Name: Gabriella Fletcher
Year: Junior
Major: Political science
Hometown: Dunmore, PA
Fun fact: Has been to 7 different countries
HC: So, where did you go for spring break this year?
GF: For spring break, I went on a Habitat for Humanity service trip to New Bern, North Carolina
through the University’s club.
HC: You could have spent this break relaxing with your family or friends. What inspired you to serve?
GF: I think the people in the communities where we help build houses is what drives me to serve. This was my 4th habitat trip and every time that I go, I meet some amazing people, whether it’s the future homeowners or the people in the community.
HC: What motivated you to do this service trip compared to others?
GF: I am interested in ISP and other service trips abroad, but I think it’s really cool to travel to a different part of the United States and help in a local community. Every state and town has its own unique culture, so it’s interesting to see the diversity of the American people.
HC: How did you spend your workdays? Your free time?
GF: We work Monday- Friday with a half day on Thursday. On Monday, the weather wasn’t the best, so we helped out at the local homeless shelter. We reorganized food by date and helped move delivery orders. Tuesday- Friday we worked on a couple different houses. We primarily worked on this one house and did partitions of walls, nailing and nail gunning 2X4’s to make up interior of the house, building a shed and steps to the front door. On the last day me and 3 other people, including HC member Colleen, went to another site and worked on sawing and installing flooring in the living room, bathroom and hallway. For free time, we went for ice cream, went to a local restaurant that had local bands playing, and the last night we were invited to a rotary club Saint Patrick’s Day celebration. It was such a fun time! The building was right on a body of water and there was a live band that was doing covers of older songs such as “My Girl” and Bruno Mars! It was a blast! Our club was dancing with all the older people and it was such a fun time! This is probably my favorite memory, along with going to the beach on one of our half days and playing football.
HC: Most valuable lesson?
GF: The most valuable lesson I learned was to never stop giving back to your community, no matter your age. There’s a group of retired men that volunteer for habitat in New Bern, ranging from 56-82! They call themselves “The DieHards” and even have t-shirts! They get up every day and try to make their community a better place.
HC: Any final thoughts?
GF: My final thoughts would encourage everyone to do a service trip, especially habitat! You learn valuable life lessons (like how to hammer a nail LOL) and bond with your fellow classmates while making a difference.