Repairing Homes, Changing Hearts

  • By Denice Rovira Hazlett
  • November 23, 2011
  • 260
                        
Summary: A group of high school seniors set out to do repairs for disadvantaged homeowners in inner-city Pittsburgh, PA.. By the project's end, they had done more than repair houses; they had changed hearts and lives--including their own. Story: When Kelsey Hilty first stepped into Walter's neglected Pittsburgh residence, the house she was charged with renovating as part of a three-day service trip with her senior class from Central Christian School, she was less than enthusiastic about the work they had ahead. "I kept looking around the house, realizing how different my standards of living were from Walter's," said Hilty. "He lives alone, and had lost the motivation to keep up his house. My attitude was critical." She wasn't the only one. Henry Beun, high school Bible teacher and Hilty's senior class sponsor, was team leader for the project. "I was overwhelmed with the mess and dirt. I didn't know where to start," said Beun. "There's no pep talk for that. You just roll up your sleeves, get on your knees, and get to work." And that, said Beun, is when attitudes began to change. The group of 27 CCS seniors participated in The Pittsburgh Project, a nonprofit urban community development organization serving the city’s most vulnerable residents, performing free home repairs for Pittsburgh’s elderly homeowners. On November 9-11, the seniors divided into six teams, each working on a variety of projects ranging from roof repair, cleaning, painting, building walls, and installing flooring. "Students were excited about a three-day, away-from-school experience," said Beun, "but there was some apprehension." The students wondered if they had the skills to repair the dilapidated row houses and decaying urban homes that had fallen apart around the people living in them. Central Christian School's involvement with the project, according to Beun, was a God thing. "We had looked at several options, and I can't say it any other way than it was God-inspired and God-directed for this time." Beun said the school was drawn to the multi-faceted ministry partly because they weren't focused solely on home repair. "They wanted us to find ways to honor these people," said Beun, "to provide dignity and fellowship for those who are very alone, who don't have family systems of support. This is not just about serving the house. It's about serving people. It's about affecting how this person views herself or himself in their dwelling." CCS puts forth goals for each high school student, goals like understanding what it means to be citizens of the Kingdom of God, developing Christ-like character, developing the characteristics of Godly leaders, experiencing love, and, in turn, sharing that love with others. Traditionally, Beun said, high school seniors are viewed as top dogs, the rulers of the school. But at CCS, each high school class has a specific focus. For seniors, it's being called to serve. "We do these projects during the school year with hopes that we can build on this experience as the year progresses," said Beun. Senior Chris Steiner said it was a rich experience he will never forget. "It changed my thoughts on how to treat people, how to help those in need. You can't just donate. You have to talk to them, get to know them, understand how hard their lives really are." Senior Holly Kreis had never been involved in an inner-city situation. The family she and Steiner worked with, a single mom with seven people living in a small, cluttered house, was encouraging to her. "It was good to see the love and strength they had, even though they were going through trying times," Kreis explained. "They were rising above their circumstances to enjoy the lives that God had given them." By the end of the project, Beun, Hilty and the rest of their team cleaned, repaired and renovated rooms of Walter's home, but they realized they had done so much more. "Before we left Walter’s house," Hilty said, "we gathered to pray with him. He told us how much it meant to him to just have us there, that even hearing our voices made him happy, which really stuck with me. That’s probably the point when I realized that, even if we hadn’t gotten all of the work done, or we hadn’t completed everything perfectly, it didn’t matter. He was lonely and needed people around to listen and talk to, and that’s what we were for him." Just through the love and acceptance they showed Walter, Beun could see they'd made a positive affect on his life. "He told me that, as we were helping him, he realized that he needed to do a major life corrective, because he saw these students who loved him, doing their work with playfulness, using their hands and feet to serve him," said Beun. "He actually commented that his house would be so quiet. It made a difference to have people laughing and playing in his home." "I saw God in so many ways throughout the three days in Pittsburgh," said Hilty. "If I was living the way Walter was, I would be so discouraged." "But he had so much hope and faith because he saw God providing for him through the work of my class." And that, Hilty said, was an important lesson for her to learn. Central Christian School offers a pre-K through grade 12 Christ-centered education on a 60-acre campus located in Kidron, Ohio. The school is owned and operated by the Ohio Conference of the Mennonite Church and accredited by the State of Ohio. The student body is represented by 69 congregations, 28 Ohio school districts, and 12 international students from South Korea and China. CCS will hold an open house on Monday, Nov. 28 for prospective students. For more information about the school or the open house, call 330-857-7311 or e-mail BruceK@CentralChristianSchool.org.


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