November 2017

The semester is drawing to an end, and the weather cools with each passing day. The climate is very pleasant this time of year, and I am beginning to wonder if winter will ever come to New Orleans. Classes are going well, and we are moving onto the brain and behavior block, for which I am very excited. As I am writing this, I am relaxing after another long day of work on a Habitat for Humanity build site. Today I was tasked with completing a staircase, building a stand for the AC unit, installing the remainder floorboards and quarter rounds, and helping a group of high-school students dig out the driveway and front walk. Also, the stove and refrigerator came today. This was the first house I have worked on that was in such a complete state. Previously I had mostly been helping on houses that were still in their inception. It was a treat to see the nearly finished product, with the counter-tops, cabinets and appliances installed. The homes that we work on turn out to be surprisingly high quality, given that countless untrained volunteers are the ones constructing the house. I believe this result can be attributed to the care and effort volunteers work with, and it is a service to which I am proud to belong. Furthermore, these builds are making me feel more like a part of this community, a community that I have enjoyed serving.

Volunteer hours: 8
Total hours: 24

October 2017

This month has been another great month at Tulane. Classes are going well, and fall has arrived with cooler temperatures and breezy, clear sky days. Fortunately, our intramural volley ball team has started to find success with victories in our past two games. Intramurals have been a great way to blow off some steam and relax at the end of the day, and is something I look forward to every week. I volunteered with Habitat for Humanity once again, this time on the construction of a new house. There were many volunteers that day (about 30) and we got a lot of work done. One volunteer that was great to work with was the future homeowner himself. He is a musician, and this house was being built near some of his friends, who he had performed alongside with for several years. This corner is a musician’s paradise. It was just nice to meet the person who I was volunteering for and to work alongside him, allowing me to associate a face with the house that I was working to help build. This truly made me feel that I was making a direct impact on someone’s life. Hopefully our paths will cross again in the future.

Volunteer hours: 8
Total Hours: 16