PORT CHARLOTTE, Fla. – On March 19, the day before spring break began, 18 students loaded into two vans and headed out of town.
Their destination: Port Charlotte, a small rural community in Florida, about 1,600 miles southeast of Eau Claire. Their cause: to work for a non-profit organization who builds homes for needy families.
More than 24 hours in a van in close proximity with your van mates – only time would tell how this story would play out.
“It feels great to volunteer your spring break knowing that you are helping others.” –Tiffany Domaszek Junior |
Even though the vans were nice, they might not have been the best form of transportation, sophomore Lindsay Livecche said.
” The vans wouldn’t be my pick,” she said, “but they weren’t horrible.”
The group picked up two more people in Madison, Andy Kleinhienz and Lara Deering, to bring the number of people in the vans up to 20.
Now fully packed down, the two-van convoy drove through the night and into the next day.
While going through rush hour in Atlanta, the group narrowly missed a fender bender, but it wouldn’t always be so lucky.
Most of the students where anxiously anticipating getting there, so they pushed on.
“The last few hundred miles just seem to creep by slower and slower,” sophomore Jason Fehlen said from behind the wheel.
Half dead and tired, the group pulled into Port Charlotte on March 21 at about 2 a.m.
They immediately went to the Habitat for Humanity office and found a couch to crash on, for the next day when the work would begin.
Habitating for Humanity
Habitat for Humanity was founded in 1976 as a small Christian ministry.
The organization can now be found in 93 countries, building more than 25,000 houses a year. In the Port Charlotte region, 65 houses are built a year.
When the group arrived on the worksite at 8 a.m., sophomore Teresa Rhiel said they really didn’t know what to expect.
They were greeted by Ron Thomas, executive director of Habitat for Humanity for Charlotte County, who explained what the students would be doing.
Each work day began with a devotion. Since it is a Christian organization, a prayer is said before anything is done.
The first assignment given to the students was to roof a house.
Even though it was hard work, it wasn’t that bad, Fehlen said.
“I enjoyed it,” he said. “I learned a new skill and I got a suntan.”
It took the students two days to roof the entire house.
One of memories that sophomore Trevor Kupfer has from the trip came from that first day of work.
“It felt really good to help out the single mother that Ron said we were helping build the house for,” he said.
Painting and priming another house was the next assignment, and it got messy.
Not only did the the students paint the house, they also painted themselves.
The group got into a paint war trying to add a little humor to the working day.
The group found out that primer easy to apply and hard to wash off.
“It a lot easier to put on than to take off,” sophomore Lindsey Raymond said while washing out the white matter.
On the last day, they moved to another house to do some odd jobs.
The experience proved to be rewarding, junior Tiffany Domaszek said.
“It feels great to volunteer your spring break knowing that you are helping others,” she said.
Thomas had only good things to say about the students’ work.
“They bring so much youthful energy,” he said. “They did a great job.”
Fun in the sun
After long months of a Wisconsin winter, the students were eager to get out and take advantage of Florida’s weather.
“In the winter I am either in class or in the dorms,” sophomore Michelle Forgette said. “It was awesome to see the sun again.”
The students spent much of their free time on the in the sun.
“Sandy beaches, warm weather and blue water,” Domaszek said. “There is nothing better than that.”
Due to their hard work, Thomas gave them a day off.
The students decided to travel down to Fort Myers Beach to lounge and barbeque on the beach.
It proved to be a excellent idea and one of sophomore Kirby Raasch’s fondest memories of the trip.
“It was great to see the sunset while grilling out on the beach,” she said.
After eating they retreated to the local YMCA to take showers. Then the group returned to the Lanni Kai Beach Resort for an evening of spring break fun and dancing.
The problem with leaving
After the group had filled up on their last free meal, they headed back to the church.
All packed and heading out of town, when it all changed.
All you could hear was a screech and a bang, then, over the walkie talkie, “we’ve been hit.”
The rear van was rear-ended by a vehicle going 45 mph.
“When it happened, I didn’t know what to do,” said Forgette, who was sitting in the back seat. “I have never been in an accident before.”
Five squad cars, two ambulances and a fire truck responded, taking four people to the hospital for injuries.
Port Charlotte resident John Heintz, 26, was cited for drunk driving and escorted to jail.
Needless to say, this put a wrench in their gears to get home.
It turned out that Heintz would have to fly the 10 students home, not to mention pay for their lodging and food.
“In the end everything worked out” Fehler said.
Remembering
After saying goodbye, the other 10 students boarded the remaining van and began the long trek back to Eau Claire.
With many hours to kill in the van, the group spent time remembering the trip.
Upon seeing the Eau Claire exit, the students were glad to be home.
“I was relieved and ready to get out,” Livecche said. “Then I thought about all the stuff that I had to do, and all I wanted was to go back to Florida.”