Alternative Spring Break Allowed VCU Students to Build Houses, Improve Lives and Make Lasting Memories

By Mike Porter

You could hardly blame Virginia Commonwealth University student Harjot Grover if she wanted to spend her spring break relaxing at a sunny beach. After all, Grover hails from chilly Troy, Mich., and it’s the biology major’s senior year. But Grover decided that she would spend this spring break, like the previous three, helping others through the VCU Alternative Spring Break program.

“Alternative spring break has been great. I love it because I get to live someone else’s life for a week and see the challenges and problems they face and it sticks with me,” Grover said.

Grover spent March 14 to March 21 in Decatur, Ala., helping Habitat for Humanity build affordable housing for families.

Other participants in VCU Alternative Spring Break taught English to orphans in the Dominican Republic, rebuilt weather-damaged houses in Atlanta or New Orleans, or helped people with disabilities in Nashville, Orlando or Mayville, Mich.

“It’s an opportunity to really give back to the community, whether that community is near or far, in the U.S. or another country,” Grover said.

As a freshman, Grover spent spring break performing environmental beach cleanups in Florida. During her sophomore year, she cooked and served restaurant-style meals at a homeless shelter in Atlanta. And last year Grover traveled to La Esperanza, Honduras, to build a home out of adobe for a family in need.

“We were amazed to see kids as young as 5 or 6 years old working with a pickaxe to help build their home,” Grover said.    

The suntans her friends received on beach adventures will fade, but Grover said the memories she’s made through VCU Alternative spring break will last a lifetime.

“I’ve met great people on these trips,” Grover said. “And I’ve been able to appreciate just how diverse VCU really is.”