Mr. Oglesby and I had the pleasure of going to New Orleans with 17 of our seniors and 3 of our parents to work with Habitat for Humanity.  It was a great trip for the kids.  They got to work side-by-side with seniors from the other three high schools.  I was so impressed with their attitudes.  They smiled and just did whatever needed to be done.  They learned to dig, to build concrete forms, to hang siding, to install insulation, to paint, to frame walls, to clean up their mess, etc.  They also learned that this was not glamorous work! They learned about Habitat for Humanity and how the charity works.  They learned about the cost of living and the impact of a disaster.  Over 80,000 properties in New Orleans were blighted in Hurricane Katrina.  A little over 40,000 have been rebuilt or repaired.  There is still a lot of work there and a lot of reminders of that disaster from 7 years ago. 

It was a great trip for me, personally.  I learned those things, too.  But what I really got a chance to learn was what great kids we have at Summit.  I already knew this, of course, but I really enjoyed living with our kids on a daily basis and seeing what great people they are first hand.  Our kids take care of each other and make sure that everyone is included.  They are such a pleasure to work with.

Below is a picture of Marissa Fischer and Will Shiels cutting siding on a Habitat for Humanity job site in the 7th Ward in New Orleans, LA.