Last year, I decided to join the UConn chapter of Habitat for Humanity. For those of you who do not know what Habitat is, it is an international organization that provides low-income housing for those in need. Volunteers and future homeowners work together to build the houses. I was involved with Habitat throughout my high school years and loved it so much that I was president of our chapter in Berlin my senior year of high school. I even travelled to Maryville, Tennessee over my spring break to help build homes. So naturally, it would only be right to join Habitat in college.
The UConn chapter of Habitat was sending 4 different groups of people around the United States to help build homes during spring break. The places were Alabama, Washington State, Arizona and New Mexico. After going through an application process, I was chosen to go to Peoria, Arizona.
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As our trip was fast approaching, I got more and more nervous. I had not made many friends up until this point, and was scared of traveling to Arizona with a bunch of random people who I had only spoken with a couple times. I was thinking, "What did I get myself into?"
The time had finally come to head to Arizona. We were flying out of JFK Airport in New York, so one of our trip leaders offered to have us all stay at his house the night before. This way, we would be able to catch our early flight without the worry of being late. Since there were 15 of us in this apartment, sleeping spaces were very limited. I was forced to share a queen size air mattress with two other girls, who at the time I did not know would become my best friends at UConn. From sleeping together one night and staying up laughing and already having inside jokes, I knew that the trip was going to be amazing.
While in Arizona we worked everyday at different building sites, volunteering our time by painting, roofing, landscaping, or any general task that needed to be done to get the houses finished. After our days of work, we would site see around the beautiful state. We got lost one day trying to find a lake to cool off in, and ended up in Hell's Canyon, which is basically the middle of the Arizonian desert. It was my favorite part of the trip because the views were amazing, and the cacti went on for miles. We also traveled to Sedona where there were shops and a natural rock slide, and of course we had to go to the Grand Canyon.
Throughout the trip I created bonds with everyone and now I know I have 15 new friends. It is by far the greatest decision I have made at UConn so far, and I highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking about going on an alternative spring break. It's rewarding to dedicate an entire week of giving back to those in need, but the long lasting friendships you create through the process is what makes it worth while.
