While many of us were lounging at home or taking vacays this winter break, Alexis Steger was helping people rebuild their lives. Steger served as one of Habitat for Humanity’s trip organizers for a ten day trip to Alabama, where she and a group of thirteen other CMU students worked on construction and maintenance projects.
Earning her leadership position didn’t happen overnight. Alexis has been interested in habitat-type work since she was twelve years old, when her class would attend “paint days” which entailed painting incomplete houses. Alexis’s enjoyment of the activity blossomed into an interest in Habitat for Humanity, where she served as her high school organization’s president.
Steger says that her “enthusiasm for the organization carried into college” –and it’s apparent– Alexis didn’t hesitate to travel to New Orleans with CMU’s habitat group during her freshman year, and accepted the challenge of leading the winter 2014 Habitat trip merely two years later. Â Â
Steger has been excited by each of her Habitat experiences, but she says that the Alabama trip this winter was unlike any other because it exposed her to a wide variety of projects. Initially, the group worked on Habitat offices that hadn’t received attention in 15 years. Next, they repaired a roof for someone who could not afford home repairs. “The roof was in such bad condition”, Alexis says, “that two people in our group accidentally put holes through it.”  Additionally, Alexis and her group built a foundation of a home for someone whose house had been destroyed by a tornado three years ago. Though this situation was tragic, Alexis recognizes that, unfortunately, it is not one of a kind. Many people she’s talked to recount natural disasters that have destroyed their homes. “I have learned not to take anything for granted”, she says. “When I am stressed over little things at school I remind myself of how lucky I am.” Â
Though her work is humbling, Alexis has also found it to be inspiring. She loves talking to future habitat house owners and listening to their stories, working side-by-side with the them and “learning about their life experiences” including “how their family encouraged them to apply for a Habitat house.”
Though the Habitat trip is over, there’s no stopping Alexis’s gusto for building: It’s only fitting that Steger is a booth chair this year and views her position as a “chance to apply building experience to a college project.”
Does Alexis see a similarity between Habitat and booth beyond power tools and paintbrushes? “Yes”, she says. “Besides the physical work of literally building a structure, these projects are similar because of the group effort….[of] com[ing] together and accomplishing a common goal.”
 And she’s right– as CMU students know,  building a booth requires immense teamwork to produce stunning results. Steger adds that the excitement she feels after finishing a Habitat project and finishing a booth wall are one in the same. Clearly, Alexis’s passion for booth is strong. And it has to be — chairs spend sleepless nights and months of preparation for their projects. Nevertheless, Alexis Steger has already shown passion for building, aptitude for leadership, and a drive to accomplish something bigger than herself — the real “strengths” required for building anything. Â