The group woke up ready to start the day at our new site. After a quick stop at Starbucks, we
drove to the house we would be working on. We passed by some beautiful homes that appeared
to be unaffected by the tornados which struck Oklahoma last summer. However, we soon
transitioned into a neighborhood which appeared to be much more run down than the houses we
had just seen. Our group was surprised at how rapidly our surroundings changed from very
expensive homes to properties that had clearly not received some much needed attention. The
home we would be working on obviously required major maintenance. When we first arrived,
we met with Chris and Eric, who would serve as our guides for the day. Eric instructed those
who were not afraid of heights (myself included) to grab a crowbar and informed us that we
would be removing the old siding from the house. It seemed like a monstrous task that would
take the entire day or maybe longer, but once we had a clearer understanding of what we needed
to do, the job was done in no time. Eric explained to a couple of us that deconstruction was the
“dirty side” of Habitat for Humanity and required a little more improvisation than the
construction side, which we had worked on for the past two days. After our lunch break, we
began other miscellaneous projects while waiting for the new siding to arrive at the site. Once
the materials were delivered, we started to measure, place, and secure the new siding. I was very
impressed with how much we were able to accomplish in just a few hours at the house. We
cleaned up the site, loaded the tools back into the trucks, piled into our van, and drove back to
the church where we have been staying. I can’t believe that we only have one more day
volunteering with Habitat for Humanity and one more full day in Oklahoma City. I’ve had so
much fun with my group, and the time has gone by so fast!
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