Scott Lillard saws trimming to be used on a ramshackle home in Florida. Lillard, along with other members of City Year, rebuilt the home during his spring break.
Photograph courtesy of Yasmin Mistry
Students spend spring break building hope
By Jennifer Zhang
Hanging doors and drywalling are not most college students' favorite spring break activities. But that is not the case with Scott Lillard from De Anza College. He participated in these and many other tasks to help a migrant farmworker community in Florida. Lillard says he had a wonderful spring break-not only did he have fun, but he also received more than he gave.
Lillard and eight other San Jose college students joined City Year San Jose/ Silicon Valley, a national service organization, on its first even San Jose Area Alternative Spring Break trip March 24 to 31 to Pasco County, Fla. They would renovate housing units as well as help local minority children. According to City Year, the goal of the trip was to "empower San Jose college students through social consciousness, education and outreach."
Lillard first heard about this trip from his mother. He said he thought it was a great way to spend his spring break. Lillard's reasons were simple--the trip offers him an opportunity to help others as well as a chance to learn something new. He turned in his application at the San Jose City Year office and soon after became a member of the team.
The team of nine students-from De Anza College, San Jose City College and San Jose State University-and six City Year employees then went through weekly training sessions to learn and prepare for work most of them had never done before. The training sessions were offered to them by City Year's sponsor, Home Depot in Sunnyvale. On three consecutive Saturdays, the team learned skills such as painting and laying tiles.
No training could have prepared Lillard for what he saw when he arrived at the work site-a duplex transitional housing unit in "horrible" condition.
"It looked like it had been abandoned for centuries. I didn't think any work could save the house," said Lillard.
The many serious problems the team faced included broken doors and old paint and ceilings.
The house is owned by Farmworkers Self-Help, an organization that aids the Pasco County migrant community with its clinic, learning center, thrift store and other services. This duplex was provided as free temporary housing to farmworkers in the community. The organization hosted Lillard and his teammates and was very glad that they were able to help.
From March 25 to 28, Lillard and his team renovated the house. For nine to ten hours each day and four days in a row, they scraped off old paint, scrubbed the surface, and applied a fresh layer of new paint and drywall. They also took out the old doors and hung new ones.
It was a lot of work, especially to inexperienced people like Lillard and his teammates. But the hard work was all paid off at the end of their four working days. "We were all amazed at the changes we made," Lillard said. "The horrible place we first saw had been transformed into a beautiful duplex. I was so happy."
The renovation was complete, but their work was far from being done. On their fifth day, they worked with local children in a diversity workshop. They discussed important issues and problems in these children's lives-issues such as drugs, racial prejudice and education.
"It was a very rewarding experience for me and I am sure for others as well," Lillard said. "I learned more about these kids. It opened up my eyes to many things, such as racism. It helped me to better understand others."
On their last day there, they took the children to the Busch Gardens amusement park.
"[The park] is only 45 minutes away, but the kids had never been there because they couldn't afford it. We all had a wonderful time together," said Yasmin Mistry, a supervisor with City Year.
"I am glad that I went. I developed a better understanding of a lot of things," Lillard said. "It put me in other people's shoes and I was able to see things in different ways. I learned so much. I wouldn't trade it for anything."
"[The experience] was helpful to students," Mistry added. "It gave them a chance to help and learn about new things. We met wonderful people."
City Year is currently working on next year's spring break trip. For more information about other City Year programs, log on to www.cityyear.org or call 408.907.6500.
Cupertino, California Since 1947
