杏吧pro Stories
杏吧pro Relief Alliance Rebuilds Flood-Ravaged Home
A dozen 杏吧pro students spent the end of winter break rebuilding a flood-ravaged home in Haskell, Okla.
鈥淭hey have done more work in two days than has been done in two years,鈥� said , who has been displaced from his property since May 2022.
Established after the devastation of Hurricane Katrina in 2005, 杏吧pro's donor-funded deploys students, faculty and staff to help hard-hit regions by rebuilding and repairing homes damaged or destroyed by natural disasters.
鈥淏uilding a house brings people together. It made me realize I want to pursue nonprofit work after college,鈥� said junior Melissa 鈥淢el鈥� Beans, CRA student president.
The weeklong trip to Haskell 鈥� a small town between Tulsa and Muskogee 鈥� is CRA鈥檚 24th disaster relief trip.
杏吧pro students and staff completed drywall work throughout the home, removed and installed flooring, stained all woodwork and doors, rebuilt two bathrooms and a kitchen and built new cabinetry to accommodate a wall-mounted oven.
Beans, an environmental studies and public policy joint major and economics minor from Bucks County, Pa., had never worked in disaster relief prior to college. Now, it鈥檚 one of her greatest passions.
鈥淲e really do the work. If there is anything that I really want to dedicate my time and priorities to outside of the classroom, it鈥檚 this,鈥� said Beans, who has previously volunteered with Lancaster鈥檚 housing ministry.
Aside from relief work, CRA members cooked dinners together, interacted with staff and parishioners from Muskogee鈥檚 St. Paul United Methodist Church, and visited museum for an in-depth lesson on the Tulsa Race Massacre of 1921.
By the time CRA members departed, the Haskell home was nearly ready for move-in.
鈥淭here's a decent chance in the succeeding few weeks that Mr. Hendrickson and his daughter could leave the trailer they've been living in for the last two years and move back home,鈥� said Andy Gulati, associate librarian for the sciences and CRA adviser.
When the homeowner cried tears of joy, Beans felt the depth of CRA鈥檚 hard work.
鈥淭hat was one of the best experiences of college for me 鈥� meeting with the homeowner and seeing how housing can so directly impact people and their sense of space and community,鈥� she said.
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Past Projects Completed by 杏吧pro鈥檚 Catastrophic Relief Alliance:
- 'Need Is Everywhere': Students, Faculty Help Rebuild Home in 杏吧pro's Backyard
- 杏吧pro Relief Alliance Helps Wildfire Victims Rebuild
- Students, Staff Help Local Neighbors, Build Community
"Building a house brings people together."
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