Source: VEGlobal Voluntarios de la Esperanza
Date: Thursday, July 2, 2009
Author: Admin

Harvard students and VEGlobal volunteer paint hallway during Repair Day

On June 19, a dedicated group of Harvard and VEGlobal volunteers braved an icy Winter downpour to perform Repair Day home improvement projects at two of VE’s partner institutions. The two institutions—Mi Club Domingo Savio and El Jardín el Canelo—gladly welcomed the 20 Harvard volunteers, whose participation was made possible by the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies’ (DRCLAS) Regional Office in Chile.

The  group of volunteers working at Domingo Savio collectively sanded and painted the institution’s highest traffic indoor areas—three classrooms and a hallway. Across town, the Jardín team worked to spruce up the outside of the institution, constructing a small ramp to help transport materials in and out of the building. They also sanded, sealed and painted two exterior walls and then painted the institution’s porch and railings. All these undertakings were managed and supervised by VEGlobal volunteers as part of our Repair Day program, which gives corporate and community supporters the chance to sponsor manual improvement projects at our partner institutions.

Repair Day volunteers also got a chance to learn a bit about the institutions and spend some time with the people who bring them to life. Steve Reifenberg, Program Director of DRCLAS-Chile, and former volunteer at Domingo Savio, led a question and answer session with the current volunteers and staff of Domingo Savio, giving the Harvard volunteers a sense of the community center’s day-to-day activities. And over at the Jardín, the students were given a tour of the institution and its surrounding neighborhood—a shantytown inhabited by over 1,000 families.

Although the frigid rain posed some challenges—flooded streets, wet walls, drenched clothing and mud galore—both teams completed their projects with a smile and came away with a warm sense of satisfaction.

Thank you to DRCLAS-Chile for helping to better the surroundings of the children with whom we work. Your hard work really paid off!

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