Not Your Same Ole Spring Break

By Brenda Cabaniss

This time of year, thousands of college students around the country are eagerly awaiting the one week in March or April when they can say “Good-bye midterms. Hello spring break!”
However, a new trend is breaking through the traditional spring break fever. While some students are anxiously awaiting the snowy ski slopes of chilly Vale or heading south of the border for sunny Cancun, other students are opting to voluntarily work during their one week, springtime reprieve.
Since 2006, more and more students are spending their time giving back to society by choosing to participate in alternative spring break programs. These ASB programs offer students an opportunity to volunteer their time and energy for the greater good by promoting conservation and educating students about issues that hinder society such as poverty, illiteracy, racism and homelessness. These hands-on volunteer opportunities are available locally, nationally and internationally.
Some of the more renowned organizations leading the way in ASB programs within the United States are Break Away, United Way, Habitat for Humanity and the USA Freedom Corps. Other organizations such as Spring Break Alternative invite volunteers for more politically oriented activities such as protesting the death penalty in Chapel Hill, North Carolina or the Iraq War in Washington, D.C.
Organizations like the Global Volunteer Network, Cross-Cultural Solutions and the United Nations offer volunteer opportunities including teaching English, providing care services at child daycare centers, orphanages and nursing homes, helping with wildlife conservation and rebuilding efforts in disaster stricken areas of Africa, Asia, Central and South America and Western Europe.
Of course, these trips do come with a price. Many of the out-of-state and international volunteer opportunities are available for a hefty fee that does not include round-trip airfare to the destination, documentation and processing fees for passports, visas and immunizations for international travel, or outgoing telephone and internet services while on location.
For example, Cross-Cultural Solutions, which focuses on ASB vacations abroad, charges a one-week program fee of nearly $2,000 that covers a customized volunteer plan, pre-departure materials, meals and accommodations while abroad, travel medical insurance, 24-hour emergency services, local and incoming telephone services and in-country transportation.
If you want to volunteer, but lack the funds to travel to exotic locations such as the Amazon Rain Forest, India, Tanzania or Russia, there are still plenty of volunteer opportunities within the United States that charge nominal fees or none at all.
 For instance, Live United, the ASB division of the United Way, charges a program fee of $150 that excludes transportation to the destination. Debbie Span-Bailey, vice president for donor relations, at the United Way of Greater Houston, says for the last three years, the United Way’s alternative spring break program, Live United, has brought 80 students from across the country to the Gulf Coast to assist with rebuilding efforts due to damages caused by Hurricanes Ivan, Katrina, Rita and Ike.
“This year, much of the focus will be in East and Southeast Houston with projects ranging from repairing and redoing roofs, building wheelchair ramps for the elderly, tax preparation for low income families, planting gardens at elementary schools, building and refurbishing community gardens and much more,”  Span-Bailey said.
Another option for students is volunteering with Habitat for Humanity Houston.  Habitat for Humanity is always searching for volunteers to help restore and rebuild homes for low income families. Although many of the Houston area projects scheduled for March and April are currently being sponsored by different volunteer groups, Icerine Winegarde, volunteer coordinator for Habitat for Humanity Houston, still recommends signing-up in case a group drops-out or additional help is needed at one of the project sites.
Of course, a local hot spot that is still in desperate need of volunteers is Galveston. City of Galveston Public Information Officer Alicia Cahill welcomes volunteers. She says there are wide-range of opportunities for people of all ages to come help.  
 Students are not just helping residents get back on their feet, but they can also enjoy a traditional spring break, because many of the shops have reopened.” Cahill said.
 Within the next two months, Galveston is expecting between 7,000 and 10,000 volunteers.
“The City’s Volunteer Reception Center is coordinating this massive volunteer effort with Help4Galveston,” said Cahill. “Together we are matching groups of volunteers with projects suited to their level of expertise. That’s why pre-registering is so important.”
Anyone interested in volunteering their time in Galveston can call the City of Galveston’s Volunteer Reception Center at 409-797-3710 or Help4Galveston at 281-468-0818.
The list of volunteer opportunities is endless. Student interested in changing their springtime routine have plenty of organizations, locally and worldwide, offering alternative spring break programs.
Ed Davis, media coordinator for the United Way of Greater Houston, reminds students that “any opportunity someone may have to volunteer, either through ASB or through church organizations, still has a dramatic impact, ultimately building healthier and happier lives.”
For additional volunteer ideas, see the list in the accompanying sidebar below.