Helping others never gets old

First-year law student Jonathan Hughes brings along his tool belt. (Nick Pearce Photo)

When Jenna Turner was looking for work clothes she could wear on a Habitat for Humanity build, a well-worn T-shirt in a Value Village bin caught her eye.

“It said, ‘Helping others never gets old,’” says Ms. Turner, a nurse at the I.W.K. as she loaded her luggage on a bus bound for New Orleans. “That sentiment fit perfectly.”

On the eve of study break on Friday morning, 33 students, mainly law students from the Schulich School of Law, steeled themselves for the 40-hour trip to the southern U.S. aboard a Trius charter bus with Merrill Trefry behind the wheel. They pulled out ahead of three buses of undergraduate students from Dalhousie, set to leave later in the day.

Daniel Pink first went to hurricane-ravaged New Orleans with the Dalhousie chapter of Habitat for Humanity two years ago. Now a second-year law student, he thought there would be enough interest among law students to organize their own trip.

The students will be staying at Camp Hope and working on a Habitat for Humanity build site in a West Bank neighborhood of New Orleans. Besides working, there’s some fun on the schedule; they’ll stroll down Bourbon Street, explore the French Quarter, take in a NBA game and catch Jay-Z in concert at the New Orleans Arena.

“Having had that experience, I really wanted to go back to New Orleans. Even all this time after Katrina, there’s still a lot to do,” says Mr. Pink. “And, within the law school there’s a big emphasis on community work, so I thought it would be a good fit.”

Before leaving for New Orleans on a Habitat for Humanity build, Dal law students pause of the steps of the Weldon Law Building for a group photo. (Nick Pearce Photo)

Erin Fowler, co-chair of the Habitat for Humanity campus chapter, has packed a lot of reading material for the trip. Even though a break to catch up with school work is welcome, she says she’d rather be building. “It’s the mentality of law students here; everyone’s really into giving, being part of the group and contributing.”

Like most of the students boarding the bus, she doesn’t have much experience wielding a hammer, but is eager to learn. Jonathan Hughes, however, has plenty of experience working in construction and is bringing along his tool belt.

“I’ve never been that far south, so I thought, why not?” says the first-year law student and Cole Harbour native. “It’s a chance to go somewhere on spring break and do some good.”