Hammer time

As many college students are going to Florida for spring break to work on their suntan and party, a group of Knox College students did something different. During their spring break they built more than their self-esteem and a resume, they built houses. Knox College pre med student Catherine Ray '08 has already chalked up some amazing college memories reaching all the way from Florida to Mississippi and South Carolina.

When Ray arrived at Knox College she joined the Pre-med club "right away," she says. Many of its members also served with the Habitat for Humanity organization. She was encouraged to attend a Habitat meeting and has been putting up walls and repairing roofs ever since. "Pre-med students have an innately giving mentality," Ray says.

This also marks Ray's third year of participating in Habitat's spring break build program. Last year the group traveled to the poorest county in the nation, West Tallahassee, Mississippi. "The two leaders of the Habitat affiliate were fresh out of college. They needed a lot of help from the volunteers," Ray says.

The Collegiate Challenge program offers a fun, challenging alternative from the traditional party atmosphere of spring break. The trip gives students a chance to travel and spend a week working on a home for someone in need. No experience needed?students get basic carpentry and construction training?and work side by side with the future homeowners.

The Collegiate Challenge program started in 1989 and is now one of the biggest year-round programs in the United States. The host sites provide a safe place to sleep, shower and cook meals. But the college students do not get a free ride. In addition to a $3,000 donation to the affiliate, the club raises money through fundraising efforts, and participates in weekly house builds for Knox County's Habitat for Humanity affiliate. The group of 20 students also put in their own sweat equity to qualify for the Collegiate Challenge trip. "A lot of us are willing to volunteer and give our time. It is very rewarding," Ray says.

Students arrive at their host Habitat affiliate on a Sunday and start work the next day around 8 a.m. Most days end at 5 p.m. Ray says that the students like working with the homeowners and hearing their stories. Homeowners must log in a required 200 hours of sweat equity with their Habitat for Humanity affiliate before they qualify for a new home. "They make us dinner, and we just generally talk to them." Ray says. Following a planned dinner or activity with the Habitat partner family, students are able to do what they like.

For a lot of the Knox students, this is their third year participating in the Collegiate Challenge. But, hammer time is not limited to the one week in the spring. Anywhere from six to ten students muscle up every Saturday to build a house in Galesburg. "The Knox County Habitat organization builds three to four houses per year, and we have helped with four separate sites this year alone," Ray says.

Whether breaking ground for a new home or framing, installing tile, insulation or wiring a circuit, these Knox students gain friends, leadership skills, construction experience and the satisfaction of providing housing for families and the pride that they are making a difference in the world.

by Theresa Kuhlmann