• Expeditions and Explorations
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• Alternative Spring Break 2006
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• Service Trips
  • Baton Rouge, LA
    Boys and Girls Club
  • Biloxi, MS
    Hands On USA
  • Bogalusa, LA
    Triangle of Hope Ministries
  • Lacome, LA
    Nature Conservancy
  • New Orleans, LA
    United Way
  • Utica, NY
    Urban Service Experience

-- select a page -- Home Home Reflections History Baton Rouge, LA
Boys and Girls Club Biloxi, MS
Hands On USA Bogalusa, LA
Triangle of Hope Ministries Lacome, LA
Nature Conservancy New Orleans, LA
United Way Utica, NY
Urban Service Experience

Bogalusa, LA

Hearing about the storm on the news, and deciding to come down to volunteer for spring break, was completely different than actually being there, and experiencing the damage, and the state of disarray. The whole experience of being in an area affected by Hurricane Katrina was overwhelming, especially seeing the poorer areas of New Orleans where it was just block after block of leveled houses. The destruction -- the numbers on the houses indicating the number of dead bodies-- the stories people told us about being without power of food, the piles of debris -- it was just so real that it was unreal. More ... 

Lacome, LA

We're driving into New Orleans right now -- from the highway I can see rows of houses that are barely left standing. There is no point in turning my head to the left, as I know I'll only see more of what I'm forcing myself to stare at now. I don't see any people, just lines of seemingly random collections of wood, shingles, and trash. Its only trash because it's been abandoned -- like everything else on this street. What I see as "trash" or "debris" was nearly the entirety of a family's household. Boarded windows, missing roofs, fallen trees -- what I have been looking at for nearly 20 minutes now I still cannot completely fathom it. My reaction remains visceral, as I have trouble allowing it all to sink in completely. More ...

New Orleans, LA

Whereas giving up a week of spring break to spent 27 hours in a Jitney with almost strangers did not seem appealing, the experience was something that few of us will forget. Looking out at the Ninth Ward we realized that work we had done on the children's center paled in the comparison with the amount of work that still needs to get done. The work we were part of made us fast friends, teaching us how to reach out beyond our insular world both here on campus and in the world at large.
-Alex

Utica, NY

Today was an eye-opening experience! We began our day volunteering at the Utica Refugee Center. We helped out in the English as a Second Language (ESOL) classes. It was quite interesting to meet people from Somalia, Burma, Afghanistan, Cambodia and Vietnam. Trying to communicate English in many different ways presented quite a challenge! The experience overall was quite rewarding and we're all interested in returning in the future. More ...