As the Lockport Journal reports, youth from around the country will be decending on the area this summer to help those in need. I remember these kids helped a Gasport woman a couple of years ago...
COMMUNITY SERVICE: Workcamp returns
Teens from across the country will flock to Lockport next summer as part of the Erie Canal Reach Workcamp.
Jim Haid of St. John’s Outreach, who acts as co-sponsor and coordinator, said organizers of the workcamp are excited to return to eastern Niagara County after taking a year off.
“Everyone said, ‘How about we have a summer off and catch our breath?’” he said. “Not that the need went away at all.” The camp, to be held from June 30 to July 4, brings teens from church groups and other organizations together to work on homes and improvement projects throughout the community. This includes roofing, painting, building wheelchair ramps and handrails, installing gutters, building porches and other projects.
The teens each pay $380 to take the trip. They will sleep in classrooms at Lockport High School, eating in the cafeteria there and playing in the gym during their time off. The workcamp hires LHS staff to help out, so the school district does not cover any of the cost, Haid said.“They are gracious enough to allow us to use their building,” he said.
The camp includes about 400 volunteers, including high school students and their adult leaders. There are also about 100 local volunteers helping out. The teens will be split up into crews of six, with one adult leader each, to do work at one site for the entire week.
Haid said they are accepting applications from local residents who need work done on their homes. The residents must be unable to do the work themselves and unable to afford to pay someone else to do the work, Haid said. Homeowners can be anywhere in eastern Niagara County. Every year, the group receives more than 100 applications, he said. “We wean those out,” he said. “We try and have enough work at one home that will last one week. We don’t want to have a crew move from house to house.”
The teens will then spend the bulk of their days at the site, meeting the residents and building friendships.
“What it boils down to is the relationship between the kids and the homeowner,” Haid said. “Obviously the work is important, but the relationship is just as important.”
The residents — many of whom are seniors — benefit from not only the work, but also the contact with the teens.
Haid said he admires the teens for their dedication to community service.“It’s amazing for these guys to do that, to take a week of their time, of their valuable summer vacation, and pay to help somebody,” he said. Anyone interested in applying to be part of the program should call Haid at 433-5252. All applications must be received by Feb. 1, 2008.
