Greenwich Country Day School students learned firsthand about construction, home building, and the importance of affordable housing in January.
Fourteen students participated in Building with Purpose, an intensive course that is part of the High School’s 3-week Intersession, during which students immersed themselves deeply into a topic of their choice.
GCDS student volunteers worked with the Fuller Center to rebuild a house that was destroyed by flooding. Contributed photo
GCDS partnered with the Fuller Center for Housing of Greater New York City to restore a home that was in complete despair in Larchmont, NY, and then switched gears to focus on a multi-family new build project for a family whose home was destroyed by flooding in 2021 in Greenburgh, NY.
“We are building an army of volunteers, an army for good to help our neighbors stay in their houses,” said Jim Killoran, longtime Director of the Fuller Center. “We have an unrelenting quest to provide adequate shelter for those in need throughout the area.”
Before heading out for the job sites, students read the acclaimed book “Evicted,” by Matthew Desmond about poverty and the eviction cycle in Milwaukee through the stories of families. They also researched housing in different states to get a better understanding of the issue nationally.
“This project was a great way to build knowledge, empathy, and skills,” said Joe Perry, one of the faculty advisors of Building with Purpose.
Under the supervision of Fuller Center staff members, students learned how to install windows, use power tools, and measure, demolish, and reconstruct spaces.
“This was an entirely new experience for me–to build a house where somebody’s going to live, maybe have generations of people live in. It was very hands-on,” said Sophia Schwartz, who helps to run a GCDS service club to encourage ninth graders to participate in service projects. Sophia wants to start a Fuller Center Club at the school. The club will help fundraise for more renovations and continue the school’s relationship with the organization.
“We didn’t have to go to a different country to be able to make a difference. This project was the definition of bringing it back to home,” said Sophia.
As part of Intersession, the GCDS Center for Public Good partnered with many other community-based nonprofits including Greenwich Emergency Medical Services; Waterside School in Stamford, CT; Family Centers; Abilis, an organizational for developmentally disabled people; and a dozen organizations that tackle food insecurity (including Neighbor to Neighbor, Meals on Wheels, Person to Person, Filling in the Blanks) on a variety of service-related projects.