In some areas of Appalachia, up to 16.8% of homes are classified as substandard, that’s approximately 1 in every 6 homes.  Poverty’s vicious cycle is one that often leaves housing repairs at the bottom of the priority list.  As families use their limited resources on immediate needs such as food and clothing, the costly home repairs continue to be neglected.  Often these old homes have been passed down from generation to generation and as the roof decays, floors wear, walls corrode, and windows leak, the idea of restoration becomes more and more overwhelming.
Christian Appalachian Project offers a solution in its annual WorkFest program.       
WorkFest is CAP’s alternative spring break for groups of college students. The event attracts more than 400 students from 40 different colleges and universities each March. At WorkFest, students serve in teams to repair substandard housing and build new homes for low-income families in eastern Kentucky.  
This year, WorkFest took place from March 7th to 25th.  For three weeks, teams of college students worked tirelessly on many Appalachian homes repairing roofs, replacing windows and floors, hanging drywall and painting.
One of these was the home of Alice Wagner.  Alice is 59 and has lived on Briar Branch Road for 40 years.  Her husband, Henry, would pass by their home on the way to school and always dreamed of purchasing it.  One day, after saving enough from his work at the coal mine, he did. They had lived in the home 29 years when Henry passed away Christmas of 2000.  Alice and Henry raised six children, and have one grandchild.  Since Henry’s passing, Alice has been unable to fix the home in the ways Henry was usually able to do.
When CAP became aware of the condition of her home, Alice was immediately added to the list for WorkFest.  Her home would not hold in heat due to the lack of insulation.  Winters were treacherous for her.
During WorkFest, volunteers added studs inside her house and a much-needed layer of insulation.  They also replaced the roof, windows, doors, floors, and made porch repairs.
Alice has a peaceful and quiet nature and rarely spoke to the college students or the CAP staff.  But, during the Family Appreciation Dinner, in which the families who have received home repairs offer their thanks and appreciation to the college students, Alice got up in front of the crowd, played her guitar and sang Amazing Grace.  This simple act of gratitude brought the students to tears.
WorkFest changes lives, sometimes it’s in the most unexpected ways—not just because of a home being repaired, but it’s the knowledge that someone out there, even a college student from across the country, cares about one, individual woman living on Briar Branch Road in eastern Kentucky.