Today is the one-year anniversary of the massacre at Virginia Tech, and campuses everywhere are remembering the 32 people killed that day. Over the past year, one victim's family has encouraged students and others to honor those lost by working with the Appalachian Service Project, a program that repairs homes in poor regions, reports Ian Urbina of The New York Times. (Above, volunteers work to repair a home in Virginia in a photo by Shawn Poynter for the Times.)After their daughter, Austin, was killed, Bryan and Renee Cloyd began organizing trips to Virginia for students to work with the Project. This year, 150 people from Virginia Tech have been on those trips (in addition, to the $70,000 given in donations in Austin's honor), and the Cloyds' example led the school to start "V.T.-Engage, which asked Virginia Tech students and faculty and staff members to perform at least 10 hours of service each," Urbina writes.
The Project has benefited from the college student volunteers. "Since its founding in 1969, the Appalachia Service Project has helped repair more than 13,000 homes in Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee and West Virginia," Urbina writes. "The trips are run year-round, and volunteers pay about $100 for a weekend trip and about $300 for a week. The fees help cover room, board and building materials." (Read more)
For more information the Appalachian Service Project, check out its Web site.
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