CLASS XIX • AMERILIFE

What is your best memory from a transition? Raven Team Leader dinners at the Prost German restaurant in Port Deposit were always a highlight of transitions; schnitzel, lederhosen, and karaoke are a winning combination. Ben Dillon Community Relations STL

I took an LAA day to go to the national zoo and talk to one of the zoo commissary keepers. It was very educational and helped me decide on my career plans. David Wright Buffalo 4

Before the induction ceremony a spontaneous dance party broke out. Greg Starling Moose 5

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ AMERILFE

SPECIAL EVENTS The Atlantic Region’s proximity to D.C. afforded Corps Members opportunities to attend special events with elected officials, celebrities, and directors and staff of the Corporation for National and Community Service— CEO Wendy Spencer being chief among them.

Vice President Biden meets Team Leaders at MLK Day of Service in D.C.

Wendy Spencer attends Class XIX Induction Ceremony

Raven 3 members attend a press conference with Wendy Spencer and the Governor of Delaware

Team Leaders attend Ravens pep rally in support of Baltimore Mayor’s Super Bowl day of service wager 32

CLASS XIX • AMERILIFE

Team Leaders meet with Wendy Spencer at West Virginia’s New River Gorge in celebration of the “Reaching the Summit Community Service Initiative”

↑↓ Mayors’ Day of Service in Baltimore

50th Anniversary of the March on Washington

CLASS XIX • AMERILIFE

AmeriCorps 20th Anniversary Celebration in D.C.

TEAMS& PROJECTS

SELECT ACCOMPLISHMENTS

8,659 1,455 374 trees or shrubs tended

people assisted in disaster areas

houses refurbished

    80,014 406,451

5,838

7,225

volunteers recruited or coordinated

pounds of exotic vegetation removed

pounds of trash or debris removed

books sorted, inventoried, or reshelved

14,754

2,500

5,000

654

acres of land in which fire was suppressed

tons of food inventoried or distributed

acres of wildlife habitat restored or protected

new trees planted

Note: Statistics represent accomplishments from March to September 2013 and do not include service completed in Round 5 of projects

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

PROJECT LOCATIONS ROUND 1

ROUND 2

ROUND 3

Allegheny College Lake Effects Allima Institute Appalachian Coal Country Team Blue Water Baltimore Camden Garden Club Delaware State Parks FIRST Chesapeake FIRST D.C. Girl Scouts of Chesapeake Bay Habitat for Humanity — Newburgh Habitat for Humanity — Westchester Mass. Audubon Society — South Shore New York Cares Rebuilding Together Baltimore Schoharie Area Long Term Recovery St. Bernard Project U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Valley Youth House Volunteer Center of Bergen County Winterthur Museum World Care Centers

Albany Pine Push Preserve Boys & Girls Club of Delaware Cardinal Cushing Centers The FARM Institute Frost Valley YMCA Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York Habitat for Humanity — Seven Rivers Habitat for Humanity — York Jersey Cares Massachusetts Audubon Society — Felix Neck Rebuilding Together — Baltimore Rebuilding Together — Pittsburgh Respond & Rebuild Serve Rhode Island SerVermont St. Bernard Project The Town of Tabernacle U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Volunteer Center of Bergen County Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve

Appalachian Trail Conservancy Appalachian Mountain Club Armstrong Conservation District Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia Delaware State Parks Eastern Shore Land Conservancy Habitat for Humanity — CFC Jersey Cares Phoenix Charter Academy Project Crossroad Respond & Rebuild The Nature Conservancy — Maine University of Maine 4H Camp — Bryant Pond University of Maine 4H Camp — Tanglewood U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service World Care Centers

3/9 TO 4/18

ROUND 4 7/26 TO 9/12

Appalachian Mountain Club Baltimore City Bureau of Parks Baltimore County Reforestation Charity Treks City of Sanford Creative City Public Charter School Habitat for Humanity — Midcoast Habitat for Humanity — Newburgh Jersey Cares The Marion Institute New Hampshire Food Bank Phoenix Charter Academy Respond & Rebuild St. Bernard Project The Nature Conservancy — Pennsylvania Torrington Area Health District U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Valley Forge National Historic Park Volunteer Center of Bergen County

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

4/29 TO 5/31

ROUND 5 9/21 TO 11/6

American Red Cross Del. National Estuarine Research Reserve Habitat for Humanity — Midcoast Imagine! Incarnation Center Jersey Cares Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing The Marion Institute The Nature Conservancy — Maine NECHAMA SERVE Philly St. Bernard Project U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service Volunteer Center of Bergen County Winterthur Museum

6/21 TO 7/31

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DISASTER SERVICES

ENERGY CONSERVATION

INFRASTRUCTURE IMPROVEMENT

URBAN & RURAL DEVELOPMENT

ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP

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DEPLOYMENTS OUTSIDE OF THE ATLANTIC REGION

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 CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

LEAD THE CHARGE

BUFFALO UNIT THE BUFFALO CHANT Who are we? Buffalo! Who leads the charge? Buffalo! Well, I’ve got my horns up high, My hooves down low, And this is how we Buffalo! Buff-a-lo, buff-buff-a-lo! Buff-a-lo, buff-buff-a-lo! Stampede! (Stomping)

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

SHARON KELLOGG UNIT LEADER

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

BUFFALO 1 THE TEAM LEADER Rico Hernandez

TEAM BUILDER Two guns and a sheriff dude

NICKNAME BONE

THE TEAM Jake Clark Garret Ford Emma Graves Kayla Hanson Meagan Julian Alex McDonald Jimmie Perkins Alexander Slater Sierra Taylor Owen Wolfe

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

FAVORITE MOVIE The Man with the Iron Fists

VAN NAME Mossé

TEAM MOTTO “Get like Nike and just do it.”



ROUND 1 • BREEZY POINT, NY Habitat for Humanity Westchester

From One Point to Another Round 1 for Buffalo 1 has been more than just an introduction to the actual meat of the NCCC program; it has been a tale of how the makeup of a group of young workers mutated over time to have an entirely new appearance and dynamic. Long ago, during a period known to many 18 to 24 yearolds as CTI, there was an elite bunch of young folk known as Buffalo 1. The count came to a massive 10. Living, breathing, hard-working people came from every single corner of the contiguous United States to band together and get things done for America. Sadly, Buffalo 1 would not hold their member count for long, but they would hold on to their strength and show Round 1 in Breezy Point, NY precisely who is boss. The first subtraction from the team came before they even left campus for New York. One member

decided to leave the program and once departure time for Round 1 came, two additional members were lent to other Buffalo teams in need and another two were directed in the opposite direction to become even more powerful and versatile than before. Those two trekked to North Carolina and returned as Type 2 Wildland Firefighters. There was much rejoicing once the firefighters were reunited with their beloved team. The ladies swooned and the gentlemen guffawed before an audience of bystanders that would applaud until their palms crumbled and blew away in the gentle breeze of Breezy Point. Unfortunately, Buffalo 1 would soon face yet another subtraction from their ranks, but would at the same time gain an ally stationed back in Perry Point. There was a call for a position to be filled back in Maryland that the Service Learning Initiator and Assistant Team Leader for Buffalo 1 was deemed the most fit to assume. She ascended to a higher rank, garbed in green, ready to support Buffalo 1 as well as all other teams within the Corps. Round 1 is now coming to a close and she will soon be reunited with her former team for a short time. They will laugh, dance, and be merry until April 29, when they all must resume their roles apart from each other on another adventure, this time in Maine.

| B1

Living, breathing, hard-working people came from every single corner of the contiguous United States to band together and get things done for America.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

B1 |

ROUND 2 • BATH, ME Habitat for Humanity 7 Rivers



Our Maine Purpose Over our five-week term in Maine, our main purpose was to weatherize as many homes as we could. Our supervisor taught us about the winterization and weatherization process and the importance it plays in conserving energy. In doing so, we learned how to properly make and install storm windows. Corps Members on the team learned a lot while working; we learned various things about the materials we were using and we also became comfortable being in threefoot crawlspaces where spiders and dirt lurked. Every day, the entire team was dedicated to finishing our work and making sure it was done well. By working alongside homeowners, community members became more knowledgeable about AmeriCorps and their local chapter of Habitat for Humanity. We helped improve many people’s homes, making them more energy efficient and longer lasting. In turn, homeowners learned hands-on home improvement skills and gained cost-savings energy efficiency.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS



ROUND 3 • TOMS RIVER, NJ Jersey Cares

Ameri-Matrimony on the Jersey Shore At this point, the beginning of Round 3, Buffalo 1 has overcome the many internal and external issues that any mesh of young adults forced to spend every moment with each other you could imagine. Of course, that means that the next step is to potentially jeopardize what months of team building had built. Since all was well in the world of Buffalo 1, the world of Raven 1 was commissioned to rendezvous with them in New Jersey to, you know, mix things up and make them exciting again. There were all sorts of possibilities for calamity: people could have fought, people could have done the opposite, and people could have just called it quits; but one thing happened that no one could ever have predicted—a marriage. It started as a joke, really. “Wouldn’t it be hilari-

ous if we were to have a wedding?” “No. Well, kind of.” Then that fateful day crept up when the lethargic Corps Members were rallied by a young, goateed man garbed in green. The exact words he used have been lost in translation over the years, but it is most commonly agreed that he said something like, “I’m not going to rally everyone, but if someone steps up and begins preparing for a wedding, maybe the rest will join in.” And so there was a wedding—a traditional wedding with all of the traditions stretched as far as possible. Two partners (teams) were joined together forever (until we graduate). One bride’s dress was, indeed, not seen by her groom before the wedding, the brides and grooms exchanged their vows, and two bouquets were caught. Green and gray were permanently mixed together to create two beautiful pairs of newlyweds: Rico and Kayla Ravallo, and Oliver and Kayla Buffen. A fabulous wedding was followed by an equally fabulous reception. The housing’s ceiling shook all night to the sounds supplied by DJ McDonald. Since the teams’ time in New Jersey has come to an end, they have been physically separated, but they patiently await each other’s embrace that is to come a few more times before the term ends. ‘Til November 14 do us part.

| B1

People could have fought, people could have done the opposite, and people could have just called it quits; but one thing happened that no one could ever have predicted…

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

B1 |

ROUND 4 • BALTIMORE, MD • RUSSELL, ME Creative City Public Charter School • Appalachian Mountain Club

Carbohydrate Three At any given moment during Round 4, Buffalo 1 was either receiving pizza, in possession of great quantities of pizza, or just running out of pizza.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

There was always that one thing to look forward to for Buffalo 1 this round—that one rewarding confection that was on each member’s mind as they performed grueling work in the dense forests of Massachusetts—and that was the circular heap of cheese and carbohydrates that is easily recognized by every Earthling as pizza. Before being reintroduced to pizza, Buffalo 1 was introduced to Gary, the site supervisor for their stay in Russell, MA. Gary was an older gentleman with a mustache bushy enough to nap on; he took great pride in seeing the young adults of NCCC impact the community through woodland work, and took even more pride in rewarding them with pizza. At any given moment during Round 4, Buffalo 1 was either receiving pizza, in possession of great quantities of pizza, or just running out of pizza—only to have their pizza stock replenished immediately after it has run dry. There wasn’t a single wasted moment during their stint in Mas-

sachusetts. Buffalo 1 flattened hiking trails, ate pizza, removed a 70-year-old pile of rust from the woods, rewarded themselves with pizza, beautified the city of Russell, visited Springfield, and came home to a loving pizza. You may be thinking it was pizza all the time; well, you’re somewhat correct. There was pizza most of the time. One night, however, pizza was the farthest thing from the mind as that night was devoted to chocolate. Chocolate was present in every form imaginable on that night: doughnuts, milk, cake, brownies, pudding, strawberries. The AmeriCorps members even took a shot at creating a chocolate pizza, but such an act would be blasphemous as it would taint the purity of pizza. After betraying pizza by spending time with chocolate, Buffalo 1 felt sick in the stomach due to their own disloyalty and soon resumed a steady diet of pizza—a habit each one of them will carry with them this year and beyond.

BUFFALO 3 THE TEAM LEADER Mignon Bryant

MUST-HAVE GROCERY ITEM Bananas

NICKNAME Buffalo Wings

THE TEAM Victor Alvarado Sarah Kolb Eddy Lee Wayne Sun Whitney Wooten

FAVORITE TV SHOW Girl Code

VAN NAMES Bleu Cheese & Ranch

TEAM MOTTO “You can’t control other people; you can only control yourself.”

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

B3 |

ROUND 1 • BALTIMORE, MD Blue Water Baltimore • Rebuilding Together

Paint Chips, Planting Trees & Dirty Language Here we are, at the end of our first round as a team, knowing more about each other than we ever expected. We started in an unfamiliar territory with unfamiliar faces but now we’ve turned into a family. We embarked on this journey to improve ourselves and the communities throughout the Atlantic Region and we’ve done just that. Our first round was a split round spent in Baltimore. Most of our time was spent working with Blue Water Baltimore working on expanding the tree canopy and protecting water ways and estuaries throughout the city. After orienting the team to the effects of tree planting, mulching and their impact on the environment, the team was asked to lead groups of active volunteers and school children to teach the importance of the trees in their communities. We suited up for each workday with gloves, goggles and an over abundance of shovels. We attacked mulch piles higher than skyscrapers, planted and protected an infinite number of trees, and dug right into our first project round; six-day work weeks could not hinder our dedication. During our time with Blue Water, we had the opportunity to work with Vince, a site supervisor, at Herring Run Nursery. We

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did not expect a supervisor with such dirty language, but he was one of most intriguing guys any of us had ever met. We organized and re-organized all of the plants inside and outside the green house (and then we organized them again). We were able to provide him with extra hands to prepare for his annual plant sale—which turned into the largest sale day in his history at the nursery. Thanks to our help, Vince was more than prepared for the hoards of buyers swooping in. The biggest challenge of Blue Water Baltimore was leaving, but our services were needed elsewhere. For the second part of our split, we stayed in Baltimore for a one-week stint with Rebuilding Together Baltimore to plan for their annual Rebuilding Together Day. We were able to help them prepare for the big day by scraping paint of off hand railings and it was nice to meet home owners whose houses would be improved during the annual day of service. Overall, the round was great. We learned so much about our team and the Baltimore community. The best part, however, was learning that we get to return to Rebuilding Together Baltimore next round for the big Rebuilding Day! What a great way to end our first round.

ROUND 2 • BALTIMORE, MD • WELLS, ME Rebuilding Together • Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve

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All’s Well That Ends in Wells

If I was working on this project in Maine with site supervisor John for the whole 10 months of service, I would be happy!

Round 2 started off with a bang for Buffalo 3! We accomplished Rebuilding Day with our follow-up sponsor, Rebuilding Together Baltimore. Half of the team worked in the Mid Govans neighborhood and the other half worked in the Colgate neighborhood. With the help of Corps Members from campus, the day come together and we got a lot of work done. The reactions from community members were priceless and we’ll never forget Mr. Wilson, a disabled veteran, who couldn’t be more grateful for our help in making his home safer, warmer, and dryer. We will greatly miss the friends that we made at Rebuilding Together Baltimore: Bonnie who would bring Iggy, the blind pit bull, to keep us company while we worked in the office, and Amanda, a staff member who taught us to be organized among a chaotic sea of volunteers. After Rebuilding Together Baltimore, we took a road trip up to Maine to work with Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve. Is there a better way for a team to bond than a 10-hour, seven-state road trip in a 15-passenger van? We don’t think so. Upon crossing the border of Maine, a burst of excitement was felt throughout the team. The housing was awesome, and the sponsor was even better! We had the best site supervisor, John, who took as much pride in teaching us new skills as he did in getting the work done. John taught us how to use many different power tools, how to drive a tractor, and about the different tide cycles of the ocean and estuaries; he was a fountain of knowledge. We accomplished so much at the reserve; we had multiple painting and landscaping projects, we made wooden trash can holders and two picnic tables, and our two wild land firefighters, Mignon and Ray, got to burn a giant brush pile. In the words of teammate Kadesha Hayes, “If I was working on this project in Maine with site supervisor John for the whole 10 months of service, I would be happy!”

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B3 |

ROUND 3 • NEW YORK, NY World Cares Centers

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Buffalo 3 Cares About NYC Excitement! I think I speak for my entire team when I say that we were nothing less than excited to be going to New York for our third round. More specifically, we worked on Staten Island, which, fortunately for us, was a ferry ride away from lower Manhattan. We were there on our first disaster project, and after coming from two rounds of environmental stewardship, it sounded really exciting. The World Cares Center of Staten Island was our project sponsor and they were really excited to have us there working with them. We were there in the middle of summer, which meant the WCC had lots of volunteer groups coming in, ready and eager to help those affected by Super Storm Sandy. Michelle was our main supervisor and Shamar was our second supervisor; we worked with them every day to coordinate the different projects going on at any given time and doing assessments for future projects to be put in the queue. When the volunteer groups came, each of us on the team would take on our own project with the help of a team of volunteers. One of my most memorable groups of volunteers was from American Express. Little did they know what they were about to get into. We first grabbed our tools, which included spray bottles, metal brushes, Tyvek suits, face masks, rubber gloves and safety goggles. Our job was to go into a three-foot crawl space and scrub mold off of floor studs. To my surprise, they were more enthused

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and eager to work than I had expected from a corporate group of volunteers. We spent the day scrubbing mold and talking about what NCCC was and a little about the work they do at American Express. At the end of day, they all thanked me for the service I was putting in and I thanked them for volunteering and being great sports about the work we did. During our stay there in Staten Island, we came across many volunteer groups like that. We also came across dozens of very appreciative home owners and their families. One home owner in particular really stood out for me and my team: an actor named George. George is one of the most optimistic, hard-working people we have come across. He’s acted in the show “Law and Order” and various films, most recently as a cab driver in the upcoming “Spider Man” movie. He shared many of his life stories with us as we worked alongside him at his property. My teammate, Sarah, spent many days at his house leading volunteers through different projects that he had lined up. We were able to work with him one last time before we left New York. It was definitely a bittersweet goodbye. Round 3 was very humbling for us; we were able to help out dozens of families that were affected by Sandy and had our eyes opened to how much damage the storm left behind. It was a really great round for us; we had a lot of fun and very much enjoyed the World Cares Center and their staff.

ROUND 4 • TORRINGTON, CT Torrington Area Health District Medical Reserve Corps

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Where the Buffalo Roam

I will always look back on Round 4 fondly because of the large amount of work team Buffalo 3 was able to accomplish on so many trails in Connecticut.

Round 4 was the longest round of the service term, and as usual, team Buffalo 3 went through some changes. While serving with the Torrington Area Health District Medical Reserve Corps, Buffalo 3 lost a member, gained a member, and moved housing from northern Connecticut to southern Connecticut. One of the most unique features about Round 4 was the fact that, when Buffalo 3 was living in northern Connecticut, we were driving all the way to southern Connecticut for work. When we finally moved to southern Connecticut, we began driving an hour commute to work in northern Connecticut. I will never forget that hour-long commute. Buffalo 3 worked with many different partners of our sponsoring organization, all the way from Southbury to Cornwall. We will never forget Peter, Richard, and David from the Litchfield Land trust. They led us in some of the coolest projects we accomplished during Round 4, such as building a boardwalk which required us to canoe logs across a pond. We also built a stone staircase leading down a steep hill to a trail, making the trail more safely accessible to hikers. One of the coolest moments of Round 4 was getting to tour Peter’s farm; we were amazed by his many hobbies, from bowl and basket making to sea glass and whistle crafting. Buffalo 3 also met people we will not soon forget, like Mary of the Southbury Conservation Commission, who was so very enthusiastic about the completion of a national blue trail which we built this round. Another cool feature of Round 4 was living at the Audubon Sanctuary in South Britain. We lived in Leslie Kane’s personal residence. Leslie had two cats which Buffalo 3 viewed as our stand-in pets for the round. I will always look back on Round 4 fondly because of the large amount of work team Buffalo 3 was able to accomplish on so many trails in Connecticut. Teammate Sarah Kolb said it best: “It feels like we have hiked every mountain in Connecticut!”

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B3 |

ROUND 5 • MOONACHIE, NJ Volunteer Center of Bergen County

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A New View of New Jersey Of all my traveling aspirations, New Jersey was never very high on the list (one above Iowa, to be exact). With visions of fist pumping, cursing Italians, and criminal towns in mind, our fivemember team climbed into the van (which, despite our small team, still had as much stuff as the first round) and headed to Rutherford, NJ for the fifth and final round of AmeriCorps. Upon awaking while driving through Newark, I realized my fears must be completely justified and promptly fell back asleep. However, our final destination turned out to be a quaint little suburb and the changing fall leaves made our housing at Felician College look very inviting. The Volunteer Center of Bergen County along with Rebuilding Together Bergen County were our sponsors for the duration of the round. The project description stated that we would be working underneath trailers and putting up insulation, so we were prepared for the worst. As luck would have it, though, upon arrival we were informed the trailers were done, so we were able to help rebuild from the damages of Hurricane Sandy. Construction was one of the only skills I hadn’t yet learned in AmeriCorps, so I was excited to learn about installing studs,

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sheet rocking, tiling, spackling, and painting. Our sponsors were, indeed, cursing Italians, but the work days were always interesting and a lot of laughs were had. Need your basement redone? We can do it (for $5,000… an hour). Although I would still make the song “Lodi” by Credence Clearwater Revival the general theme song of the round, the work was great. All fifty trees in the state changed fall colors, and having our own rooms made us tolerate each other (for the most part). Whitney, I’ll always remembering tiling the floor with you and spackling my pants. Victor, the Streetlight Manifesto concert in New York City was one of my best days of the year. Eddy, thanks for always looking out for us. I’m going to miss you all.

I was excited to learn about installing studs, sheet rocking, tiling, spackling, and painting.

BUFFALO 4 THE TEAM LEADER Owen Wolfe

NICKNAME Bad News Buffalo

TEAM ANTHEM “I’m Different” by 2 Chains

THE TEAM Courtney Amburg Mike Brown Ryan Devoe Jeremiah King Kaitlyn Liafsha Megan Racine Ray Vassar-Semanchik David Wright

INSIDE JOKE “It’s purple.”

VAN NAME Mufasa

TEAM MOTTO “When in doubt, cut it down.”

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B4 |

ROUND 1 • DENTON, MD • WINTERTHUR, DE Girl Scouts of Chesapeake Bay • Winterthur Museum

5-6-Pick-Up-Sticks This round, Buffalo 4 did a lot of picking up sticks. It seemed like every time we turned around or went to a new place, we had to pick up sticks. Our quote for the round is, “When in doubt, pick up sticks.” Now, when the team has nothing else to do, guess what? Yeah, we pick up sticks. At Camp Grove Point, we spent so much time clearing camp sites that you could walk the entire camp without seeing a single twig on the ground. That’s dedication. Once we moved on to Delaware, we thought our assignments would be different–but lo and behold, the first two days were spent clearing brush from a field and the fourth day we cleared branches from a stream. Who knew there could be so many sticks for one team to pick up? These tasks may seem tedious, but we made it fun. Our conversations about Aladdin and Disney movies in general kept us motivated and singing songs out of key (and very loudly) gave everyone a laugh. An ongoing joke, though, was that we were making the stick gods angry by moving all of the other sticks. Maybe we should have just left them there... At the end of the day, hearing compliments from passersby about how great the sites looked made the work that much more rewarding. We didn’t care if we had to move sticks for another few weeks after hearing that the work we were doing was having an impact. Buffalo 4 knows that image is everything, and if someone wants us to move sticks, by golly, we will pick up those branches from that creek and make it look the best that it ever has!

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We didn’t care if we had to move sticks for another few weeks after hearing that the work we were doing was having an impact.

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We were able to take a job that nobody else wanted to do and complete a lot of work for the many families in need.

ROUND 2 • MOONACHIE, NJ Volunteer Center of Bergen County

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How to Insulate the Garden State The second round of our 10-month journey with AmeriCorps NCCC had us on a project in Moonachie, NJ for four weeks working for the residents of a trailer park affected by Hurricane Sandy. We were able to take a job that nobody else wanted to do and complete a lot of work for the many families in need. We helped restore at least 40 trailers (and that doesn’t even include what the composite team, Dragon 1, completed before us). We, Buffalo 4, take pride in serving others and our motivating team leader has taught us to not give up during tough times and to enjoy the work at hand, because someone is going to appreciate it once it’s done. Even though the work could get repetitive, it had reason and our team was glad to help. We learned new skills; many of us had never put up insulation before (much less underneath a trailer). We found quite a few interesting things under some of the trailers: dead cat bones, tons of trash, and even a boomerang. It was beyond any of our imaginations on some days. Overall, the team really grew this round and it was nice to be able to help the individuals affected by the storm.

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B4 |

ROUND 3 • QUEENS, NY • LAWRENCE, MA Respond & Rebuild • Phoenix Charter Academy

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Responding, Rebuilding, Listening & Learning I don’t usually speak for the rest of my team, but I think I can safely say that working with Respond & Rebuild was one of the best projects we’ve had so far this year. Besides some team issues, our project and sponsor were phenomenal. For most of us, this was the first time we ever did demolition on a house or put up sheetrock. The most rewarding part of it all was hearing the stories of people that experienced Hurricane Sandy. Respond & Rebuild described the chaos that occurred as the hurricane hit and said that it looked like something from an apocalypse film. One person that I worked for, Laura, told me her story during my lunch break. Her basement and part of her first floor were both flooded during the storm and all the while her husband was sick in the hospital. After the hurricane passed, people that were walking past her home stopped and help her take out her water damaged furniture; every bit of assistance she received was much appreciated. Even through all of the difficulties she went through, she still found things that gave her joy: gardening, photography, and jewelry making. She’s an inspiration to me and some of my other teammates. She’s a true vision of what overcoming obstacles looks like.

The most rewarding part of it all was hearing the stories of people that experienced Hurricane Sandy.

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ROUND 4 • BALTIMORE, MD • MARION, MA Baltimore City Bureau of Parks • The Marion Institute

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Leaving Our Marks on Baltimore Parks For Round 4, Buffalo 4 spent three-and-a-half weeks in Baltimore to work with the Bureau of Parks. The team helped build a Retaining Wall at a playground, remove graffiti, put in a French drain, and paint a pavilion. When we weren’t working, we were enjoying the luxury of our housing area in Gwynn Falls, which included a playground, volleyball court, and hiking trails. The nice thing about the project was how much interaction we had with the park rangers and police officers that worked at the Gwynn Falls Park. Our housing was located in the upstairs of the trailer house, as the offices were downstairs. Every time the rangers and officers came in, we got to talk to them, hear about their experiences and what could be done in order to improve the park.

One of the evenings we were there, the team had dinner with the sponsor. She brought three-dozen blue crabs to the park, and we sat in the picnic area, laid out a bunch of newspapers so we didn’t make a mess on the table itself, and began digging in to eating the crabs. Most people on the team already knew how to eat them right, but a couple of us were learning for the first time. I never knew there was a right way and a wrong way to eat a crab, but for sure, they were good. The other highlight of the round was when the team got to go kayaking and canoeing. It was a service-learning activity that had to do with cleaning up garbage out of the water and learning about the sewage system in the city and what complications have arrived in regards to it. So it was an educational, fun activity.

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STAND TALL

MOOSE UNIT THE MOOSE CHANT My head stays up, My back stays straight, My team stays down, But my antlers ain’t! Get ‘em up! Got ‘em up! Get ‘em up! Got ‘em up! Gooooo Mooooose!

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

JASON CANGELOSI UNIT LEADER

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MOOSE 1 THE TEAM LEADER Phil Schwartz

TEAM ANTHEM “Always I Want to Be with You”

NICKNAME Moosicorns

THE TEAM Glenn Campbell Nordel Clarke Carissa Domenech Andrew Kingery Gavin McGimpsey Rebekah Peroutka Victoria Pridgen Megan Ryan

MUST-HAVE GROCERY ITEM Pop Tarts

VAN NAME Dirty

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INSIDE JOKE “Fear Lord Voldemort.”

ROUND 1 • BALTIMORE, MD • WASHINGTON, DC Allima Institute • FIRST Robotics

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Litter, Vines & Battling Robots For Round 1, the mighty Moosicorns went to Baltimore to work with the Allima Institute, whose mission is to provide technology-based microenterprise and life skills to at-risk youth who will in turn bring those new skill sets back to the community to make positive contributions. Allima also has a Nature Retreat Workshop for youth so that they are able to see nature as they wouldn’t be able to in the city. We were tasked to help beautify the 20-acre property that Allima resides on as well as help set up the Nature Retreat Workshop on the property. The property was covered in endless amounts of vines, but we did not let these vines stop us. For weeks we worked on clearing the land so that the Nature Retreat Workshop could prosper. We ended up creating a campsite that included a fire pit and an area to camp overnight. We also built several trails leading down to both. Under the watchful eye of our Assistant Team Leader, we were able to complete this task that was brought before us. As a team, we cleared debris and brush from the property so that the people who go to Allima will see the potential of the Institute. We also picked up 32 bags full of litter around the property. The litter sometimes felt endless, but we kept on cleaning and continued to clean up litter during the whole project. A few members of the team painted a mural on one of the walls of a burnt down brick building that is on the property. For the second part of the project we helped out FIRST Robotics, a program that is available for youth to create and build robots that can complete different tasks. These youth then compete in competitions with their robots. We worked ten-hour days during these competitions, but it was well

These are memories that we will share and have forever. The mighty Moosicorns worked hard and got things done.

worth it. We were able to meet NASA Administrator Charles Bolden and Maryland Senator Barbara Mikulski. FIRST spoiled us tremendously; they provided all of our meals and housed the team in hostels and hotels. We worked at the D.C. competition first and then, two weeks later, worked at the Baltimore competition. We had the opportunity to meet members of AmeriCorps VISTA and were able to work with them for both competitions. We also were able to talk with the competitors and were able to see how dedicated and creative they were with their washing-machinesized robots. Our first project wouldn’t have been complete without memorable ISPs; we worked with Moveable Feast, Samaritan Women and the White House. We loved the missions for each of the ISP sponsors and we also loved working with them. If we had to pick a favorite, however, it would probably have to be working at the White House where we helped direct people through the Spring Garden Tours. We were able to walk to the front of the White house and view the gardens the First Lady was working on. It was fun and we were able to meet a diverse group of people. These are memories that we will share and have forever. The mighty Moosicorns worked hard and got things done.

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M1 |

ROUND 2 • NEW YORK, NY St. Bernard Project

Stabilizing the Rocky Rockaways We would walk out of homes covered in white dust and looking like ghosts but we always walked out knowing that we completed our tasks.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

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Moose 1 is a group of leaders put together to make a difference in the lives of others. In the Rockaways, we had the opportunity to lead others who wanted to give back by volunteering with Friends of Rockaway. Super Storm Sandy has destroyed so many lives but we were able to help many of them rebuild and start anew. Walls were destroyed with wonder bars and hammers, screws and nails were taken out with crafty technique, and homes and basements were literally gutted. We made sure there was nothing in the way to stop us from rebuilding. Safety glasses, gloves, and masks were worn as volunteers were led in the demolition of flooded homes. The walls that crumbled to the floor were swept up and tossed out and areas were stripped down and readied for new drywall and insulation. Moose 1, with the help of volunteers, made it possible for the next step in rebuilding. We soon learned that installing drywall is long and tedious process but one that is necessary to the rebuilding efforts. Measuring and cutting the drywall so that it fit correctly was a pain until we learned from our mistakes. After that, we learned how to put joint compound on walls correctly and that sanding the compound

was not the most entertaining job in the world and we learned to take otherwise tedious tasks and make them fun (usually by singing and dancing). We would walk out of homes covered in white dust and looking like ghosts but we always walked out knowing that we completed our tasks and helped out the homeowners in some way. We went to multiple homes and met owners who were affected by Super Storm Sandy. We learned of all of the difficulties they went through before, during, and after the storm. These people have been through so much and we are grateful that we were able to help them in some way. There lives were uprooted and now they will be able to have some stable footing because of the work that we completed. To be a part of something this big that has changed people’s lives is a rewarding experience. We worked hard and along the way we helped people move back into their homes. Moose 1 made a difference in people’s lives this round and we will continue to make a difference in other’s lives. Some people were just born to lead, to make a difference, and to help others. •••

ROUND 3 • WELLS, ME • FAYETTE, WV The Nature Conservancy • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

For the Moose 1 Moosicorns, Round 3 was a round of ups and downs. We started off in Maine working for the Nature Conservancy in the Saco Heath. The Saco Heath was an interesting place being a marshland that is unlike anywhere in the US. Our goal was to work on reconstructing the boardwalk to help preserve the nature in the Saco Heath; which included rare plants and butterflies. This lovely Heath had its share of bugs which proved to be bothersome to the whole team. A few of us had to construct pieces of the boardwalk for the rest of the team and for the Student Conservation Association (SCA). Some of us were actually standing in marshy areas past our knees replacing the boardwalk that is already there. A few of us fell in that murky marsh water, and walked out with stained clothing. There were moments when we worked in the pouring rain and would be soaked from head to toe. Maine definitely had an impact on our team. We learned how to deal with things that would

make the average person very unhappy. In West Virginia we worked with the Initiative and the Boy Scouts of America for the Boy Scout Jamboree. We helped by supervising Boy Scouts during service projects in different locations in Fayette County, West Virginia. This helped the team gain skills in leadership as well as gave us the opportunity to meet a range of different people and work with them. We also worked with Corps Members from the Vicksburg, Mississippi campus. That allowed us to see how the other campuses operated and let us meet new people who were in the same situation we were. West Virginia was for our team, a place where we could meet new people and really learn to open up and be comfortable with others. Over all this round was great for the team. We were able to experience new and different things. And we were able to develop our skills as leaders. It pretty much summed up exactly what this program is about. •••

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Ups & Downs Through Maine & Mountains [This round] pretty much summed up exactly what this program is about.

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M1 |

ROUND 4 • ELK TOWNSHIP, PA The Nature Conservancy

Falling, Fighting & Becoming A Family The Moose 1 Moosicorns spent round four on the border of Pennsylvania and Maryland, essentially in Rising Sun, MD. Us cool Moosicorn kids had the joy of working with the Nature Conservancy. The sponsors for this round were very thorough with what they expected and wanted done. We were able to go to a worksite with the full knowledge of what we were going to be doing. However, to the horror of some of us most of the time, this involved long, rigorous hikes to the worksite. We eventually grew used to those long hikes though. During workdays we did things like kill baby trees. Excuse me…I mean helped pull out trees that were invasive to the serpentine barrens. We also destroyed every bit of green briar that we could with fire rakes and weed eaters. Our people who were certified in chainsaw helped cut logs and de-limb them. We also learned the true meaning of old man strength. If you are wondering what this is, it is when an older gentleman has seven times the strength of someone in their twenties. We have yet to figure out the age at which this happens but we have learned that it can be very useful in invasive species removal and pulling felled trees. This was also a round of mishaps, such as one of our trained chainsaw users almost cutting off his leg. Also we seemed to break tools

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left and right, and by we, I mean the boys on the team. There was also a lot of falling involved this round, as well as injuries. There were also some losses but we won’t get into those. I think our highlight of the round was when we attempted to buy dog food for our temporary team member. It was a good thing he had a sense of humor because otherwise he would have left after two days. He’s a good sport and we’re happy to have him on our team even if it’s only for a little while. I believe, even though this is kind of late, we really became a family two weeks into the round. We love each other but we fight like cats and dogs. I think, in the end, we can never stay mad at each other. I mean, isn’t that what being on a team is all about?

We love each other but we fight like cats and dogs. I think, in the end, we can never stay mad at each other. I mean, isn’t that what being on a team is all about?

MOOSE 2 THE TEAM LEADER Meganne Radway

NICKNAME Moose Deuce

TEAM ANTHEM NPR

THE TEAM Brian Lundholm Jaemia Pratt Ben Quimby Anthony Requena Alicia Spack Erik VanCleve Cecilia Veloz

INSIDE JOKE “Ben!!!”

VAN NAME The Van

FAVORITE TEAM BUILDER True Colors

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M2 |

ROUND 1 • OREFIELD, PA Valley Youth House

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A Round of Firsts For Round One Moose 2 went to Orefield, PA to work with the Valley Youth House. Valley Youth House helped misplaced youth. We were working at one of their camp grounds. We were expecting to be doing some building but they had trouble acquiring permits. Instead we cleaned the area where we were going to be building. One of the permits had been approved so some of us got to build a tool shed from the ground up. It was great getting to demolish the old shed that was in the way. The post holes where the hardest part of the build. We ended

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up using a powered posthole digger. Like the genesis we were, we had two people manning the drill, it took us until the last hole to figure out that using four people would be easier. After we finished with digging the post holes we breathed a sigh of relief and then filled the holes with cement. We then proceeded to build the foundation of the tool shed. The sawyers got to use their new skill and cut downed trees into easily moveable sizes. The sawyers would say that they did more chainsaw maintenance than sawing. It snowed once and we were asked to remove snow from a pile of wooden beams which turned into a snow ball fight. We did get the snow off the beams in the process so no harm done. We also had the opportunity to plan and host a two day fun day for the kids and teens of Valley Youth House. The first day was an introduction with arts and crafts, pizza, and a movie. The second day we facilitated an adventure course where the kids went to different stations collecting letters after a challenge to spell Trexler. All in all we had a good experience and our Californians got to see snow for the first time!

All in all we had a good experience and our Californians got to see snow for the first time!

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ROUND 2 • EDGARTOWN, MA • TABERNACLE, NJ Massachusetts Audubon (Felix Neck) • The Town of Tabernacle

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A Trying Time of Transition & Teamwork Excitingly, Round 2 for the illustrious “Moose Deuce” was composed of a split-project. Our first half of the round we traveled to the ferry docks in Massachusetts where we then departed to the island of Martha's Vineyard. Once there, we set up late at night in the pitchdark nature center of the Felix Neck Wildlife Sanctuary, part of the Mass Audubon, and met our sponsor briefly. For three short weeks we did a lot of site beautification and environmental projects, primarily doing the set-up of an area destined for a bird garden and clearing the view-shed of the ocean, which had been rendered invisible from the overgrowth of vegetation and invasive species. For one long and hot week we used handsaws to cut down trees almost half a foot in diameter and, truckload by truckload, drove it all out of the woods and into a large burn pile. We had opportunities to experience new wildlife that none of us had ever encountered before, and the round was definitely centered with many offerings of the outdoors more so than “urban” needs. Unfortunately, wildlife is a very broad term and some of us had some pretty memorable encounters with poison ivy and blood-sucking insects. We also had some very aggressive resident Canadian geese to watch out for most day. The term “roughing it” isn't entirely out of the question for summing up this part of the round, even though we only slept outside for the first few nights. For the second half of our round we ventured to Tabernacle Township, NJ for the remaining 2 ½ weeks. While there, we helped prepare the community for disaster scenarios and cataloged the number of people that would need help in the event of a natural disaster. Our sponsor, Corky Lowe, told us in the beginning that we had no chance of walking to every house in the township (Roughly 2,700) in the allotted time-span, so we were determined to prove him wrong. About 4 days before the end of the round and our deployment date, we had successfully met the goal! We even had to find alternative work for most of the last week in Tabernacle, which made both us and the sponsor proud. Being that the remaining part of the round was less than three

weeks long, there wasn't much time to do things outside of working, other than our scheduled PT and team meetings. We did however get to go horseback riding on one of our last days in the area, something none of us had ever really done before. We also got to visit the Mayor of Tabernacle and go to his cranberry bog to learn about the farming and cultivation process of cranberries, which only appealed to a certain few in the team but was an experience nonetheless. Living in the Pine Barrens was a cool experience for us as a team, even though our surroundings were incredibly flammable. Something we were reminded of constantly from the fire squad we worked closely with for the few weeks. All in all, round two was very memorable and had a lot of good moments. Despite being in a team leader transition phase, having a new temporary leader every few weeks, we still made it through the round really well.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

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ROUND 3 • BRIDGEPORT, CT Habitat for Humanity of Coastal Fairfield County

Building Homes, Building A Team It was humbling and heartwarming to work with [homeowners].

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Round 3 was a significant round for Moose 2. It was the first round our whole team was together for an entire project, and it was our first round with Meganne as our Team Leader. We had the pleasure of serving in Bridgeport, CT with Habitat for Humanity of Coastal Fairfield County. We worked on a dozen different houses, all in different stages of development. While working with Habitat, we put up trusses, painted, installed trim, and landscaped, all to provide housing for Bridgeport citizens. The people we met were

undoubtedly a highlight of the round. The Habitat staff was friendly, compassionate, liked to joke around, and contributed to our knowledge of construction. The homeowners were a source of inspiration; it was humbling and heartwarming to work with them. And there were a host of great volunteers as well. We will never forget chilling with Steve and Raymond on Steve’s boat, the festival celebrating Puerto Rican culture, the times we spent in Seaside Park, and Megan, the wonderful VISTA member we shared our housing with. All in all, our time in Bridgeport was rewarding and exciting. •••

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For round Four, Moose Two was deployed to Tom’s River, NJ to work with Jersey Cares helping to rebuild the Jersey Shore after hurricane Sandy. We spend the round acting as volunteer leaders when there were volunteers and working together on homes damaged by the storm. Saying that our workdays were unpredictable would be a minor understatement. We had to learn many of the skills we needed on the fly. None of us had much experience doing any of the things we were sent to peoples’ homes to do, so we learned to roll with the punches and do what seemed right at the time, and go

ROUND 4 • TOMS RIVER, NJ Jersey Cares

back and fix things if they weren’t. Volunteers added a whole new element to work. Not only did we have to figure out what to do, we also had to figure out what to do with groups of people that didn’t know what to do. Many of our volunteers were great. Others wanted to know if they could get beer from the people we were helping (They didn’t last the day). Hung over volunteers notwithstanding, Toms River was quite a challenge for all of us on Moose two and we all came out of the experience with the feeling that we had really helped the people we had come to serve. •••

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Learning On the Fly, Leading By & By We learned to roll with the punches and do what seemed right at the time...

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

MOOSE 3 THE TEAM LEADER Jessica Arthur

TEAM ANTHEM “Let’s Get It On” by Marvin Gaye

NICKNAME The Misfits

THE TEAM Josh Bracken Brittany Castellon Jarvis Jones Andy Phongphiou Tyler Reyes Shane Tulp

INSIDE JOKE “Gary, who cares? World cares.”

VAN NAME Silver Bullet

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TEAM MOTTO The Gary

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ROUND 1 • NEW YORK, NY World Cares Centers

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Moose 3 Meets the Big Apple Moose 3 anxiously packed up their 15-passenger van on March 9 and headed to The Big Apple; which is New York City for those that are unfamiliar. They were missing three members and sad to start work without them but were excited to be doing Super Storm Sandy relief. The first week was difficult logistically but they finally got the hang of it and “got things done.”

Working with the World Cares Center has been quite the adventure. The work was dirty and tough but extremely rewarding.

Working with the World Cares Center has been quite the adventure. The work was dirty and tough but extremely rewarding. Some of our favorite team memories include listening to homeowner stories and being able to improve their homes. The most improved home that the team worked on was located on Coney Island. When the team first arrived to the home the living room was full of bricks and other rubble from the outdoor patio and surrounding area and the outside was littered with trash—even the hot tub had been swept away and lodged between the house and perimeter fence. Moose 3 was able to completely clear out the rubble from inside the house and cleared the majority of the debris, including the hot tub, from outside. They also removed all the sheetrock and completed mold remediation throughout the whole first floor. Moose 3 doesn’t just work hard; they know how to play hard, too. They lived close to a subway that made it convenient to venture into Manhattan. They explored Grand Central, Central Park, Strawberry Fields, Ground Zero, and Dylan’s Candy Bar. In their spare time, Moose 3 enjoyed having Nerf Gun wars in their new housing. They got to enjoy the luxuries of living on Staten Island and were within walking distance of restaurants and shopping. This round was not the friendliest on their wallets but they certainly deserved the treats that they bought.

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ROUND 2 • YORK, PA Habitat for Humanity — York

Just Add Water As if laying concrete in to the foundation of a duplex home (that we built prior that week) wasn’t exciting enough, all that happened to make it the most memorable moment of our second round in York, PA was just adding water. Rain, was the main factor on May 28 that made working alongside 10+ volunteers the cherry on top of that work day. It was a perfection of madness and ultimate fun, running around like chickens with their heads cut off struggling to haul wheel barrels full of concrete in slippery depths of mud and pouring rain to the correct area of foundation that needed to be filled. It was like a war zone of volunteers shouting, “I need more concrete over here!!” or “Shovel! Shovel!” If it wasn’t for the weather [rain], that day would have turned in to another inclement weather planned day and landed us doing something far less exciting. Instead we were overjoyed to be challenged by every droplet of water that fell from the sky that day. From the rain emerged nothing but team work and the pursuit of wanting nothing more than to complete the task that was assigned. After that day, I think it's safe to say AmeriCorps members are rain-proof.

It was like a war zone of volunteers shouting, “I need more concrete over here!!” or “Shovel! Shovel!”

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ROUND 3 • RUSSELL, MA • MONROE, WV Appalachian Trail Conservancy • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

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From Mass to Monroe Moose 3 split their time between the dense woods and rugged mountains of Massachusetts and West Virginia, first building back country trails and then leading Boy Scouts in rural renewal projects.

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ROUND 4 • SANFORD, ME • VT → ME City of Sanford • Charity Treks

Trailing & Trekking in New England Moose 3 spent the majority of Round 4 improving hiking trails in and around the town of Sanford. Mid-round, the team took their show on the road with Charity Treks, supporting the bike tour’s mission to raise money for AIDs research by providing logistical services to riders.

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MOOSE 4 THE TEAM LEADER Ryan Abdelnour

FAVORITE PT Spud, Dance PT & Froccer

NICKNAME Moose Force

THE TEAM Denasia Avery Adriana Bayona Mayo Campos Kiara Gales Liz Griffin Natalie Hillmann Alyse Kearns Tyrell Moore Stephen Silber

TEAM MOTTO “Twerk while you work.”

VAN NAME Aluminum Falcon

INSIDE JOKE “Snaxx attack.”

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ROUND 1 • BROWNSVILLE, PA Appalachian Coal Country Team

Haikus for Appalachia The Moose Four(ce) family had the pleasure of moving to three locations during round one. These locations included Brownsville, PA, working with B.A.R.C (Brownsville Area Revitalization Corporation); Davis, WV, working with the Northfork Watershed Project; and Pottsville, PA, working with Schuylkill Headwater Association. To express their enjoyment and adventures during those weeks the group wrote haikus, one for each location.

We picked up trash There was rain, sunshine and snow Farewell first iron bridge Snowplace and Freddy Purple fiddle Laurie, Bej Fun dogs escaped Trails, Gardens, Fences We love you Sierra G Tuscarora, Hawk!

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ROUND 2 • CLARYVILLE, NY Frost Valley YMCA Camp

The Magical Land of Frost Valley This was a world where food is prepared for you, dishes done for you, and laundry is yes, done for you, yet some how people were still grateful to have us there.

Even though we were an hour away from civilization there was never a boring moment in our month at Frost Valley. For this month we escaped into a world not many people know of, the land of Frost Valley, where the sun can shine while snow falls around you. Frost Valley, where you don’t need an alarm clock because there are woodpeckers for that. A land where we met new creatures of all different colors and sizes on a daily basis. This was a world where food is prepared for you, dishes done for you, and laundry is yes, done for you, yet some how people were still grateful to have us there. This round started with training from the SCA. The weather was beautiful and so were our days. We learned how long it could take to make a three-step rock staircase, which gave us a new appreciation for trails. Jed, Rob and Jesse were incredibly knowledgeable and fun instructors. We were sad to see them go, but it was only the beginning of the amazing people we would meet at Frost Valley. Heather, matched the attitude of

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our team instantly. “I’m really tooty lately.” Working with her was always a pleasure and everyone went out of there way for us on a regular basis. Thanks to Alex we were able to go ziplining on Snaxx’s last day before leaving us for Firefox. Thanks to all the friends at group home we were able to play games well into the night and have tons of laughs. Frost Valley was community like no other. It is inclusive community that fosters healthy attitudes towards life and teamwork. Fruit elves. No police. I DON’T CARE, I LOVE IT. Frosty Frost Valleys. India, Leo, Sasha, Bro, Heather, Ben, Bobby, Catherine, Greg and many more friendly faces were able to work with. We’ll never forget all of the friends we had for our round in the Frostiest Frost Valley. Snaxx’s birthday meet up with Firefox, tiedying, rock climbing, the infamous scavenger hunt, beware of attack moose, learning how to cinnamon roll hug, dance PT, archery and of course this was the round that we gained Kiki on our team halfway through!

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ROUND 3 • ELKTON, MD Project Crossroad

Why Did the Moose Cross the Road? Round 3 was an unforgettable time for Moose Force. It was the first time all ten of us were united on one team. Finally, no one was missing out. I think we were all disappointed when we initially heard that we would not only be staying in Maryland but also staying on campus. The disappointment didn't last long though because one trait our team is blessed with is that we make the best of any situation. We made the village our home, so much so that it was alarming when other teams starting coming back to campus. Driving down the roads in the village it was obvious which was Moose Force's home, decked out from top to bottom, the people at our local dollar general began to know us well. Besides we had mocktail hour, a home movie theater, BAAAACONNNN, free food and apple pie. If there were any left over qualms about our spike location, (Franklin for instance, or a moldy t-shirt) our work with Project Crossroad made up for it ten fold. We started with a week of training, which consisted of playing sports, games and team-builders, (the opposite of CTI.) We also learned about the community we would be serving. We heard the alarming statistics of Elkton’s homeless population, children living in poverty and the amount of drug use that surpasses that of the city of Baltimore. I was eager and nervous to meet the kids we would be working with. The day finally came when we met the Purple Polar Bears, Keylime Quokkas, Teal Turtles and Orange Starfish. From that 76

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point on camp whirled passed us in a hurry. We quickly learned each of the kids unique personalities and stories. Our sponsors, Sarah and JJ, were better than we could have asked for. They would do anything for us, including making breakfast for us everyday in training, biscuit Thursday, game nights, sonic runs when we were having a hard day, celebrating Christmoose in July and bringing steaks to a potluck. They made any resource that was available to them available to us, including free Chick-fil-a. Sarah and JJ worked side by side with us, giving us one-on-ones every week. They cared about our personal development as well as our development as a team. Sarah and JJ gave us the trust and freedom volunteers don't usually receive and loved the results. I don't think there could have been a bettersuited team for this project. I know every round is unique and we love each one in different ways… but let's get real, we didn’t want to say goodbye to these kids in a way that can’t be compared to any other project. We could see the impact we were having and didn’t want to see it end. Knowing where these kids came from and what they were going back to made me want to stay forever. The tommies will never forget Jacob, Ace, AJ, Maddie, Jaedyn, Carla, Nic, Kelsey, Ryan, John, Damione, La'Taviah, LeDarrian, Elijah, Sierra, Serenity, Daniel, Tasia, Tie'yonna, Morgan, Colin, Sam, Marissa, Nola, Boston Crème, Sophia, Layla, Nathan, Dylan F, Logan, and Isiah. (Sorry, Gilpies.)

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ROUND 4 • ROCKAWAY, NY St. Bernard Project

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Lean on Me in NYC For our fourth spike, Moose Force was in New York City! We lived in a small but adorable two bedroom apartment just feet away from the beach. We had the best of both worlds. This was the first time we weren’t in the middle of nowhere and we had the pleasure of exploring NYC together. Remember when Ty’s pants got us free tickets to an offBroadway play? This project was sometimes stressful, working for a new organization. We gave it our best every day and learned some problem solving and stress management at the same time. Throughout our annoyances or difficulties with the organization we always had each other. We leaned on each other more this round for a variety of reasons. We’ve been a close team since the beginning but this round we became even more like family in the sense of knowing that we would do anything for one another. From being a listening ear for something happening back home, to sleeping at the foot of your hospital bed to not breaking down when your team needs you even though you’re going through something difficult, to picking tiny bugs out of a teammates hair for four hours… it didn’t matter who is going through it, we all would have done it for anyone of us. I knew that about this team before this round, but this is the round where I saw it, every day.

We’ve been a close team since the beginning but this round we became even more like family in the sense of knowing that we would do anything for one another.

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MOOSE 5 THE TEAM LEADER Michelle Pinter-Petrillo

TEAM ANTHEM “Started from the Bottom”

NICKNAME Moose Caboose

THE TEAM Devaughn Clayton Gabriella Golzarian Laura Mahoney Ury Melton Greg Starling Reniecea Wiggins

INSIDE JOKE The Robot

VAN NAME Caboose Mobile

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TEAM MOTTO “Ain’t nobody got time for that.”

ROUND 1 • CAMDEN, NJ Camden Garden Club

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Alexander the Moose Encounters the Caboose Alexander the moose was categorically your average, everyday moose. He had a peaceful existence amongst his moose counterparts and enjoyed the simple pleasures in life, like a warm summer breeze and the Shaggy radio station on Pandora. Although Alexander was happy he wasn’t satisfied—deep down in the core of his being Alexander yearned for an adventure. After a particularly stale day of the regular routine, Alexander found himself wearisome. He laid his head to down to dream of a far off journey… Much to his surprise, Alexander was not awoken by the soft sunlight creeping up over the horizon, but, rather, he was woken by the loud and reverberating sound of a two-toned Caribbean song coming from what appeared to be a cellphone circa 2001. As the sky parted a hand dove at him; he narrowly escaped the attack as he watched the hand clumsily shuffle and grasp the phone. Curious of his whereabouts, Alexander strained his ears to hear the sounds of a peppy yet unmistakably sarcastic voice say, “Hello, AmeriCorps NCCC, this is Michelle speaking. How can I help you?” A bevy of questions arose in Alexander’s mind: who is Michelle? What is AmeriCorps NCCC? and most importantly, who answers the phone like that? Although he was very unsure of the answers, Alexander was certain he’d soon be finding out. Alexander felt the corners of his moose mouth curl up as his mind began to wonder; he knew an adventure would ensue… AND IT DID! His captors turned out to be a lovable band of misfits, who, for some strange reason, called themselves the “Moose Caboose”. They worked in a magical place called the Camden’s Children Garden. How magical was it? Their boss was Santa Claus and the Easter bunny made more than one cameo appearance. But beyond the magical celebrities that frequented a garden- there was a more elusive magic that was present. It was hard to describe but it was more palpable

than anything else Alexander had ever experienced. Alexander watched as a group of perceivable strangers, all with very different interests, backgrounds, music choices, sleeping patterns, fitness regimens, and diets came together day after day to turn vacant lots into gardens, to turn seeds into food, and to turn strangers into friends. Needless to say Alexander was impressed but humbled by the work that the “Moose Caboose” was able to accomplish. Some of his favorite memories include, but are not limited to: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5.

6. 7. 8.

Playing soccer at the park for PT Making friends with neighbors Watching Devaughn beat Mickell in a Michael Jackson dance battle Hearing Greg’s particularly hilarious happy vs. crappy session Nee-c providing a stress free environment complete with “sympathetic breathing” Watching Scruff McGruff dance the cupid shuffle with 3 year olds Witnessing Laura drive a bobcat Explaining the marketing cam-

9. 10.

11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17.

paign strategies of “I heart radio” to Michelle Never understanding why Pedro drank from a coconut Trying to guess where a Pedro story would end - still waiting to buy his book Watching Jeff blow up his Santa belly Being exposed to Anthony’s scarier version of the truffle shuffle Listening to Katie exclaim, “I can’t” on a daily basis Watching Ann’s Lorax shoes shuffle past Seeing Mike collect rare coins and save a cat Confusing Tim the dog with Tim the person Begging Antonio to wash his hands before eating

Looking back on the memories gives Alexander’s heart a slight pang of sadness to know that his adventure in Camden is coming to a close, but his spirit of adventure allows him to move forward and face his next adventure.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

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ROUND 2 • BRATTLEBORO, VT SerVermont

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The Pilgrimage of Moose Caboose Vermont: it’s the homeland of natural treasures such as maple syrup, Cabot cheddar cheese, and our very own natural treasure—Michelle Pinter-Petrillo. In May, Vermont welcomed some new treasures in the form of an AmeriCorps NCCC team: Moose 5. Being Moose we felt a kindred spirit to Vermonsters as Moose culture is very much accepted and adopted there. We donned our antlers with pride, with some exceptions when passing a moose taxidermy shop. In such occasions we practiced being AmeriCorpses and decided to play dead. In Brattleboro we enjoyed divine accommodation which provided us all with an AmeriCorps commodity—privacy. Despite one minor fire alarm incident, (which by the way was a complete and total accident, and the party who may or may not have created said accident should be absolved of all guilt and/or accusations of stupidity) we had superb living standards. After spending two weeks in Brattleboro we now boast a list of credentials that would make any hipster green with envy. Such activities include: 1. Staying up late to watch a live stream of NPR’s Wait, Wait Don’t Tell Me 2. Spending hours in Mocha Joe’s sipping on fair trade coffee 3. Cease shaving our legs, because conformity is for the birds (Ok maybe that was just Laura & Nee-C) 4. Purchasing vegan jerky at the Co-Op 5. Pretending we understand/ are looking to purchase art at the gallery walk aka really just looking for free food 6. Watching “ Codependent Lesbian Space Alien Seeks Same” From Brattleboro we moved up north to THE home of THE Simpsons (or so claims Michelle) to Springfield, VT. Less important than the Simpsons- Springfield also is the hometown of Michelle. We took a break from picking up sticks for the special opportunity to visit the Graceland that is the Pinter-Petrillo residence. The Pinter-Petrillos provided us with a delicious home-cooked

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

meal and a household of awkward adolescent photos of Michelle (ask her about her days as Tiny Tim). To end our Tour de Vermont, we nestled up in the quaint little town of Sharon in a church that was complete with a piano, nightly AA meetings, and a maniacal laughing-Jesus portrait. As one might imagine sleep is slightly harder to come by when the reverberating sounds of an off-tuned piano creek into the night while laughing Jesus has his watchful eye peering at you. Living in close quarters with few amenities made every task a team taskfrom showering, to laundry, to entertainment. While this presented its challenges it also allowed us to get to know each other on a deeper level. For instance…. 1. Ury can sashay like a runway diva 2. Laura is the ultimate Clue board game champion and to your dismay she won’t let you forget it 3. Gabriella gives great massages while simultaneously insulting your body composition Michelle’s i-pod primarily consists of 90’s boy band music 4. Greg has a strange love for Kombucha 5. Devaughn can get competitive (read: heartless) when it comes to volleyball Luckily in the land of Vermont quirks are welcomed and as we depart from the state we will continue to let our freak flags fly.

ROUND 3 • SUDBURY, MA • SUMMERS, WV U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

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The Caboose in Moose-achusetts Water chestnuts, the name alone conjures up visions of perfectly pan-fried Asian cuisine. Or at least it used to until our time in Sudbury, MA. As Moose 5 soon found out, water chestnut- as an invasive species, happens to be a rooted aquatic plant with spiky seeds that are as ugly as they are painful. While picking water chestnut can get monotonous- it offers many perks. Of which I’ve compiled a list: 1. Physcial Fitness—Kayaking and canoeing everyday really works your back, shoulder, and arm muscles. So much so that everyone on our team could do at least 1 pull-up (I’m counting half a pull-up for Gabriella). 2. Vitamin D—Working in direct sunlight in July allows you to work on that coveted summer-time glow. Safe to say we all had the tannest knee- caps and lower arms in all of the Corps. But be sure to wear sunblock- a lesson Laura had to learn the hard way. 3. Learning to Multitask—Devaughn & Ury became quite skilled at belting 80’s classics while rowing. Be on the look out for their demo. 4. Safety First—As a veteran canoe instructor, Michelle took the liberty of showing us the importance of your life vest, by accidentally tipping her own canoe. 5. Conflict Management—being stuck in a canoe with a person for 8 hours a day forces you to address issues on the team head on, as fortunately or unfortunately- there’s nowhere to run. Now in Massachusetts it wasn’t all work—we had a lot of fun too. In our spare time we enjoyed ice cream tours of Sudbury-

determined to find the best flavor and shoppe. When we were too lazy to venture out for ice cream we often just blended our own virgin daiquiris and huddled up by the TV to watch Minute to Win It. Jason & Emily visited us and tortured us with some black magic. We got some sweet swag at the Health & Fitness Expo. We celebrated America’s birthday together by going to the beach, where we once and for all saw proof that under Devaughn’s many layered t-shirts there isn’t actually a steel robot—yet we haven’t quite ruled out the possibility of him being a cyborg. We witnessed Ury’s first legal adult beverage consumption on his 21st birthday and followed it up by witnessing the treasures at five below. It was a bittersweet farewell to Massachusett, but we were on to ol’ the country roads of West Virginia. Located in Summers County, Moose 5 made some AmeriFriends from the Vicksburg campus as we shared the same living quarters. There are many differences between Vicksburg & Perry Point (none of which were as blatant as the fact that not one single Vicksburg boy seemed to wear a shirt during their leisure time). However, despite the many differences we shared many memorable moments, like laughing inappropriately at words with friends, hoping to catch a fly ball at the baseball game, and getting overly competitive playing Frisbee. That’s not to say Moose 5 didn’t experience team time as well. As a team we enjoyed PT’s playing football and/ or dancing, crushing our ISP’s, and white water rafting. I can’t say I’ll miss moving every Sunday to make room for Jesus, but I will miss the people and beautiful landscapes of wild, wonderful West Virginia. Oh yes, there were Boy Scouts there too.

CLASS XIX • TEAMS & PROJECTS

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ROUND 4 • NEWBURGH, NY Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh

Building New Habitat in NY Moose Caboose spent Round 4 with Habitat of Greater Newburgh, building affordable housing for low-income families. From framing to siding, they gained a broad range of practical construction skills.

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ROUND 5 • ROCKAWAY, NY St. Bernard Projects

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Moose 5 Can’t Stop To the tune of Miley Cyrus’ “We Can’t Stop” Ready, ‘cuz there’s sweaty bodies everywhere Wearing our goggles ‘cuz we do care Cuz we came to do work now Grab a sander so we can get started now If you’re not ready to home Can I get a hell no? Cuz we gonna go all night Actually 8 hours Welcome to AmeriLife So la-di-da-da-di Serving the community Concerned about safety Enforcing however we want This is our house This is our rules And we can’t stop And we won’t stop Can’t you see its we who rep the A So you better mud the way we say And we can’t stop And we won’t stop We run things, things don’t run we We can’t take money from nobody To my Corps members here with the big guns Throwing trash like we do it for fun Remember only LaQuine can judge us So don’t be stupid or Michelle could report ya

And we can’t stop, And we won’t stop, Doing our job Aaron’s way, We gotta get 8 hours a day

And we can’t stop And we won’t stop Can’t you see its we who run the site Can’t you see its we who bout’ that life And we can’t stop And we won’t stop We run things, things don’t run we Can’t take money from nobody

And everyone in line in the bathroom Make sure you get your shower done real soon Don’t stink it up in there Cuz we all gotta live here

It’s our site we can do what we want to It’s our house we can clean when we want to It’s our body we’ll do be PT when we want to It’s our spike we can live how we want to

So la-di-da-da-di Concerned with quality Working with Gabi Doing whatever he wants This our house This is our rules

Yea! Yea! Yea! Yea! Yea! And we can’t stop And we won’t stop Doing our job Aaron’s way We gotta get 8 hours a day

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SOAR FOREVERMORE

RAVEN UNIT THE RAVEN CHANT (Stomp, stomp, swish ×4) The Raven song at the break of dawn, We fly through the sky with our steel toes on, We’ve got mud on our face, We savor the taste, Leading the call all over the place. Ravens will, Ravens will, serve you! Serve it up! Ravens will, Ravens will, serve you! You’ve been served! Aw! Aw! Aw! Awww!

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JEN HORAN

UNIT LEADER

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RAVEN 1 THE TEAM LEADER Oliver Jacobs-Dougherty

FAVORITE PT “I’ll Make a Man Out of You” from Mulan

NICKNAME Elite Team Raven 1

THE TEAM Louis Brown, Jr. Bridget Kimbell Jessica Lawrence Kayla Lickey Cindy Robertson Nicole Lomalisa-Allen Cameron Smith Dimi Venkov Meghan Wheeler

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FAVORITE MEAL Black Bean Burgers, Sweet Potato Fries & “Brusker Spreckers”

VAN NAME Baby Blue Ivy

INSIDE JOKE “You got jokes!”

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ROUND 1 • NEW YORK, NY New York Cares

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On the Wings of Discovery To reveal our first round project, Oliver JacobsDougherty (Raven 1 Team Leader) and Leah Goodman (Raven 4 Team Leader) worked together to create a campus-wide scavenger hunt for both teams. One evening, not too long before our first transition, our team waited for Oliver to show up at a scheduled team meeting and, when he didn’t, we sent him a text that read, “You are late!”—to which he responded, “look under the table.” It was our first clue and prompted us to run all around campus collecting clues and sealed envelopes in the race to the finish; everything is a competition for the Elite Team Raven 1. Our strongest lead the charge and others decrypted riddles. Our final clue led us to Building 15, where we beat Raven 4 to the glass door just as they were walking up the stairs. We thought that our challenge might be over, but instead we found a scrambled puzzle throughout our envelopes. The teams worked together to decipher the mystery and when it was all said and done, we discovered that both teams would be heading to the Rockaways to work with two different sponsors. There were tears of joy for some and excitement for all. We spent the first few days settling in and assigning sleeping spaces—since we were living in the same house as Raven 4. We developed charters and cleaning schedules at our Raven Bunch meetings and got to know each other over dinners and during free time. Our sponsor was New York Cares and the long days allowed

us to bond with our site supervisors, Dakota, Carol, Seth and Nick. They were supportive and firm; we had no trouble working with them. We got oriented with the project and worked towards cleaning and organizing their existing supply sheds. Then, we spent time getting acquainted with their long term volunteers and best practices for volunteer coordination. Soon after we were off to work remediating mold and restoring homes! Toward the end of the round, we celebrated our efforts with an outdoor barbeque with our sponsor; we had the opportunity to relax and enjoy the great weather. It was probably one of the best days of the round. In our time off, most of us went into the city for ISPs; we arranged clothing, cleaned data for the National Eating Disorder Association, and made care packages for Hurricane Sandy Relief. We explored the city, ate new foods, and experienced life in NYC. This year isn’t just a commitment to service, it’s a journey.

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ROUND 2 • MIDDLETOWN, DE Boys & Girls Club of Delaware

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In the Middle During our second round, our dear ETR1 (Elite Team Raven 1) was located in Middle Town, DE—a rather appropriately named burg in the smallest state in the Union. We worked with many, many Boys and Girls Clubs in the state. We completed a variety of meaningful tasks and our team had its first chance at living alone as a team. Oh, and we painted. And painted. So much painting… Corridors, gyms (an entire gym, no less!), classrooms, and so much more! I mean, we didn’t only paint. We also organized, sorted, redecorated, weeded, and escorted children to their park play days. All in all, it was a very productive round. We aided sixteen different clubs with tasks they simply couldn’t have done themselves. Our housing, an active club, provided several interesting challenges. We were only allowed to take showers until 6:50 in the morning and only after 7:00 at night. In addition to shower restrictions, we were expected to be gone from our kitchen by 7:00 in the morning, and only allowed back in after 5:00 in the evening! Still, the accommodations were wonderfully placed, a mere block away from Dog Town, a hotdog joint that most thoroughly ruined many a corps member’s health goals and helped us assuage our sorrows over our missing corps members (off on composite and fire) and a place to celebrate our new member, Cindy Robertson. In short, this round set the standards for the rest of our rounds and Raven 1 is looking forward to continuing their work to get things done for America!

We worked with many, many Boys and Girls Clubs in the state. We completed a variety of meaningful tasks and our team had its first chance at living alone as a team. Oh, and we painted.

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ROUND 3 • TOMS RIVER, NJ Jersey Cares

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A Perfect Storm

The year was ripe for generic struggle, and generic struggle we had! After all, what ought’ become of a year without struggle?

Round 3, also known as the round (ET) Raven 1 needed in order to have an excellent remainder of the year—the writer assumes this to be true, despite his lack of clairvoyance; does the reader admire his attempted prescience or is he tragically incorrect?—if you catch my insinuative drift. Indeed, ‘twas a difficult round, and in all seriousness, a round marked by productive storming. The year was ripe for generic struggle, and generic struggle we had! After all, what ought’ become of a year without struggle? What a remarkable confluence of factors that attenuated our morale: with Jessie and Dimi off on composite this marked the third consecutive round without our complete team. We lived behind pews in a church in a remote part of New Jersey (no resident was below the age of 52), we lived behind pews in a church in a remote part of New Jersey WITH another team for the SECOND time in three rounds, we worked with this team and were separated on the worksite while individually leading volunteer groups, we worked up to twelve hours a day, and worst of all, the dearth of appealing local establishments meant we were entirely deprived of a decent milkshake joint! As playful and reductive a description this may be, to live with another team and to work separately made it difficult to cohere during our limited downtime. Thankfully, contemporaneous with Jessie’s return from composite, a semi-productive teambuilding session with Hope and Healing, and the anticipation of our next round, the team began to climb out of its enervating malaise. Please allow this final paragraph to include a balancing perspective, offering a dose of conciliatory cheer meant to reconcile the narrator’s boorish impertinence. This round was also fine, great, and dandy. Living with Buffalo 1 was often a joy. The teams meshed well, and provided one another welcome availability of fresh, sympathetic confidants. While our spike housing was a church, it was a very nice church, one that inexplicably absorbed many of the unwittingly produced sinister sound-waves of the somnolent snorers (Take THAT, villainous counterpart to the Sand Man!). And, while we did work long days, our sponsor Thomas was truly amazing, guiding us as we helped restore the Sandy-devastated Ocean County. Overall, it feels great to have completed the round. We are proud of our accomplishments (which include an almost $500,000 giveback achieved through our volunteer efforts) and we are looking forward to Boston and organic farming in New Hampshire. Oh, and did I mention we are THRILLED to be moving forward with our entire team finally united? ETR1 out.

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ROUND 4 • LAWRENCE, MA • MANCHESTER, NH Phoenix Charter Academy • New Hampshire Food Bank

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The Penultimate Test Fourth round was, without a doubt, one of our most stressful and challenging rounds yet. Between the difficulties inherent in a split round spike, the challenges of housing that is open to the public, and a great deal of heavy lifting, the round tested us and made us grow in new ways. The work at Phoenix Academy could grow tedious at times, but we picked up a large array of useful skills while renovating their old building. There were high points, of course. Our second half was a vast improvement on the first, with our housing being a wonderful cabin in a camp in the woods, with an archery range, lake and hiking trails all within walking distance. The work for the food bank was deeply satisfying for all of us, giving us our first chance to really work outside. In retrospect, the sudden changes and lulls in work were excellently suited to preparing us for our next round, where the Colorado floods reintroduced us to constant changes.

In retrospect, the sudden changes and lulls in work were excellently suited to preparing us for our next round...

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RAVEN 2 THE TEAM LEADER Laura Dennis

NICKNAME Nevermore the Second

TEAM ANTHEM “Take on Me” by A-Ha

THE TEAM Lewis Cuthair Jeremy Flores Bradley Gardner Travis Hanes James Hubbard Skylar Larsen Alexa Naudziunas Carson Scherer Genevieve Shepard

INSIDE JOKE “My time is my time.”

MUST-HAVE GROCERY ITEM Sriracha

TEAM MOTTO “I do what I does.”

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ROUND 1 • NEWBURGH, NY Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh

A View Outside the Nest With the conclusion of Mini Spike, our heroes had felt just a touch of construction. But enough, they thought, to last a lifetime. However, they were perplexed to discover that after a 3 day stint with Habitat for Humanity in York, PA that they would be embarking on yet another construction adventure in Newburgh, New York. A tad weary, with the dust of drywall still on their fingertips, the group huddled together to prepare for the task. Five and a half weeks, in a city rumored to have its fair share of villains, the heroes were prepared to accomplish the assignment given direct from headquarters : complete the siding and assist with the final stages of construction so that Habitat for Humanity of Greater Newburgh could reach their deadline. Many of our heroes had never seen NY but a few had visited the city that never sleeps on excursions prior to AmeriCorps. Before they took flight into the misty skies, a twist! A new member arrived from a far away land, FEMA Corps. Raven 2 welcomed him with open arms. The first week was quiet with 3 members away on special fire trainings. One member had been told he would be away the whole round but this would not prove to be the team’s kryptonite. Even though small in numbers, the team got to work immediately to defeat the evil siding. Conquering their fear of heights, some ascended the pump jack scaffolding to reach places never before touched by man while others flew around installing window

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frames. Then, the others reunited and the morale of our heroes reached an all-time high. Just as the team thought evil would be conquered for good, a mysterious call from headquarters called the stranger from FEMA Corps back home. A sad day for the team indeed. The team rallied together and remembered why they were given this mission. Habitat needed them, the people needed them, perhaps even, the world! With paint and sweat on their brows, behind their fearless leader the heroes continued to side the houses with an expertise unheard of… The sun was setting, and the team knew they had done well. People would come up to them and tell them how good they were doing, and how they were really making a difference. This is all they needed. The Birds, the myths, the legends… Raven 2

ROUND 2 • EDGARTOWN, MA The FARM Institute

Golden Ticket: Raven 2 in Martha’s Vineyard For Round 2, Nevermore The Second worked with The Farm Institute in Massachusetts. We liked what the island had to offer: exquisite food, entertainment, and sunshine. Although all of these qualities in a project seem very attractive, we worked hard; we just allowed ourselves to play harder (with dignity and respect). We learned a lot from our supervisor, Sidney Morris, about the organic processes in and around the farm - everything from cultivation to marketing and meeting deadlines. You can’t help but admire Sidney as a man and a leader for his honest and hardworking efforts in conservation and respect for the environment. There is a lot more to taking care of the farm than business and crop – they also run a summer residential program and operate a green house! There were plenty of difficulties this round but our group learned through trial and error. I think we all had the opportunity to grow as individuals and as a group; we enhanced our communication skills and bonded as a team. And through all of our work together, we’ve discovered the importance or working hard and enjoying

each other as teammates. We often joke, dance, or play 21 Questions to make the time fly and it seems to be working really well. We had a rough time getting used to some of the tools during this project, but after some test runs (and a few mistakes) we felt like pros with the chop saw, drill, nail gun, speed square, chalk line, and chemicals for waterproofing boats. We saved time by asking for clarification on projects we didn’t understand and by having daily meetings to discuss concerns and questions from the work site. Oh, and there were a few nasty skunks that decided to come out during the day. At the end of the day, we were all amazed by the amount of work we accomplished for the Farm Institute and the children. The sense of accomplishment comes with muddy boots, sweat, and the occasional band aid—all of which were a privilege and an honor. As a team, we reach for the stars and set our aim high (but we keep our feet on the ground). What will the future hold for Raven 2? Well, that’s a mystery. But what we do know is we are a family and no matter what happens we are in this together!

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The sense of accomplishment comes with muddy boots, sweat, and the occasional band aid—all of which were a privilege and an honor.

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ROUND 3 • KITTANING, PA • NICHOLAS, WV Armstrong Conservation District • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

Dirty Birds Raven 2 spent the first half of Round 3 serving the Armstrong Conservation District in Kittanning, PA. We worked in the rain in hip deep water without waders to create an erosion barrier. We got dirty with some orange mud while trying to clear a decontamination stream blocked by vegetation to improve water flow— and much more! Bugs were a terrible nuisance! The second half of Round 3 for Raven 2 was spent in Nicholas County of West Virginia leading the Boy Scouts in widening the Cranberry Tri-River Rail Trail and various projects at Cherry River Elementary School in Richwood. At the school, we were creating a walking track, removing brush, and painting bookshelves in the library. Serving with the Boy Scouts was a great experience!

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ROUND 4 • MOONACHIE, NJ Volunteer Center of Bergen County

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Making Friends in Unlikely Places Raven 2 for Round 4 served in the community of Moonachie, NJ. Alongside Mold the Cat, a stray resident of Vanguard Mobile Home Park, they got down and dirty underneath trailer homes, replacing soiled insulation and working on separate projects, all with the Volunteer Center of Bergen County. They made a new friend, a Japanese girl named Ai, and they enjoyed the pleasures of New York City every weekend. Even though sometimes the work was tough, it was a great six weeks.

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RAVEN 3 THE TEAM LEADER Rebeckah Moran

FAVORITE TV SHOW “Game of Thrones”

NICKNAME Ratchet Ravens

THE TEAM Jahari Barker Katie Buckle Max Limeberger Tiffany Murphy Jazmyne Newsome Ian Slingsby

INSIDE JOKE Home School

VAN NAME Vader

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TEAM MOTTO “Don’t kill my vibe.”

ROUND 1 • DOVER, DE • MARSHFIELD, MA Delaware State Parks • Massachusetts Audubon Society (South Shore)

Finding A New Home in AmeriCorps Home. Home has been an ever changing concept to all of us since we stepped foot on campus in Maryland. Of course we all still posses the place we left to come here and that will always be our true home. I’m referring to the idea of home within AmeriCorps; it’s a concept that’s not yet concrete to us but something we’ve been working on putting into words whether we realize it or not. Most recently I felt home in the back of a 15 passenger van. We’ve been spending an unusually

large amount of time in that gas-guzzler because of our multiple projects and housing locations. It’s strange how acclimated you become to anything. So far we have stayed in the dormitories of a convention center in Lewes, DE, a quaint summer home located in Delaware City, and the administration building for an environmental conservation agency that converted a section into an apartment. We had the privilege of seeing Fort Delaware behind the scenes, worked on the beaches of Massachusetts and Delaware, and helped multiple state parks clear trails. Although we’ve been met with a variety of sleeping arrangements, the nature of our projects has been somewhat consistent. The majority of our work has been outside and physical. To date we have built a boardwalk that is wheelchair accessible, cleared a walkway that was covered in sand, dug holes for trail signs, planted beach grass, removed invasive species, painted, and much more. The journey so far has rewarded us with great sponsors. David and Sue from the Mass Audubon Society have been tremendous. They have been actively making sure we have had enough work to do and remain grateful every day. We look forward to finding home in Pittsburgh next round! Until then, stay classy, Perry Point!

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[Home is] a concept that’s not yet concrete to us but something we’ve been working on putting into words whether we realize it or not.

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ROUND 2 • PITTSBURGH, PA Rebuilding Together Pittsburgh

Building Connections in the City of Bridges

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Pittsburgh: the city of bridges and where the rivers meet. Though the city has been struck by history, it breathes on and lives well. The city is full of life and adventure with many twists and turns (literally and figuratively). You never know what may be on the other side of one of its many bridges (all 446 of them!). The diversity in Pittsburgh is extreme and was a welcoming new home for Raven 3 complementing our vast diversities. With its vibrant culture there was much too much to explore and experience in just four and a half weeks but we did our best. With our roots down in Wilkinsburg we hit the city day and night. Much of our experience in and of the city came from our service to them. Not just our wonderful time working with Rebuilding Together and watching the improvement of people’s lives and homes, but much more. We saw the spirit and strength of Pittsburgh, from their runners of steel at their international marathon to the festivals set up for children and the tens of thousands of people who at-

tended the Walk for Cure in support of fighting breast cancer. Pittsburgh is a city that supports its people and encourages them to live their lives. Raven 3 always made time to relax and have fun, too. We felt the night and had a blast. We fell from the sky upon the roller coasters of the Historical Kennywood Amusement Park, we spent a day hiking the trails of Ohiopyle and feeling the cool water of the river, and no trip to Pittsburgh is complete unless you see a sports game. The citizens bleed “black and yellow” and the players bring home the championships. While we didn’t get a chance to see the Penguins in the playoffs, we did get to see the Pirates at the crowded PNC Park and to feel the spirit of Pittsburgh. Raven 3 was there to explore. Pittsburgh is a city that continues to live and it was the nest and home for Raven 3 for a period of our story. We enjoyed every moment and always found ourselves busy. The team, however, looks forward to their next homes in Maryland and Virgina. •••

ROUND 3 • KENNEDYVILLE, MD • MCDOWELL CITY, WV Eastern Shore Land Conservancy • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

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A Round of Separations, Not Endings When a raven lands; it sometimes finds home in new places. This round was a round of many homes, and of many adventures, with our team being split up and moved around from nest to nest. It was a round of separation, though not endings. With one member leaving to start a future beyond AmeriCorps, one being at home, and three members headed for composites (helping on composites in Maine, and being on Phoenix in Virgina), we started as seven headed for Chestertown to work with Eastern Shore Land Conservancy. We were soon reunited with a member to find that he was also headed home to continue a future outside of AmeriCorps. It wasn’t too long though that we found ourselves reunited with our member from Maine. Though are team wasn’t settled down yet. We uprooted and headed for West Virginia, ready to help with the Boy Scout Jamboree. The work has been tiring but rewarding; especially when we looked upon the faces of all those around us. And before

you knew it, our two ravens that had left for fire, were back with us. We were back to nine, and ready to work as a team. The round, while short has had many changes come. We have been split up and brought back together, though lost members in the process. We have worked hard, and have now really seen what it was really like to be an AmeriCorps NCCC member now. We look at our members that are now gone, and miss them greatly. Though we now realize that while we get separated, sometimes we are reunited. And when we aren’t, even though their journey with us is over, our friendship continues. Their ending here is just a new beginning to their chapter. We also see that our journey isn’t over. We are ready to move on to the Rockaways and face a new challenge, disaster. And even though we lose a member for our next round, we know that we’ll be back with us to continue our journey here in AmeriCorps NCCC, as Raven 3. •••

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ROUND 4 • QUEENS, NY Respond & Rebuild

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Restoring A Sense of Home Home is a place where people can sit back after a long day and unwind. It is a fortress of solitude to those when they just need a place to retreat to. Though back in October, Hurricane Sandy took home away from many people in New York City, and this is where Raven 3 landed for our fourth round. Disaster is a scary thing. It can come when you least expect it, and change everything you thought. Sometimes you’ll have no idea how to proceed from it. Though while disaster brings things down and tears apart, it also brings people together, and rebuilds. Right away people grabbed hammer, crowbar, and dehumidifier. They came together and formed organizations, and gave hope to those in need. Through Respond and Rebuild Raven 3 continued on the work that so many have spent working on here in the Rockaways. During our round here in New York, we have done a diverse amount of jobs helping work at seven houses and a church. These range from demolition of a home so that it can be prepared, to rebuilding a church wall. We have rebuilt fences, and helped people from all types of locations. Through our hours served, we have been a small part in the rebuilding of this community Although there is still much to do here in the Rockaways, it is one step closer to being what it once was, and the Rockaways has taught Raven 3 what it was like to face the disaster. We are proud to have been part of the repair here, and hope things continue on well, as we continue our journey in AmeriCorps on to our next round.

Although there is still much to do here in the Rockaways, it is one step closer to being what it once was, and the Rockaways has taught Raven 3 what it was like to face the disaster.

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RAVEN 4 THE TEAM LEADER Leah Goodman

TEAM ANTHEM “Thrift Shop” by Macklemore

NICKNAME Raven FOURce

THE TEAM Keiana Eskridge Erin Foley Gaby Gardose Sean Kenyon Amir Matthews Jared Schopp

FAVORITE PT Aerobic Frisbee

VAN NAME Storm Trooper

INSIDE JOKE “That’s the true-true.”

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ROUND 1 • NEW YORK, NY St. Bernard Project

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Raven FOURce, Episode I: A New Hope On our first round project in Rockaway Beach, NY, Raven 4 (a.k.a. Raven Fource) was constantly reminded of the “why” behind the what—thanks to the diligent work of our service learning initiators and our sponsor, Friends of Rockaway. We arrived in New York with the intention of individually leading groups of volunteers and reconstructing multiple houses. Reality was, as first-time sponsors, they weren’t prepared for a group of 10 dedicated individuals. We were soon scrambling for work and finding ways to make ourselves useful, even if that meant building functional furniture for the office or canvassing hundreds of homes to reach out to residents in the Rockaways. Raven Fource also did A TON of demolition work—in several buildings with different groups. We had our frustrations, but we persevered and reminded each other why we were there. It helped that we got to work with and for such amazing people, though – including some great volunteers from Chicago and a woman whose basement was destroyed by flood waters. Just as we thought things wouldn’t change, we had the opportunity to meet the CEO and founder of the St. Bernard Project— the parent organization of Friends of Rockaway. Zack Rosenburg started the organization with partner Liz McCartney in 2006 in the wake of Hurricane Katrina. Rosenburg and McCartney recognized a need within the community and created an organization to meet that need—thus far, they have help rebuild 479 homes in the New Orleans area. Rosenburg gave us a better understanding of St. Bernard Project’s mission and goals and helped the members of Raven Fource recognize the impact of the work they were doing in the Rockaways. Our talk with Zack reminded us to treat others like family and to be resilient. Even if we hadn’t started rebuilding, we were irrefutably helping residents in the community and showing Friends of Rockaway what we were capable of. Although not permanent members of the community, Rockaway proved to be a lot smaller than we had anticipated. We con-

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stantly saw our neighbors while we were out and got to know several people within the community—hearing stories and making connections that will stay with us throughout our service term and beyond. Becoming friends with the community and letting them know that they haven’t been forgotten was most definitely the best part about being in the Rockaways. Knowing that the people we were helping recognized our hard work really reminded each of us why we were there and that the work we did meant something. Our meeting with Zack reaffirmed our dedication to serving others and was the perfect opportunity to learn more about disaster recovery. We finished the round strong, finally hanging some drywall in three different houses. It was nice to be able to put walls up instead of tearing them down—and it was really nice to be appreciated by the homeowners. I can definitely say that communities like the Rockaways are few and far in-between and we’re all really happy that this is where we got to spend our first spike.

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ROUND 2 • TOMS RIVER, NJ • PROVIDENCE, RI Jersey Cares • Serve Rhode Island

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Respite in Rhode Island: Restoring Winnapaug Pond

We had just come from one of the most emotionally draining projects in Jersey and we were ready for greener pastures. That is exactly what we got.

Take a drive into Westerly with your windows down and some Sublime in your ear; this little town will steal away your summer, your worries, and your heart. When Raven FOURce rolled into Rhode Island, we had just come from one of the most emotionally draining projects in Jersey and we were ready for greener pastures. That is exactly what we got. If Bernie, our project sponsor, hadn’t brought us out to the work site and shown us the debris that needed to be cleaned out no one would have even thought there was any danger to the fragile ecosystem of Winnapaug Pond. However, there was one family owned restaurant just across from us that really appreciated the work we were doing for their community. Two Little Fish had been destroyed by Super Storm Sandy and Serve Rhode Island volunteers had helped them rebuild their shore shack. Their thanks to Serve Rhode Island has been to provide a free meal to any volunteer that walks through their doors. When I say they had the freshest, crunchiest, best seafood platters I’ve ever eaten, that means something coming from a native Floridian. Their menus boasted only the freshest soy bean oil, clams and crabs that Rhode Island can offer. It was so amazing that Bernie treated us there as our celebration dinner to pay them back and to get our fill as well. My advice to anyone that visits Westerly is to first stop by Winnapaug Pond and watch the geese float along the water then make a beeline for Two Little Fish and grab yourself a lobster roll dish and one of their seasonal beers on tap. That’ll guarantee a good time.

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ROUND 3 • LINCOLNVILLE, ME University of Maine, Tanglewood 4H Camp

Tanglewood: Something to Write Home About Hi Mom and Dad, All is well here at Camp Tanglewood! This place is incredible, once you get over the biting black flies and mosquitos, that is. The bugs are so bad one of my cabin mates bought 100 percent Deet bug repellant, but I'm pretty sure he is getting more bug bites after using it. The camp is very conscience about their mark on the earth and try to show their campers how to be more sustainable in their everyday lives. We had a lot going on this week, with Tanglewoodstock and the camp power outage. We didn't have power for two days because of a blown transformer!

My team and I have become quite the dish washing professionals after washing 100+ dishes for the whole camp after every meal. For each meal we gather in the dinning hall and eat with the whole camp, just like at home. While here we have also become one with nature while pruning and blazing all the trails around the camp. We also got the chance to drive the camp's tractor, it was a lot of fun learning how to aerate the mulch. And guess what! They're even letting us re-do their Humans in nature trail! The team and I have been brainstorming new exhibits and other fun things to put along the trail for future campers, like Sneaky Pete, a leaf filled scarecrow that attracts birds so that campers can interact with the birds while sitting next to Sneaky Pete. Then there is also the metal decaying section, where there are several different pieces of metal, like a cd that has been outside for years, showing the results of decay and show campers why it's important to recycle! We are having a blast out here under the star filled sky and working with the campers and counselors have made this a summer to remember!

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ROUND 4 • BALTIMORE, MD • ROCKPORT, ME Baltimore City Reforestation • Midcoast Habitat for Humanity

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A FOURce of Change, From Maryland to Maine For this round we had the pleasure of working for two sponsors. The first half was spent with Baltimore Country Department of Environmental Protection and Sustainability. The second half we were in Rockland, ME with Midcoast Habitat for Humanity. While we were in Baltimore County, we lived in a mini tent village on the grounds of the tree nursery. In the mornings we had YouTube playing either songs or episodes from our past. While camping was already an obstacle to deal with, waking up to inches of water in the tent multiple times was just icing on the cake. What helped us ease our frustration was that our physical training was laid back and, for the most part, so were team builders. Hide-and-seek was our primary exercise where we used various locations available to play. Our work was laid back but back breaking at the same time. A lot of our work time was spent traveling at least 45 minutes in traffic to and from the site of the day. Driving was good because it gave most of the members extra time to sleep. When we got there we pulled invasive species so that the young trees could grow straight and healthy. While on site we learned about what species were there and why we were pulling it. In all actuality we were playing with lobbers, hatchets, and machetes to get the job done. We had a rainy day which was turned into a full day of service learning by visiting a local dam and learning how it affects the habitats down stream. Lunches were the most welcomed time due to the fact they ranged from 30 minutes to 45 minutes allowing for a quick cat nap if wanted. On some occasions we pulled tree covers that were there to prevent the deer from eating the young saplings. All in all, we managed to clear about 50 acres of invasive species and helped the sponsor out a lot. In Maine our housing was an actual house. We each had our own rooms and a quiet place to relax after work. Again, we played hide and seek, but this time inside the house as a team build-

er. We had a TV (without cable) so we had a lot of movie nights consisting of a lot of Adam Sandler, musicals, and Cloud Atlas. Our work consisted of dry walling a house. Thankfully there wasn't too much math involved, but we still had our fair share of headaches. Throughout the round, several of our crew got to work on side projects on past HFH homes and were able to see what the house would

eventually look like. Near the end we were all at the ReStore helping them get ready for the extension that the next team will be on. One of the projects at the restore was to organize doors and windows ranging from inside/outside or frame/no frame, etc. There were about a million of them and they were piled and tangled everywhere. When we had put in a full days work our sponsor asked us to move six giant wall squares from one end of the lot to the other, while also avoiding the other large random items in our way. Since we were all exhausted, we didn't see how we could do it; but once we figured out a way with the first one, we moved the other five with relative ease. After that moment, we knew that no matter how tired or how long the day is, we still put effort in and the job gets done. This round had a lot of miles, which took there toll but at the same time brought us closer. Without the extra time in the van, that certain song wouldn't be so special and hearing a certain phrase wouldn't evoke so many memories. Two sponsors on opposite sides of the region and two very different tasks, but one thing stayed the same... We got things done!

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RAVEN 5 THE TEAM LEADER Khal Ismail

TEAM ANTHEM “Let’s Have a Kiki”

NICKNAME AmeriSpores

THE TEAM Brock Barbosa Adriana Battle Melodie Briscoe Justin Gandy Chris May Brienna Rainey Ross Rinehart Silpa Sadhujan

INSIDE JOKE “I know you miss your dad, Gooch.:

VAN NAME Dark Cloud

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TEAM MOTTO “It’s life.”

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ROUND 1 • MEADVILLE, PA Allegheny College Lake Effects

| R5

Raven 5: A Murder of Love Expectations bulge within standard drive is unfaltering and we have impact in issue red bags as we begin to get comforta- our minds. ble in an unfamiliar house near Meadville, Circumstance has a way of skewing the PA. Our best attempts at preparation are alignment between intent and impact. As rolled, folded, and stuffed in every square warned, the weather is unpredictable at inch of the duffel. Naïve anticipation held best. Unbridled hostility comes to mind at tight by a zipper, which was coincidentally its worst. It is a dangerous game of exposinvented in this Northwestern Pennsylvaing the vulnerable wooden frames of our nian town. We’ve been sent here to repair first roof and weathering it in between damaged roofs for low-income houseswirling bouts of snow. We are removing holds. Despite the detailed project applishingles one crisp 16 degree morning cation and our own presumptions of goldwhen flakes dust our vision and send us en-shingled glory, we have no true grasp scattering for tar paper to cover the freshof what is to come in the following weeks. ly cleared plywood. These newfound accommodations are The winter storms keep our team off of alien in both place and time. A powder roofs quite often a couple of days at a pink and metallic floral-patterned bathtime. Our resolve does not grow brittle room opens to the pale greens and yellows like shingles on a freezing day. Dispersing of an only slightly less gaudy, blooming among indoor home improvement prowallpaper. This meets a plaid design of jects and non-profit support roles, we acsimilar hues, defining the kitchen, which tually broaden our footprint within the is fully equipped with the latest in culinary community. Their appreciation simmers excellence of the 1970’s. In the bedrooms, in crock pots and piles up in grocery bags. shag reigns. The absurdity of this wonIt is delivered in pizza boxes and gifted in drous spectacle culminates in the rec cookie tins. The fire department, nonroom. Our attention is torn between a profits, and faith-based organizations propool table and zebra-print vide food every week to floors. With this spike resithank Raven 5 for working Through these dence a nostalgic reality, with the Community Imour mission is on the cusp experiences, we provement Center. Homeof taking off. Raven 5’s owners make sure we are derive an energy radiates like the warm and energized with vanity mirror lights off the intense sense of pots of dark roast coffee silver-accented wallpaper. and freshly steeped ginger purpose that Our United Way sponlemon tea. The love we exsor and VISTAs lend us perience from complete will guide us perspective on the project, strangers is astounding, when the road even to team members heightening our excitement to serve the tightfrom more rural, communibecomes rough. knit community. The area ty-based towns. has been economically Non-profit organizations distressed since most major industries left fully embrace the pay-it-forward mentalithe region in the 1980’s. The combined ty. Resource, like canned goods, flow effect of harsh lake-driven winds and openly throughout the network of Meadsnowy winters has left a number of roofs ville’s social organizations. This collective in the area in severe disrepair, with many spirit is prevalent within the circles of residents unable to handle the financial skilled supervisors as well. Doug, a Contra burden. The drastic need for restoration -dancing slate-roofer, frequently exchangefforts is evidenced by 60 of the 75 indies tools with George, a carpenter and lead vidual applications being for damaged guitarist of a local blues band. roofs. The queue is staggering but our Raven Five has been extremely lucky to

serve the first round in a community which understands the bigger picture. The message is not lost on the team. We have persevered through inclement weather, applying our skill sets where needed. When steel-toed boots sting our feet at high noon, we regroup inside for lunch and share stories with the attentive ears of grateful hosts. We are blessed with the anecdotes of a multiple sclerosis victim who clings onto her independence through myriad artistic enterprises. We share in the construction of a wheel chair ramp with a man who almost lost his wife to cerebral hemorrhage. She had collapsed in her driveway and lay prostrate for six hours until he arrived home; her life was saved by the 25 degree temperature which slowed the blood flow in her brain. Through these experiences, we derive an intense sense of purpose that will guide us when the road becomes rough. Now we move onto Rockaway Beach, Queens. There is doubt that the city will be as gracious towards us as the quaint little college town. But we have come to understand that expectations do not always match the reality of the situation. Raven Five will enter our new environment with an open minds and giving hearts.

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R5 |

ROUND 2 • NEW YORK, NY New York Cares

AmeriSpores in the Big Apple Raven 5 spent Round 2 doing Hurricane Sandy recovery work with New York Cares. The team led volunteers, gutted damaged homes, and removed sand and debris from neighborhoods.

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

ROUND 3 • BRYANT POND, ME • WYOMING, WV University of Maine, Bryant Pond 4H Camp • Citizens Conservation Corps of West Virginia

Diversify Your Bonds From the beginning of CTI, we were trained on diversity. The exercises seemed trivial at the time, but they have one lasting effect: We acknowledged the importance of understanding and accepting diversity. Outside of stuffy rooms, we could then discuss what it really means to us as individuals and to our experience in AmeriCorps. Our team was schooled on the idea of diversity in Round 3. West Virginia was a great experience because we learned practical skills in home remodeling, volunteer coordination and patience in the face of social adversity. We worked and lived in the mountaineer state for the Boy Scout Jamboree, the largest single community service event in the history of our country. Pretty cool. We expected some complications due to the differences between organizations and worldviews,

but we opened our minds to the idea of working in a new environment. For the most part, the people were great. Our sponsors were warm and grateful. The Scouts were enthusiastic and had wonderful intentions. The community was welcoming and helpful. Outside of some differing worldviews, we saw a lot of good in WV. We experienced first-hand the grit and resilience of a community that has seen its major industries steadily decline. We helped restore a struggling community. We felt the love from residents and heard the yodel -like belting of a bluegrass band, which played for us at an orientation dinner. We meshed with the town at restaurants and social gatherings. We made friends with our fellow NCCC members from the Southern Region. We ate delicious pepperoni roll. We climbed Tater Hill.

| R5

We experienced first-hand the grit and resilience of a community that has seen its major industries steadily decline.

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R5 |

ROUND 4 • KING OF PRUSSIA, PA Valley Forge National Historic Park

Forging Ahead For Round 4, Raven 5 removed invasive crayfish and mile-aminute weeds from Valley Forge National Historic Park in an effort to restore native species.

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ROUND 5 • TOMS RIVER, NJ Jersey Cares

| R5

Spore on the Shore Raven 5 finished out the service term by continuing Hurricane Sandy recovery efforts with Jersey Cares. As with Round 2, the team led volunteers, removed debris, and repaired homes.

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COLORADO FLOODS

In the Wake of the Water On September 21, 2013, 66 members of the Atlantic Region of AmeriCorps NCCC deployed to Denver to assist American Red Cross with the Colorado Floods. Upon arrival, the eight teams and two STLs were split up between the North District and Central District, while one small group of members stayed at the main headquarters to provide administrative support. All other members were sent out to their assigned districts with their permanent teams to work with Client Casework, Bulk Distribution, and Sheltering. While in Colorado, we were able to complete over 10,300 hours in the first 20 days. We assisted over 3,000 clients and distributed or collected approximately 767,000 pounds of supplies and food. Many members also provided vital support to the managers and chiefs in their districts that allowed the operation to run more smoothly. This deployment was exciting and challenging for all members involved. Every person learned something new about their capabilities and weaknesses in an environment that was constantly changing. It is for projects like this that members join programs like AmeriCorps NCCC, and all members benefited from this experience. Whether it was assisting a client who lost their home, or hiking supplies into an isolated community, every person played an important role.

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DIARY OF A DEPLOYMENT

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Another Side of Flood Recovery in Colorado Remember when we went to Connecticut and Pittsburgh? The day before leaving for last and final spike, Moose 4 was one of the many teams rumored to be going to Colorado for flood relief. All of the Moose TLs were out for the night with Jason, so we didn’t find out for sure until around 11 p.m. It turns out we would be the only team driving. I had mixed feeling about this three-day drive with 10 people in one 15P. Then, thankfully Imagine! our sponsors for the round asked us to bring tools so we got a brand new support vehicle for the three day trek. The new truck accompanied by frequent stops and great hotel stays made the trip delightful, even if Snax and Ty were farting the whole way there. When we arrived we met Elizabeth, an NCCC alum and the volunteer coordinator for Imagine! She showed us around where we would be living. We stayed in the Imagine! office in a conference room, all ten of us on air mattresses in the same room. I think that being in one room annoyed everyone at different times but for the most part it really wasn’t that bad. We had tons of other conference rooms we could hang out in after work, a full kitchen, two different gym memberships, tons of bathrooms, and boatloads of free food. The staff at Imagine! spoiled us. We didn’t know much coming into this round but we soon found out that Imagine! is a non-profit that works with people with cognitive disabilities that has been around for 50 years. We were able to work at CORE a few times which was going to things like art or dance classes with consumers. These are some memories I’ll never forget. Previ-

ous to this project I had never spent much time with anyone with a mental disability and I learned so much about this community and I am so grateful for this project because of that. Rebecca, Gerald, Donna, John and Chris were some familiar faces we saw almost daily that the SmartHome we worked on most. We even got to celebrate Rebecca’s birthday with her. We also had some celebrations of our own with our fake New Year’s Eve, Ty’s

birthday and Ryan’s birthday. We got to explore the Hammond’s Candy Factory, Red Rocks, Celestial Seasonings, go to the Denver Nuggets games and even meet up with a friend from Frost Valley. During our time in Colorado, we drywalled, mudded, textured, painted and trimmed six different houses and then some. We loved who we worked with and for and I can’t imagine spending our last round with anyone else.

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FIRE PROGRAM

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THE PHOENIX FIRE PROGRAM Members of the Phoenix Unit are specially-selected and specially trained to fight wildfires and manage prescribed burns. Members are selected based on performance during an endurance test, quality of letters of interest, and overall standing in the Corps. For one week in Kinston, N.C., Phoenix members train to use firefighting equipment, execute tactics, observe fire behavior, and safely control or suppress fires. Class XIX Phoenix members participated in 26 prescribed burns covering 2,639 acres where they worked 2,426 hours for cost savings of more than $46,000. One team, Phoenix 4, deployed to a 14,754-acre complex of wildfires in California where members worked 2,220 hours for cost savings of $38,000. Led by Unit Leader Jason Cangelosi and project sponsor Steve Hubner of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, this dedicated group of young men and women are held to high standards and are expected to be leaders among the Corps.

2,639

prescribed burns

acres burned

14,754

wildfire response

total acres of wildfire incident

4,648 hours worked

84,000 dollars in salary savings

Statistics reflect burns/fires prior to Nov. 6, 2013

AGENCIES ASSISTED WITH FIRE

NON-FIRE AGENCIES ASSISTED

Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission

Access AIDS Care

Harborfest 2013

George Washington National Forest

City of Chesapeake

Harrison Lake National Fish Hatchery

James River National Wildlife Refuge

Five Points Community Farm Market

Keep Norfolk Beautiful

Klamath National Forest

Food Bank of Southeastern Virginia

Newport News City Park

Maryland Dept. of Natural Resources

ForKids

Virginia Living Museum

The Nature Conservancy (MD, ME, VA)

Great Dismal Swamp NWR

Virginia Peninsula Food Bank

Old Dominion University

Habitat for Humanity

Virginia Zoo

Shenandoah National Park

Habitat for Humanity ReStore

U.S.S. Battleship Wisconsin Memorial

VA Dept. of Conservation & Recreation VA Dept. of Game & Inland Fisheries

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ FIRE PROGRAM

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PHOENIX 1 |

ROUND 1 • SUFFOLK, VA U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Northeast Region Fire Management)

Deer, Black Bears & Beast Mode, Oh My! Break down your drip torch and wash your Nomex, our time as Phoenix 1 has passed. We were the first, playing it all by ear and making it up as we went along. We danced through the confusion and did yoga in a storm. We started as a team of strangers and strong individuals who came together over the challenge of entering a world without slide shows or 15Ps. For our first round we were given much of the freedom we had lost during CTI. And it was beautiful… for the most part. Randi and Brady came into our lives and inspired us to donk. We learned that Adam’s nuts are

tasty and pickled eggs are not. It wasn’t uncommon to find a bear cub in your shower or a deer leisurely reading in your bed. We lived in a swamp, the land of no reception and Mr. Boogie. Remember Wayne’s doo-rag? And the battle of hamburger versus quinoa? Together we faced the physical challenges of discovering the rage of green brier and swollen feet, but we learned that’s when you just have to “beast-mode it.” We laughed more than any team. Ever. I wouldn’t have rather gone through the learning curve with anyone else. Thanks P1.

TEAM LEADER Wayne Sun THE TEAM Courtney Amburg Jahari Barker Jeremy Flores Gabriella Golzarian Natalie Hillmann Bridget Kimbell Chris May Owen Wolfe TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 9 prescribed burns 1,444 acres burned

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ROUND 2 • SUFFOLK, VA U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Northeast Region Fire Management)

| PHOENIX 2

Why the Caged Phoenix Sings TEAM LEADER Meganne Radway THE TEAM Kaitlyn Liafsha Tyrell Moore Brienna Rainey Anthony Requena Carson Scherer Jared Schopp Meg Wheeler TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 6 prescribed burns 900 acres burned

Like any other Phoenix team, to say we were excited to burn is an understatement. Our spontaneous departure from campus heightened our adrenaline and created great morale amongst the team. It was a difficult moment when rain cancelled our first burn, but we proceeded with the same dedication we had left campus with. We packed our line gear, loaded with baby wipes and snacks, and awaited the call from Steve for a burn. Two and a half weeks later, the ever so patient Phoenix 2 was still awaiting said call from Steve. It was frustrating at times, but we persevered and shared our talents with other local nonprofits in the area. One of our favorites was The Virginia Zoological Park. We spent many of our days weeding, mulching, and planting, but we also experienced much more. We were able to meet

and pet Alfred, a 45-year-old white rhinoceros who, “loves to be loved on.” We got up close and personal with the lion and lioness of the park, with cages between us of course. It was amazing to get a behind the scenes tour of the zoo and learn so much about the plants and animals there! It was our third week when we were finally able to burn—800 acres in four days! Some people think that throwing on a 50lbs pack and walking through the woods isn’t fun, but we would beg to differ. We had amazing experiences on ignition with drip torches and holding while doing weather. We learned so many things from those with The Nature Conservancy, Black Water, and US Fish and Wildlife. Phoenix 2 is excited to return to their teams but will never forget the memories and experience we had while living and working as Wildland Firefighters.

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PHOENIX 3 |

ROUND 3 • SUFFOLK, VA U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Northeast Region Fire Management)

A Do-It-Yourself Guide to Phoenix 3 1. 2. 3. 4.

Go to The Great Dismal Swamp. Never leave. Make sure you pee often. Rename team to Clarity 15. Shove cupcakes in face and call it an AmeriBirthday. 5. Watch Harry Potter until you cry. 6. Adopt a stray dog. 7. Play soccer on the beach with Brazilians. 8. Have dance parties. 9. Adopt “sucks to suck” as your motto and embrace it. 10. Make songs about the fire you won’t see.

11. Collect ticks…on your body. 12. Always leave a trail of glitter. 13. Do embarrassing VHS workouts like Disco Sweat and Jane Fonda. 14. Love intern Aaron and give him a trophy. 15. Lose one driver a week. 16. Eat brownies, tacos, and BBQ once a week. 17. Do hands in and yell random words. 18. 3 words: Criminal Minds marathon! Do it! 19. Laugh about everything; it’s all you can do. You are now an official P3/Clarity 15 member.

TEAM LEADER Dimi Venkov THE TEAM Meagan Julian Sean Kenyon Tiffany Murphy Megan Ryan Silpa Sadhujan, Ray Vassar-Semanchik Ian Slingsby TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 2,800 lbs. food distributed 9.5 acres of parks restored 3 gardens tended 1 mile of trail restored

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ROUND 4 • SUFFOLK, VA U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service (Northeast Region Fire Management)

| PHOENIX 4

Are You Having Fun Yet? TEAM LEADER Stephen Silber THE TEAM Erin Foley Kayla Hanson Skylar Larsen Max Limeberger Laura Mahoney Megan Racine Shane Tulp TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 14,000-acre wildfire 2,220 hrs. on fire line $35,000 salary savings

The question I heard most while fighting wildfires is, “are you having fun yet?” It wasn’t something that I expected to hear so often. Everyday we would have to be up and in the vehicles by 5:15 a.m. After breakfast my squad was responsible for transporting multiple cases of water bottles to each of the vehicles. We’d drive back to our campground and have a crew briefing on the day’s tasks. Then we’d hit the road to drive to our designated location and after we parked we’d usually hike for about an hour. During our hike most crew members including myself would start feeling their toes rub against the inside of their boots. The packs on our backs were always the heaviest in the morning so I try everything I could to keep the weight on my hips. The terrain in Klamath National Forest is anything but forgiving. The slopes seemed to be at a seventy degree angle. Throughout the day I would trip and fall and scrape my shins on some rocks or I would get called out on three different occasions because I was doing something incorrectly. I would drink so much water but would never feel hydrated. And then, someone would ask, “are you having fun yet?”

Even though some situations were tougher than others I can say that I did have fun. We were in a locations that had breath taking views for miles. Literally, we were up in the clouds on a ridge top at some points. Our team learned how to lay hose, charge the hose with water, and role it back up. Digging line was one of the first things we did on some of the toughest ground. We were lucky enough to participate in a burnout with an engine crew from California where we got to use drip torches and Very Pistols. Sometimes we held line and “staged” for an entire day which was a nice break for most of us and also a good time for me to learn how to play the harmonica. There was also a day where our crew hiked up a mountain side that burnt out to make sure there was no heat after the ash settled. Learning all of these new things and being with such a great crew made for a great experience for all. We had rough times where we didn’t agree with each other but it would be balanced out by playing games and sharing stories during our lunch breaks. So when I was asked, “are you having fun yet?”, whether they believed me or not, I looked them in the eye and said, “yes, I am having fun!”

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PHOENIX 5 |

ROUND 5 • WELLS, ME The Nature Conservancy

#Phoenix5 TEAM LEADER Dimi Venkov THE TEAM Meagan Julian Sean Kenyon Tiffany Murphy Megan Ryan Silpa Sadhujan Erik VanCleve TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 6 prescribed burns 204 acres burned

Phoenix 5 was a composite opportunity for AmeriCorps NCCC firefighters. They worked with The Nature Conservancy in Maine and participated on six prescribed burns. #HiDidileyHo #Ward #WeWon'tLoseTheKey #HarryPotterPuppetPals #BaDaDunDun #Decent #Camping #CampFires #AlbanyReunion #PoundItBrah #Polaris #Andrew'sFireAcademy #Roy #FeedMe #Olive #95.3TheCoast #WinkAndLuigi #EternalInternal #P5Sawtooth #PhoSho #Leafblower #StuckInMaine #GovyShutdown #JonJamesJohnJimJeffJoanneJoshJohnJakeJim

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ROUND 2 • ALBANY, NY Albany Pine Bush Preserve

| FIREFOX 1

Firefox 1.99 User’s Manual What is Firefox 1.99? FF 1.99 is a software used to protect Karner Blue Butterfly software by building fire walls, and editing and rewriting line code. FF 1.99 works in conjunction with Albany Pine Bush Preserve Commission Software. Functional Components: Emily — Programmer Dimi “D-Money 2.0” — Control Panel Silpa — Memory Drive Stephen — Debugger Megan — Clean Installer Shane — Database Tyler (Sponsor) — Task Bar D-Money & Sam 1.0 “D-MS 1.0” (Site Supervisors) — Router

Disclaimer: Any relevance to past FF software is unintended. Be aware that current software is probably a better updated version.

TEAM LEADER Emily Tiffany THE TEAM

Getting Started: Compress FF 1.99, load in browser, and decompress in Albany Pine Bush Preserve. Open with task bar “Tyler.” D-MS 1.0 will download FF 1.99 to all current and future firewall locations. FF 1.99 will use ignition to protect endangered Karner Blue Butterfly software while also editing any line code along the way.

Megan Ryan Silpa Sadhujan Stephen Silber Shane Tulp Dimi Venkov TEAM HIGHLIGHTS 2 prescribed burns 8.5 acres burned

Usage Note: This is a sassy and powerful program; only use when prepared. Do not use in rain.

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COMPOSITES

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

ROUND 1 • MOONACHIE, NJ Volunteer Center of Bergen County

| DRAGON 1

Dragon Warriors Take On Hurricane Recovery The Jersey Dragon Warriors (a.k.a. Dragon 1 composite) did loads of dirty work for the Volunteer Center of Bergen County and Rebuilding Together. They donned Tyvek suits and respirator masks and delved underneath many mobile homes in the Moonachie and Little Ferry Boroughs of New Jersey, all in an effort to continue disaster recovery after Hurricane Sandy. They also completed the siding and painting on the outside of one home and spackled the inside of another. Dragon 1’s motto is “Never Breaking Stride,” and through their work in Bergen County, it is evident the motto fits the team’s enduring nature for starting projects and seeing them through to completion.

TEAM LEADER Chandler Ballentine THE TEAM Victor Alvarado Glenn Campbell Gaby Gardose Kris Hall Travis Hanes Alyse Kearns Erik VanCleve

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PETER PAN 1 |

ROUND 2 • GALWAY, NY Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York

Tinkerbell and The Lost Boys Once upon a time, there was girl named Stephanie. She worked hard in the AmeriCorps NCCC office as the Raven Unit Support Team Leader, until one day when she was tasked with the duty of gathering up a team of corps members to help the Girl Scouts of Northeastern New York build trails for two weeks. After searching around, she found her team: four young adult males ready to get things done. And thus, Peter Pan 1 was born. On April 29, Stephanie, along with her “lost boys,” Mike, Slater, Sean and Brock, traveled to Galway, NY to begin their adventure in the woods. They spent most of their days building over two miles of trail and clearing over 1.5 miles of existing trail. It was tough work but the team survived. It is sure to be an adventure they will never forget. They will think back to the campfires and s’mores and the laser tag and go-cart racing as fond memories.

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TEAM LEADER Stephanie Ferguson THE TEAM Brock Barbosa Mike Brown Fletcher Freeman Sean Kenyon Alexander Slater

ROUND 2 • BRAINTREE, MA Cardinal Cushing Centers

Of Patriots & Munchkins Patriot 1, the best composite team AmeriCorps NCCC has ever seen, was stationed in Braintree, MA. While there, we resided in a church basement, living on wonderful couch cushions, cots, and mats, bonding so lovingly as a team. The work we were tasked with completing was cleaning and

landscaping the grounds for students at the Cardinal Cushing center, which helps provide services to those with intellectual and autism spectrum disabilities. The area had not been maintained for quite some time and the students and clients didn’t have anywhere to get exercise or recreate. We were able to clear out debris, create a walking path, paint a basketball court, and build a garden. The work we accomplished not only helped to beautify the grounds, but it provided the clients with a safe place where they could enjoy the outdoors. Braintree, MA was amazing. We met Josh’s dad and went to his grandparents’ house for dinner, who were so sweet and great hosts. We took a ferry ride and toured Boston, which looked just like it does in the movies; everyone loves the word “wicked” and talks like they’re in the Mafia. Patriot 1 ate their body weight in munchkins and Dunkin’ Donuts coffee, played in the poison ivy, went to the dumpster at least 45 times (you can taste the smell), had a dance party in the dark as part of PT, watched so many movies (DO NOT watch Sinister…the movie is BEYOND SCARY), and came together as a team to truly make a difference for the clients at Cardinal Cushing.

| PATRIOT 1

TEAM LEADER Courtney Strother THE TEAM Josh Bracken Bradley Gardner Eddy Lee Amir Matthews Jaemia Pratt

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BLACK BEAR 1 |

ROUND 2 • TOMS RIVER, NJ Jersey Cares



Working to Restore the Shore Following in the foot steps of Raven 4, Black Bear 1 arrived at the Jersey shore in mid-May and quickly set to work gutting homes that were damaged by Hurricane Sandy and leading volunteer groups on neighborhood restoration projects. A small but mighty team of five members, Black Bear 1 benefitted from the experience of Kayla Lickey and James Hubbard, both of whom completed disaster recovery projects during Round 1, as well as the enthusiasm and motivation of Cecilia Veloz and Wayne Sun. The team worked closely with sponsor Thomas Dougherty to plan and execute recovery projects throughout Ocean County. Based out of the Hurricane Sandy Resource Center in Toms River, Thomas was always thorough and resolute in his mission to “restore a sense of normalcy” to residents of the Jersey shore. A wellrounded cast of local staff and volunteers at the Resource Center also contributed to the team’s success, which included assisting 86 disaster survivors, refurbishing 10 homes, gutting eight homes, completing 17 damage assessments,

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removing 16 tons of debris, and supervising 122 volunteers. When they weren’t getting things done, team members spent leisure time at their church housing in the sleepy township of Manchester or jogging and people watching at the nearby YMCA. The Black Bears even managed to dip their paws in the Atlantic Ocean at Island Beach State Park and peruse the newly reopened boardwalk before the project’s end.

TEAM LEADER Ben Dillon THE TEAM James Hubbard Kayla Lickey Wayne Sun Cecilia Veloz

ROUND 3 â&#x20AC;˘ ANDOVER, MA Appalachian Trail Conservancy

| SASQUATCH 1

ROUND 3

Sasquatch 1 Lurks Through Appalachian Back Country Mother Nature doesn't work in straight lines. Sasquatch 1 has learned this lesson the hard and dirty way while clearing the boundaries of the Appalachian Trail (AT) with the Maine Appalachian Trail Conservancy. The team has been tasked with bushwhacking through a tangled spruce and fur forest to locate and record foottall metal monuments, which mark the outer boundaries of the trail corridor. The monitor must contort him or herself to

follow a single compass bearing through a pine labyrinth. While the path is flagged, other members use loppers and saws to forge a sight line through jumbled trees and underlying brush. The work is a vital part of conserving AT lands. Boundary maintenance protects the corridor and, subsequently, the trail from encroachments by lumber companies and private landowners.

TEAM LEADER Owen Wolfe THE TEAM Jeremy Flores Erin Foley Jessica Lawrence Gavin McGimpsey Ross Rinehart Ashley Silver Greg Starling Sierra Taylor Whitney Wooten

AWARDS

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CLASS XIX • AWARDS

COMMITMENT | MAX LIMEBERGER The Commitment Award was presented to the Corps Member who best exemplified the NCCC motto of “Getting Things Done.” Max Limeberger acted as a role model by reinforcing to others the importance of community service, by demonstrating what it means to be an active citizen and by passing on the ethic of community service.

HUMANITARIANISM | BRADLEY GARDNER The Humanitarian Award was presented to the Corps Member whose actions are devoted to human welfare. Bradley Gardner acted selflessly and exhibited compassion to all. He demonstrated a commitment to the spirit of living and working with a diverse community and carrying on the legacy of selfless service.

INDEPENDENT SERVICE MEGAN JULIAN & MAX LIMEBERGER The Independent Service Award was presented to the Corps Members who completed the most hours of Independent Service Projects (ISPs). Corps Members were responsible for completing a minimum of 80 ISP hours during the service term; however, Megan Julian and Max Limeberger went above and beyond the minimum requirement by dedicating nights and weekends to additional service work. Megan and Max each completed more than 300 hours of independent service!

TEAM MOTIVATORS The Team Motivator Award was presented to the individual on each team who consistently maintained a positive attitude and was a positive influence on others. The Team Motivator was a team builder, a comfort to others having a difficult time and the first person to point out the good in every situation. BUFFALO 1 | Kayla Hanson BUFFALO 3 | Victor Alvarado BUFFALO 4 | Ray Vassar-Semanchik MOOSE 1 | Glenn Campbell MOOSE 2 | Jaemia Pratt MOOSE 4 | Stephen Silber MOOSE 5 | Laura Mahoney

LEADERSHIP | OWEN WOLFE The Leadership Award was given to an individual who consistently displayed a willingness to accept responsibility, lead by example, exercise a positive influence, instill confidence and motivation, and work diligently to carry out the mission of NCCC. For illustrating these qualities, Owen Wolfe received this award.

RAVEN 1 | Jessica Lawrence RAVEN 2 | Bradley Gardner RAVEN 3 | Tiffany Murphy RAVEN 4 | Keiana Eskridge

PERSEVERANCE | ALICIA SPACK The Perseverance Award was presented to the Corps Member who was persistent and tenacious over the course of the service term, despite a rocky start, obstacles and setbacks. Alicia Spack showed others that, in the words of Samuel Johnson, "great works are performed not by strength but by perseverance."

RAVEN 5 | Chris May PHOENIX 1 | Bridget Kimbell PHOENIX 2 | Jared Schopp PHOENIX 3 | Ray Vassar-Semanchik

PERSONAL GROWTH | JUSTIN GANDY The Personal Growth Award was presented to the Corps Member who matured and grew throughout the course of the service year, developed new skills and demonstrated what it means to be an active citizen. While all of you walked away from the service year changed, the Corps believed that Justin Gandy changed the most in the span of 10 months.

PHOENIX 4 | Laura Mahoney PHOENIX 5 | Silpa Sadhujan

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SUPERLATIVES Most Likely to Be On the Cover of GQ Jeremy Flores

Most Destroyed Uniform Mike Brown

Most Likely to Use the Handbook As a Coaster Jeremiah King

The Comedy Central Award Gabriella Golzarian

AmeriChef Adriana Bayona

Just a Flesh Wound (Most Accident Prone) Louis Brown, Jr.

Most Likely to Tame a Deer & Ride It Megan Ryan

Best Facial Hair Stephen Silber

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CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ AWARDS

Most Likely to Fail Room Inspections Alexander Slater

Most Likely to Make It Happen Max Limeberger

Mr. Handbook David Wright

Cutest Couple Sarah Kolb & Ray Vassar-Semanchik

Attached at the Hip Bridget Kimbell & Kayla Lickey

Best Bromance James Hubbard & Max Limeberger

Tree Hugger Whitney Wooten

Most Likely to Be Fashionably Late Nordel Clarke

Most Likely to Rule the World Gavin McGimpsey

Most Athletic Courtney Amburg

Bottomless Pit Shane Tulp

The Magellan Award (TL Likely to Get Lost) Leah Goodman

Surrogate Parents Mignon Bryant & Phil Schwartz

The U-Haul Award (Packs Everything But the Kitchen Sink) Buffalo 3

Too Hot to Handle (Crush-Worthy TL) Ben Dillon

The Brady Bunch (Most Family-Like Team) Moose 4

The Super Gumbi Award (Most Flexible Team) Buffalo 1

Staff Team Leader Jen Horan

Most Team Spirit Moose 1

Best Van Name Raven 1 (Baby Blue Ivy)

CLASS XIX â&#x20AC;˘ AWARDS

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