Habitat for Humanity struggles to find volunteers with building skills. Volunteers like Tierney Lesinski, a Virginia Tech civil engineering student, build those skills in monthly workshops.
Getting hands-on building experience, Virginia Tech Habitat for Humanity Club and VT Hypatia women’s engineering learning community hammered, painted, and drilled on the sunny loading dock of the Habitat for Humanity ReStore (1675 N Franklin St., Christiansburg) last Saturday afternoon.
The club holds monthly member workshops bringing together people from a variety of majors including that morning civil and mechanical engineering, agricultural business, and animal sciences all interested in gaining skills and building community.
“Every month we have a member workshop. Our members get exposed to working with various tools. One of the biggest struggles Habitat has is finding volunteers skilled at working with different pieces of equipment and powertools,” Jerry Stieg, mechanical engineering senior and co-President of the VT Habitat for Humanity Club.
Beside him, Tierney Lesinski, a junior in civil engineering paused the paddle chisel she was using to drill a hole in a piece of pine.
“I want to go into residential development – designing and building houses. This is like the perfect exposure opportunity,” she said.
For more information, visit www.habitatnrv.org.
