Once a year, we here at New City Media step away from the business of building websites and spend a day working with Habitat for Humanity. Like last year, we joined up with other volunteers in Pulaski, VA, to continue work on a group of houses being built down there.
There was siding to be hung (twice).
There was trim to be put up (and there will be a good bit of caulk used to fill the gaps).
There were wallboard seams to be patched (with particular attention paid to the inside of a closet).
There were nail holes and flooring seams to be patched (and knees that got very sore in the process).
There was even a large tarp that needed to be dug out from underneath several feet of dirt (we all scratched our heads over that one, too).
And there was the intern who dropped a hammer on his own head (silly interns).
All in all, the fine folks at Habitat for Humanity declared it a success. We had a great time, so we agree.
On a personal note, the work we did that day made me realize just how skilled and talented the people are who build the homes we live in. I grew up with a guy named Andrew Sylvia who’s dream was to own his own contracting company. One of his great loves growing up was the beach, specifically the Outer Banks in North Carolina.
Several years ago, he decided to combine the two. Andrew moved to the Outer Banks and began working toward his professional dreams. He started with a painting company. From the tales I’ve read, any contractor in town would tell you that all they needed was a handshake from Andrew and they knew the job was as good as done.
Back in April, I found out that Andrew was suffering from a recurrence of skin cancer. It was pretty much everywhere in his body at that point and his doctors had told him he needed a miracle to survive. That miracle never came and Andrew passed away the same week we worked with Habitat. He left behind a wife and three small children. He was 35.
Our efforts that day on the Habitat job site are dedicated to his memory.