It is the 20th anniversary of our annual WorkFest event. Every March, we gear up for our annual WorkFest event, during which over 400 wonderful college students will spend their spring breaks repairing and rebuilding homes in Appalachia. Our participants live on meager incomes and do not have the resources to heat their homes efficiently or to repair them. Many homes in the region have out dated wiring (if they have electricity at all); leaky roofs; rotted flooring; thin, un-insulated windows, doors and walls; and no running water. Many of the people living in these homes are forced to use old wood or coal stoves to heat their homes during the cold winter months. In addition to helping these people in need through home repairs, the students also provide friendships to those living in isolated areas. Please read the blog below to learn about the volunteer experience and the participants involved in WorkFest.

This Final Week was Especially Rewarding

Kerri:
This past week has been amazing! It is incredible to watch an entire addition grow before one’s eyes in a mere four days. At the beginning of this week there were a few concrete blocks lying on the ground, and, on Thursday, there was a 12' x 24' addition with walls and a metal roof. I was blown away by the amount of work that was accomplished by my crew in this final week.  Wonderful leadership, patience, strangers becoming friends, and passionate hearts made everything possible. I was really inspired by my crew on Wednesday when they did not mind a bit to arrive late for dinner in order to get the tresses completed for the roof.

This final week was especially rewarding because the three children whose house we are repairing were home for spring break. They were able to spend the entire week with us, and it was truly a blessing to me. I was inspired by the willingness of these children to help us build the addition. One of the highlights of the week was when Raylon, who is six, did not want to watch us build her bedroom, but wanted to help. She spent the rest of the week alongside us, hammering nails like a pro. It was great to see everyone's reactions at the end of each day as the house continued to be transformed. The most rewarding part of the week was Thursday afternoon, because the entire family was sitting on their new front porch, which we had completed the previous week. It was really nice to see them all gathered together, shooting the breeze, and enjoying their new porch.  It is really easy to become frustrated with all the nails that bend, the long hours, the ridiculous weather, and the sometimes slow progress, but all of that is worth it when you get to see the smiles on people's faces that you have grown to love.

Leah:
When I went out the other day to see the Abners, all they could talk about was how thankful and happy they were with all the work that had been done on their homes and how they were really touched by all the students and crew leaders they had met. Kathy's two-year old daughter still talks about the students and misses playing with them, but her mother's pictures of everyone should make her feel less sad about them leaving. By the third week, the crews had finished fixing Jack Abner's roof and put together a beautiful porch for him and his wife, which the couple absolutely loves. Kathy's daughter also loves it, and her mother helped her put her hand-print in the concrete just before it dried, which was a nice touch to the already beautiful porch. After they finished with Jack's home, they moved on to Kathy's house, putting on a new roof and fixing the floor in the kitchen. Kathy just could not stop talking about how thankful she was for all the hard work that was put into the homes, how considerate and thoughtful the students were toward her and her family, and just how much fun they had working with the students. She could not have done it on her own, and she felt that God had blessed her to give her the opportunity to be part of WorkFest.

Sometimes during volunteer work, we are told by our participants how happy and thankful they are that we were able to help them, and we appreciate the thanks, but how much of an impact we had on our participants' lives does not always sink in. During WorkFest, the students were amazing. And I mean it: AMAZING! They took the time and money to come down to Kentucky, worked really hard all day in the sun (although there was some great food from the participants, so that helped!), and then at the end of the day came together to pray and discuss their work with the rest of their college group. They may brush it off, saying it was their pleasure and that they had just as much fun and more from the whole experience and that is great and really self-less of them. But I really want to emphasize that most people their age do not come down to a strange place to work during their vacation when they could be doing lots of other things, like catching up on work or hanging with their friends. I hope they know that even though they are gone, they literally put roofs over people's heads to keep them warm and dry. When the participants go to sleep at night and look up at the ceiling from their beds, those students put that there, and it will be there for years to come.

They have made these homes look beautiful and have given our participants something to feel proud about and a place to raise a family in. These three weeks have been hard and tiring, and to be honest, we are all still going to bed at 7p.m. just to recover. But I cannot say enough how WorkFest has really made an impact on the lives of the people here in Kentucky—and it all comes from the idea of self-less love. Love is what called these students here, love is what the students gave when they put all their energy into repairing the homes, love is what the participants gave back when they opened their hearts and minds to the students, and love is what remains when all the work is done and the students have to go back to their campuses and resume their studies. We still feel that love here in Kentucky, and because of love, we will continue to do the work that God needs done in the lives of the people who live here. I hope you see WorkFest as a message of love and that you continue to pray for the people here as well as all the students, the long-term volunteers who worked with them, the volunteer crew leaders who took time out of their lives (and jobs) to come serve with the students, and especially all the staff who have been working year-round to ensure that this message of love is heard and felt for years to come. Thank you so much for reading this blog and for praying for us during these past three weeks. Much love from Kentucky!

A Life-Changing Experience

My name is Leah Coughlan, and I am a long term-volunteer with CAP’s Family Advocacy program in Clay County. During WorkFest another Family Advocacy volunteer and I are runners for the WorkFest sites in Clay County. As a runner, it is my job to travel to each site and see if the crews need any building supplies picked up at the store. Because some of the sites are a good distance away from Manchester, it’s easier for us to go out and get supplies so that the workers can continue repairing homes instead of taking an hour out of their day to pick up one thing. We do runs on Mondays and Tuesdays, while the rest of the week we return to our offices to do our normal program work.

Going to the different sites week after week has allowed me to see the amazing progression of the work that the volunteers are doing. At the Bradey’s home this past week, I saw the volunteers complete the entire front porch from start to finish in about one day! It looks amazing, and everyone who worked on it was so proud of their work and excited to have learned how to build an entire porch with the help of Kerri and the other crew leaders. The crew also put a roof on the front porch and tore down the car port to make room for a new addition that will allow six-year-old Riley her own room for the first time. I am really excited to see how it all looks when the job is completed!

Another site I am doing runs for is the home of the Arnetts’, who are an elderly couple that live next door to their daughter and two-year-old granddaughter. The house received new windows, and new siding, and they were beginning to work on their roof the last time that I checked in. The couple has been really happy having all the college students at their home, and every time that we visit, they are outside with them watching all the great work they are doing on the house. The daughter is actually a participant of mine through Family Advocacy; we signed her up to participate in our Small Farms and Gardens program. She has been helping her father out more on his farm for the last few years since he has grown older, and we are helping them by providing seeds and plants for his small farm. Being able to grow a garden is really valuable, especially on a fixed income, because it provides a family with their own fresh vegetables that can be canned and saved throughout the year. Not only is it financially smart, but also sustainable, healthy and something many people in Clay County have been doing for generations to provide food for their families. I am really excited to be working with them on their farm and to see all the great work being done on their home.

Both families have been extremely hospitable towards the WorkFest volunteers and crew leaders, making them delicious food and spending time with them. One of the best things that volunteers take away from this whole experience is that they get to see into the lives of the people they are serving, and our participants have been really generous about opening their homes and hearts to these volunteers. People who might never have met under normal circumstances are now learning from each other, sharing meals with each other, and just spending time getting to know each other. These volunteers are having such life-changing experiences that you can see it on their faces, from their wide-grinning smiles to the energy they put into their work each day. The participants are having a great time being with the volunteers as well and are very grateful for the time and work being spent repairing their homes. The impact that is being made does not begin and end with these homes. Not only are the volunteers, home owners, and even the communities here changed by the experience of WorkFest, but when the students leave here and return to their classrooms and friends, they will talk about all the work they did and all the people they served. Hopefully that will ripple into more young people (and even their parents) becoming more aware of the people of Appalachia and the work that still needs to be done here. That will inspire more people to give their time to come here or anywhere to serve the people. I am really proud of all the amazing work that all the crews of WorkFest week two were able to accomplish, and I had a great time meeting the students and talking with them. I am looking forward to meeting all the new volunteers during our last week of workFest and to seeing all over again the excitement and joy they’ll experience while here in Kentucky!

An Eclectic Family - The Yellow Team - Comes Together to Serve

The first week of WorkFest is officially complete!  As all of the students were departing Friday morning for their respective colleges, I thought about our progress throughout the week. We all came together as the "Yellow Crew" on Sunday, our first night.  The 11 members of our team were mostly strangers from different parts of the United States.  Some of us had a few months experience in home repair, but many of us had never even used a power tool before.  We were off to a slow start on Monday, as we ran into some difficulties with replacing windows in the home we’re repairing. As we grew more comfortable with one another and the work we were doing, we became an eclectic family who could laugh and joke with one another as the week rolled along.

Things began to pick up on Tuesday and Wednesday once the sun came out.  We successfully replaced seven windows and tore down all of the siding from the house.  We received great instruction from the crew leaders as well as from several returning students. It was amazing to see people step up and take on leadership roles.  For one student, Alex, this was his fifth experience working with C.A.P.  He had volunteered for WorkFest last year, and he had also participated in YouthFest, which is the high school version of WorkFest. Alex was incredibly encouraging to his other crew members as he worked on the roof and helped cut lumber.  Alex told me that he would love to come back next year for year number six. It was also incredible to see how confident some of the students were at the end of the week. I worked with a freshman, Valerie, who told me that she had never picked up a power tool.  At the end of the week, she had replaced three windows and was a master at using the drill gun.  Overall, the crew was able to replace all of the windows in the house, tear down the old siding, add an overhang to the roof, and put up J channel and fanfold insulation around the exterior of the house.  My entire crew was disappointed when it was time to go home on Thursday because we wanted to spend more time at the house working with the Bradey family.

It was amazing to see how affected the students were by the family we were serving. The Bradey family, who reside in Clay County, were extremely welcoming to all of us strangers on Monday morning. Jim, the father of the family, was outside helping us as much as he physically could. Rita, the mother of three, and her mother were also willing to talk to us and constantly encouraged us on cold days to come in and warm up inside.  Rita and Jim said they felt really blessed to have us at their house to do repairs.  Rita told me that she would miss all of the students who left at the end of the week.  It is always encouraging to hear how much people appreciate your help, but I think our crew got more out of the experience than the Bradey’s did! We were able to form relationships with a special family in a short period of time, we privileged to work side-by-side them, we had full bellies after a delicious meal on Thursday afternoon, and we were shown love by individuals who didn't know us at the beginning of the week. Of course, the work that we complete is an important component of the WorkFest experience, but I think the lessons and values you learn from the individuals you meet during these few days is far more valuable and the best part of the trip.

20 Years of WorkFest - The Anticipation!

For the past several weeks, I, along with a crew leader and another long-term volunteer, have been measuring windows and doors (practicing our rusty math skills!) placing orders at building supply companies, meeting several lovely families, and anxiously anticipating one of the most talked about events at the Christian Appalachian Project. What is it, you may ask?  WorkFest! Every March hundreds of college students take time away from the books and venture down to eastern Kentucky during their spring breaks to help repair homes for families on fixed incomes. This year is unique because it is the 20th anniversary of WorkFest. Over the next three weeks, there will be close to 400 students traveling hundreds of miles to help repair eight houses in three counties of eastern Appalachia. The students will be delegated to a specific crew during their week stay, which will consist of at least one main crew leader and a long-term housing volunteer. Each student will be challenged to step outside their comfort zone as they are exposed to an area and way of living that may be very different from the one they grew up in. Not only that, but many will be using power tools for the first time!

I am extremely anxious to see the college students arrive on Sunday afternoon because I was in their shoes exactly four years ago. I attended WorkFest when I was a sophomore in college. I had never been to Kentucky, never used a hammer (let alone a power tool), never been on a roof, and never been surrounded by so many devout Christians. I was absolutely changed because of the four-and-a-half days I spent in Appalachia. The participants I served helped show me what it really means to be happy. The crew and other students showed me what it meant to praise the Lord with full and grateful hearts. The repair work raised my confidence and showed me that I can serve others in ways I thought impossible before. Most importantly, I found God.

I cannot wait to meet the many students who will be here simply because they want to serve others and praise the Lord. It is somewhat hard to explain what can happen during those few short days, but when it happens, it is magical. Not only are houses being repaired, but strong ties of friendship are being formed, confidence is being discovered and boosted, and love is being shared. I know that these next few weeks are going to be a challenge with early mornings, late nights, sore muscles, and pure exhaustion, but I am up for the challenge.