SW FL Service-Learning Trip: Day 3 Recap

June 5, 2023

Today, the group was split into two again. Through our two groups, we served three nonprofits today. The day was long, but well worth it. We accomplished helping many people as well as learning things ourselves.

Group 1 – Keep Charlotte Beautiful

Our first project was the cleanup of the Boca Grande area around the mangroves, based off the results of Hurricane Ian. We spent our morning picking up debris like: Styrofoam, metal, foam, cigarette butts, plastic, and cans. The whole group of 13 volunteers filled 20 bags of trash during the cleanup. It was devastating seeing the number of hidden pieces of trash in the environment. However, it was refreshing seeing the kind and generous people trying to help this problem be solved, especially those who run Keep Charlotte Beautiful. It was also nice to spend time with everyone from Ryan Nece Foundation and begin building our relationship even stronger.

Group 1 – ACT (Abuse Counseling and Treatment)

For our second service project of the day, we went to was ACT (Abuse Counseling and Treatment). ACT offers a safe haven for domestic violence victims. We arrived at 1:00 PM and stayed until 4:00 PM. The emergency shelter was revamping the front area near the outside entrance. We helped weed and put down mulch in the front of the building.

We learned to increase motivation to keep going to finish the project, even though we were tired. At the end, we felt accomplished seeing the entrance being done. We felt happy knowing that we helped the shelter. ACT was very appreciative for us helping them and we were glad to help.

Group 2 – Charlotte County Habitat for Humanity

Today, we also went to help out Charlotte County Habitat for Humanity, which is a program helping people in need of financially affordable homes for them and their families. The families go through a process in order to be qualified for a home, and they work alongside the volunteers and Habitat for Humanity workers. Some of these qualifications include having financial stability for two years, which includes paying bills on time and having a stable income.

Habitat for Humanity makes it more affordable to live in a house by offering a 30-year mortgage plan with 0% interest. The organization made it clear to us that the home is never given away and the home stays with the homeowner even when Habitat for Humanity is no longer in the picture.

The homeowner who was there today said that with the financial support and extra money (that she will now have due to the affordable housing) she will be using it towards bringing her daughter new places with her fiancé. She wants to give her daughter experiences she did not get in her childhood. She also wants to go back to school. She will be able to save additional dollars to make both of these dreams a reality.

What we did today to help was install frames to make windows and added structural support to the sliding glass door frames. We also added hurricane clips to make sure a disaster like Hurricane Ian will not damage her house in any detrimental ways. Even with being in the heat, this project was very rewarding. Today required hard work and lots of manual labor, but it was exciting being able to work hands-on and gives us a whole new perspective on how many people we can help in just one day of volunteer service.