Rebuilding Homes & Creating Memories: WorkFest 2013

By Rayann White

On college campuses across the country, a new tradition is growing: the “alternative spring break.” Instead of spending a week with the traditional sun and sand, in ever-growing numbers, college students are spending spring break helping organizations like Christian Appalachian Project (CAP) conduct service projects that make a difference in the lives of those living in Appalachia.

CAP started WorkFest in 1992 as an alternative spring break for college students. The event has grown to attract more than 400 students from 40 different colleges and universities, serving about 20-25 homes over a four-week period annually.

Students get the chance to serve others by repairing substandard housing for low-income families in Eastern Kentucky. Upon their arrival, they are divided into teams and placed with experienced crew leaders. They typically serve on one or two home projects during their one-week stay, which may include new home construction, roofing, flooring, siding, insulation, window replacement, hanging drywall, and building ramps and porches. With each home that is improved, someone is offered hope for a better quality of life.

“I’ve done alternative spring break trips before and it was more or less busy work, nothing truly permanent. There’s more meaning to WorkFest. You are able to provide for people and know what’s left behind once you go back to school,” said Chantanae Singletary of Drexel University.

Volunteer Gerard Alba of the University of Illinois at Chicago shared, “While we came to build houses, the most important part of our trip is the relationships that we build, and that will last a lifetime.”

This year’s 16 WorkFest jobs were located mostly in McCreary County, Kentucky, on the western side (the Cumberland Valley) and in Johnson, Floyd, Lawrence, and Knott counties on the eastern side (the Sandy Valley). The theme for this year’s WorkFest was “Die to Self: Live for Christ.”

CAP’s Housing program, which coordinates the yearly event, provides home repair and reconstruction services on a year-round basis to participant families and individuals who otherwise could not afford decent living conditions.

A number of permanent crews, consisting of an experienced industry-trained crew leader and several longterm volunteers, perform all types of home repair and reconstruction.

Families requesting help complete an application, which is reviewed by a CAP caseworker who then schedules home visits to assess the participant’s needs. For some applicants, their families’ living conditions have remained the same for generations. Many of those served are elderly individuals who live alone and have no extended families. For the vast majority of applicants, their present housing is all they have ever known.

Robyn Renner, Manager of CAP’s Housing and Family Advocacy program shared, “Many of the homes we renovate are in desperate need of repair. Our goal is to improve health and provide comfort and safety for our participants.”

Applicants must agree to three requirements prior to approval into the housing program: 1) Create a 30-day budget with assistance from a CAP Caseworker, 2) Partial payback over an extended period of time for the cost of materials, and 3) Sweat equity, whether working with the crew to repair the home or preparing lunch.

Many families are excited to make contributions towards their home improvement. In fact, one woman in particular provided lunch every day to the hungry volunteers who worked to repair her home. Being able to contribute helps people feel a sense of pride and ownership in the repair process and drives home the CAP philosophy of providing a “hand-up” instead of a “hand-out.”

Volunteers can see this process firsthand by working elbow-to-elbow with participants. In many cases, doing so develops relationships that don’t end when the crew picks up their equipment, loads the truck, and drives away. “When you go into their home and you’re there for several weeks, you really get acquainted with them. When you leave, you feel as though you’ve known them your whole life,” said Renner.

Perhaps the most important lesson WorkFest teaches is to see the people of Appalachia as individuals deserving not of pity, but respect.

One such individual is Jimmy. Jimmy is a Vietnam Veteran and a life-long resident of Kentucky. Two years ago, however, Jimmy returned home from a camping trip to find his home engulfed in flames. It burned down to its framework.

Since then, Jimmy has stayed with various family members for as long as they could financially afford to care for him. As this was not a long-term solution, Jimmy had been looking for a way to get his home repaired.

Jimmy was introduced to CAP’s program by way of referral from another organization. For several years, Jimmy applied for assistance to rebuild and was denied until the day he received a visit from CAP’s Housing Coordinator, Julianna O’Brien. A few months later, Jimmy received good news from Mrs. O’Brien: his application had been approved.

“We look for someone who genuinely needs the help as well as wants to be involved in the process of fixing up the home,” said O’Brien.

“There are not too many college students who will give up their time to do something like this,” said Jimmy. “You have to trust [God] and have faith, and if you keep asking, the Lord will help you. God’s timing is always the right timing.”

Jimmy shared his story with the volunteers who arrived to help him repair his house. Volunteers were touched by his persistence and optimism and felt connected to him. Volunteer Jake Porter stated, “We are now able to give back to [Jimmy] and serve him, the same way that he has served our country.”

Thanks to selfless individuals like Porter, Appalachia’s housing need is slowly being chipped away. With every swing of the hammer, every turn of the screw, and every college student who uses his or her spring break to help another, homes are being rebuilt, memories are being made, and the people of Appalachia are offered hope.