Alternative Spring Break Trips
While his fellow students were lying on beaches, lounging around the house or maybe even catching up on homework, Andrew Gaeckle, a third-year international studies student, traveled to our nation’s capital to help the homeless.
Gaeckle, along with 11 other students, spent Spring Break 2008 in Washington, D.C., volunteering their time and energy helping the homeless, the elderly and the low-income population.
“It’s a bonding experience for students,” Gaeckle said. “It’s completely different than the average spring break trip.”
The trip was organized by Carolina Service Council, a campus organization that has been around since 2004 and has sent students on trips like this in the past. Gaeckle, who serves as the director for alternative breaks with CSC, said that trips like this are becoming more and more common.
“I think a lot of students have gone on trips again,” Gaeckle said. “It’s definitely a growing trend.”
Groups like Break Away and Habitat for Humanity as well as student organizations like Carolina Service Council work to send students on service trips that are fun, affordable and convenient.
Far and Away
Since Spring Break provides the opportunity for more than just a weekend away, many students chose to plan trips -- both to volunteer and just to relax -- outside of the U.S.
The Methodist Student network organizes many service trips to various locations throughout the year, but Wall said that they often try to go abroad for Spring Break. This year, the Methodist Student Network went to Peru to build homes and a school for street children. Last year, they went to Venezuela. Wall said that one of the most meaningful parts of the trip is getting to know the native culture workers are trying to help. “Visiting with people is important,” Wall said. “A lot of these trips are about spending time with people and building up lives.”
Wall said students will often come back and give away material possessions or spend less time using things they previously thought were important, like the social networking site Facebook.
“I think the change in people’s lives in pretty dramatic,” Wall said. “Many students say this experience is life changing. Even how you think of the United States is changed by talking to people.”
However, according to Michelle Hahn, program advisor with Carolina Service Council, trips overseas require more time, money and planning than local excursions. “A lot of people fundraise – they send letters to friends and family asking for money,” Hahn said. “It does take a lot of work to plan a service trip”
Oftentimes, alternative spring break trips emphasize simplicity and a lack of material comforts.
“We try to go where it’s fairy simple,” Wall said. “We may or may not have hot water; last year we slept in hammocks.” However, Wall emphasized that alternative spring break trips, especially longer trips that travel farther, are not for everyone.
“Some people will feel comfortable, sometimes they will not. Some people want something more touristy,” Wall said. “This is not meant to be an alternative to Cancun.”
Wall said that while the MSN is a faith-based organization, they are not trying to evangelize the people they help. Non-Methodists and international students often participate in the trips as well.
“This is not a coercive sort of trip, it’s not a missionary activity,” Wall said. “And a number of people outside of the group go.”
Going Local
There are many options for service in our own country. Hahn took a group of students to John’s Island over Fall Break to work with Sea Island Habitat for Humanity, building houses for low-income families. “It’s a very valuable experience for students, faculty and staff to take a trip away from campus,” Hahn said. “There’s team building and the extended opportunity to serve.”
Hahn said that some students came on the trip with friends, while others came alone. However, by the end of the trip everyone had gotten to know one another. “We worked during the day, and then had time at night to play cards and hang out,” Hahn said. “We were living together, so we cooked meals together and got to know each other.”
Hahn said that there was a wide range of skill levels between students, and, in several cases, no skill at all. “One student had very little construction background, but by the end of the trip, she was on top of the roof hammering shingles,” Hahn said.
The group worked on several houses during the trip, and Hahn recalls meeting a Hispanic family who would be moving into one of them. “They spoke mostly Spanish, and one of our students was double majoring in Spanish and something else -- maybe business -- and she got to speak with them,” Hahn said.
Another region in the country that has been a popular spot for service trips is New Orleans. Reverend Tom Wall, the program adviser, said that the tragedy of Hurricane Katrina has inspired many trips, including some of his.
Wall said the church group has gone on mission trips to New Orleans six times since Hurricane Katrina, most recently over Christmas break. Students participated in sheet rocking, painting and cleanup, depending on skill level.
After Hurricane Katrina, Student Government paid to send 109 students to Biloxi, Miss., the largest service trip in Carolina Service Council’s history. In 2006, Gaeckle and some other CSC students went to a very rural coal mining town in West Virginia with 11 students and worked on construction for low-income people.
This Spring Break, Carolina Service Council took students to Washington, D.C., to help the homeless, the elderly and victims of poverty. The trip cost around $100. Gaeckle said they normally try to keep them under $200.
Hahn said that local trips are a good option for students who are short on money. The Johns Island trip, for example, cost $75 including food. Gaeckle said that the most important part of alternative break trips is service, not tourism, but that students can still take advantage of the places they travel. “I’m working with a couple of people to go talk to delegates,” Gaeckle said. “Hopefully we’ll also go on a White House tour.”
Gaeckle said the Washington group will take USC’s van, the “Rooster Roadster,” and will be staying in a church, sleeping in cots. “We definitely don’t have the same amenities you have in a hotel.”
Like other trips, students don’t have to have any training to participate. “You don’t need any prior skill,” Gaeckle said. “We do a lot of building projects because then you get to see the finished project, and that’s a lot of joy for students to see.”
Get Involved
While it is too late to go on this year’s Carolina Service Council trip to Washington D.C. or the Methodist Student Network trip to Peru, there are many other ways for students to volunteer their time, both during Spring Break and year-round. Programs like Break Away and Habitat for Humanity help students plan Spring Break service getaways.
Alynn Woodson, the associate director for youth programs with Habitat for Humanity, said that students in groups of five or more people can sign up for the Collegiate Challenge, a program that sends students to work at Habitat for Humanity sites around the country.
Habitat for Humanity provides service opportunities and housing for a $15 program fee as well as a contribution between $10 to $200. Spring Break is the busiest time of year for the program. Students can register as late as a month before they would like to go.
“Programs like the Collegiate Challenge really allow students to get out of the mindset of learning through books and a classroom,” Woodson said. “It often has a rare impact on students.”
Samantha Giacobozzi, programs director with Break Away, said the program offers resources and tools for partner schools to plan alternative Spring Breaks. While USC used to have a chapter, it currently does not. If students wanted to get involved, they should email breakaway@alternativebreaks.org
“I think alternative breaks are gook for a lot of reasons,” Giacobozzi said. “They allow for a lot of learning opportunities.” Carolina Service Council is another resource for student volunteering.
“Service is something different for everyone, there are so many types,” Gaeckle said. “You just have to find something that drives you, something of a passion.”
While members of the executive board of CSC, like Gaeckle, have to be elected, a general board meets every other Tuesday in Russell House room 303. These meetings are open to any interested students. Lasheena Caudle, a second-year early childhood education student, said that community service is important to her. “You should always give back to the community,” Caudle said.
Hahn encourages students to get involved. “It’s a personal commitment and a personal choice,” Hahn said. “I would hope students would choose an alternative break – it’s a great way to connect with others. Take a chance on something different.”
Students can find out more information about community service opportunities both local and international by going to the Carolina Service Council Web site at http://www.sa.sc.edu/communityservice/csc/index.htm.
