Spring Break Service in Puerto Rico
Ten Buena Vista University students participated in an Alternative Week of Off-site Learning trip during spring break, enabling them to volunteer their time and service with a focus on environmental conservation and permaculture lifestyle in Las Marias, Puerto Rico.
Ten Buena Vista University students participated in an AWOL (Alternative Week of Off-site Learning) trip during spring break, enabling them to volunteer their time and service with a focus on environmental conservation and permaculture lifestyle in Las Marias, Puerto Rico.
BVU students traveled to Las Marias, Puerto Rico, where they learned from the locals about their economy, way of life and culture. Working with Plenitud, a permaculture organization, members of the group harvested green beans, kale, lettuce, oranges and coconuts for dinner and for the community, while others learned different gardening techniques and planted kale, bamboo, and other vegetables. They created pots out of natural materials, collected compost for planting fruit trees, learned how to fertilize and clean fruit trees, made signs for the farm, tended to the greenhouse, worked on creating new gardens and steps down the mountain to the river and also climbed steep mountain slopes to plant natural “walls” to prevent soil erosion.
The group also worked with local community members and the organization Olita, a program that works to create sustainable gardens and create jobs in the poorer parts of Puerto Rico, to clean up a neighborhood near the beach and clear land that was going to be converted to a garden.
Advisors for this experience were Dr. Ashley Farmer-Hanson, assistant dean for student life and director of civic engagement at BVU and Elizabeth Reese, BVU AmeriCorps VISTA.
“Over the week we lived a permaculture lifestyle where we were camping outside, using limited water with cold showers, and we had access to very limited electricity. We were completely integrated into our service site. Our mornings started at 6 a.m. and continued late into the evening,” said Farmer-Hanson. “AWOL is anything but a stereotypical college spring break. It transforms lives through leadership development and deepening the understanding of serving each other, while also being mindful of our personal actions.”
For student site leader, Emily Phipps, a senior biology major from Monroe, “My eyes were opened to a different world, a world that revolved around taking care of the Earth and each other. I learned how easy it is for people from diverse backgrounds to come together and create such a beautiful environment. I will always remember this trip because I was able to see how love brings people together to create change in the world.”
Tyler Puls, a senior history, secondary education major from Geneseo, Ill., was also a student site leader for the trip. Other students who participated in the environmental conservation AWOL trip were Kristina Grossman, a senior communications studies major from Glidden; Luke Hastie, a senior criminology and criminal justice major from Indianola; Emily Kim, a sophomore athletic training major from Fairmont, Minn.; Marlenne Lara, a junior business major from Storm Lake; Kathia Puls, a psychology and criminology and criminal justice major from Geneseo, Ill.; Abigail Ross, a sophomore social work and psychology major from Council Bluffs; Presley Shumate, a sophomore accounting and business major from Milo; and Nou Yang, a senior social work major from Storm Lake.