While wonderful weather is not especially newsworthy, the members of Habitat for Humanity and a few other campus organizations were especially thankful for it this past Saturday, while they busied themselves building shacks in Sturges quad for sleeping in that night.
Habitat, along with members of the Psychology Club, the Sociology Club and the Outing Club held a Shack-a-Thon to raise money towards building a house for an under-privileged family in Avon. The event began at 7 p.m. Saturday and lasted until 7 a.m Sunday.
In addition to raising money, senior Becky Meissner, the Advocacy Chair of Habitat, encouraged others to write letters to United States House of Representative member Brian Higgins (D – NY) in support of the Shelter, Land and Urban Management (SLUM) Act of 2011. The bill will soon be presented to the House of Representatives for debate.
“The bill would help to make acquiring sustainable housing easier, provide easy access to clean water and improve the infrastructure of communities most in need of quality housing, both here in America and abroad,” Meissner said.
At the event, each club competed against one another to build the best shack with the winner getting pride and the best place to stay for the night. Only tape, cardboard boxes and other scarce resources were used to construct the shelters. While there were murmurs of a rivalry between the Psychology and Sociology Clubs, the Outing Club seemed best suited for the task. Indeed, their well-built shack equipped with a tarp appeared almost as appealing as a bed.
“Habitat’s a great organization, and to be able to support them and at the same time camp out in the quad for the night is a great Saturday activity to say the least,” said senior Nathan Reyor, a member of the Outing Club. Many other participants seemed just as enthused to stay the night, although there was some doubt as to whether sleep was realistic.
By the end of the night – in reality, Sunday morning – Habitat had raised over $300 and the Psychology Club came out as the shack-building victors. The shack was equipped with a makeshift door and “porch light,” a flashlight taped onto cardboard. Although each of the provisional houses was impressive, only about 10 people were able to sleep through the night, a testament to the message Habitat is trying to communicate: quality housing is a huge issue both locally and abroad, and the need to provide adequate shelter for those in need is greater than ever.
“We believe everyone deserves access to affordable, decent shelter,” said senior Kathleen Delargy, president of Habitat. She explained that inadequate housing affects not only the people residing in it, but also causes community-wide problems such as increased crime, higher high school dropout rates and many health concerns.
“Owning a home can affect many different facets of a person’s life,” Delargy continued. “It can change it and improve it in so many different ways.”