To many college students the phrase ‘spring break’ denotes a tranquil week at home, a trip on a cruise, hardcore partying, sunbathing on a beach, or simply a small break before the onslaught of post-spring break due dates and tests. JMU, like many other colleges, also offers alternative spring breaks- a chance for students to volunteer and be productive in their time off. In the following weeks college students will flood the popular spring break hotspots and drink and dance the vacation away. However, it seems that the Millennial generation (born between 1980-2000) is gradually becoming more interested in volunteer trips or even split volunteer/vacation trips. These trips are an alternative to breaks that revolve solely around blitzing livers and stumbling intoxicated down the streets of Cancun or Ft. Lauderdale.
I decided to forgo a spring break at home, and opted for a volunteer trip instead. A friend of mine and her boyfriend organized a trip down to New Orleans for a small group of friends. They had researched various non-profits in New Orleans and decided upon LowerNine.Org. We stayed in an unfinished house, which was actually the headquarters of sorts for the organization. There were permanent volunteers there, people who either had a background in construction or who picked it up on the job. There were also temporary volunteers. During this week, there were 4 volunteers from William and Mary, 2 from University of Virginia, and 15 from Notre Dame.
Every morning, each volunteer group was assigned a different project at a house in the Lower Ninth District of New Orleans. The work varied from project to project. The JMU group worked on the house we were staying in and mostly did sanding of dry wall, spackling (or as they called it in the deep south “mudding”), priming, painting, and various odd jobs. Other groups had house gutting and clean up duty.
Since I shared a room with the William and Mary volunteers, I became fairly acquainted with them. They did what I referred to as the volunteer/vacation trip. They were in New Orleans only for a couple days, but they worked hard while they were there doing various projects, like cleaning out an old attic. Midweek they left Louisiana and headed down to enjoy Daytona and the Sunshine state. It seemed like an interesting combination. Our group stayed the whole week, however we also combined work and play. From 9-5 we rolled up our sleeves and were available to do whatever task was assigned to us. At night we dined on Cajun cuisine, French beignets, and strolled down Bourbon street. We contributed to the reconstruction effort and enjoyed ourselves in the process.
I believe the Millennial generation recognizes the need for service. It is more common to hear students doing study abroad in off the beaten path locations like in Africa and South America. I certainly recognize this desire to help people among my circle of friends. As a senior, it was also nice to finally be able to go down to New Orleans, considering Hurricane Katrina hit at the beginning of my sophomore year. So while spring break may still mean booze cruises or downtime at home to some, and hey to each his own, to others it means a chance to give back. It would be nice though, if service and the ability to recognize those in need was the legacy of the Millennial generation.
I decided to forgo a spring break at home, and opted for a volunteer trip instead. A friend of mine and her boyfriend organized a trip down to New Orleans for a small group of friends. They had researched various non-profits in New Orleans and decided upon LowerNine.Org. We stayed in an unfinished house, which was actually the headquarters of sorts for the organization. There were permanent volunteers there, people who either had a background in construction or who picked it up on the job. There were also temporary volunteers. During this week, there were 4 volunteers from William and Mary, 2 from University of Virginia, and 15 from Notre Dame.
Every morning, each volunteer group was assigned a different project at a house in the Lower Ninth District of New Orleans. The work varied from project to project. The JMU group worked on the house we were staying in and mostly did sanding of dry wall, spackling (or as they called it in the deep south “mudding”), priming, painting, and various odd jobs. Other groups had house gutting and clean up duty.
Since I shared a room with the William and Mary volunteers, I became fairly acquainted with them. They did what I referred to as the volunteer/vacation trip. They were in New Orleans only for a couple days, but they worked hard while they were there doing various projects, like cleaning out an old attic. Midweek they left Louisiana and headed down to enjoy Daytona and the Sunshine state. It seemed like an interesting combination. Our group stayed the whole week, however we also combined work and play. From 9-5 we rolled up our sleeves and were available to do whatever task was assigned to us. At night we dined on Cajun cuisine, French beignets, and strolled down Bourbon street. We contributed to the reconstruction effort and enjoyed ourselves in the process.
I believe the Millennial generation recognizes the need for service. It is more common to hear students doing study abroad in off the beaten path locations like in Africa and South America. I certainly recognize this desire to help people among my circle of friends. As a senior, it was also nice to finally be able to go down to New Orleans, considering Hurricane Katrina hit at the beginning of my sophomore year. So while spring break may still mean booze cruises or downtime at home to some, and hey to each his own, to others it means a chance to give back. It would be nice though, if service and the ability to recognize those in need was the legacy of the Millennial generation.
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