St. Lawrence students are exploring a variety of alternatives to the traditional
spring break this year, venturing to locations throughout the country for a week of service,
academic study and other educational activities.
The campus chapter of Habitat for Humanity is once again participating in a spring
break project, heading to a traditional spot -- Boca Raton, Florida -- for non-traditional
activities: building a house for a needy family. Participants are A.J. Wright '04, Lackawanna,
NY; Merinda Bobeck '02, Northford, CT (trip leader); Mykel Anne Goodwin '03, Springfield
Center, NY; Lindsay Farrar '05, Queensbury, NY; Jessie Townsend '02, W. Edmeston, NY;
Emily Stahl '05, Moriah, NY; Tristina Dube '05, Peru, NY; Gabby Schiavino '04, Towson, MD;
Paul Talaga '03, Honesdale, PA; DeVernie Winston '04, New York, NY; and Courtney
Jonas '04, Lake Oswego, OR. The group's advisor is Roxanne Patterson '95, information
systems coordinator in career services and leadership education on campus.
A second group will head to Boston, where they will provide services to the Long Island
Homeless Shelter, located in Boston Harbor. Participants are Laura Woltag '05, Belfast, NY;
Anne Harrigan '04, West Newbury, MA; Cara Dodge '03, Chatham, NY; Shanna Treworgy '04,
Lebanon, NH; Molly Milliken '04, Farmington, ME; Chinasa Izeogu '05, Fayetteville, GA;
and Steve Coffin '03, Hopkinton, MA. They will be accompanied by Anne Townsend and
Peg Cornwell '79, project directors of St. Lawrence's Leadership Academy.
Issues affecting migrant workers -- including economics, globalization, feminism, the
environment, health care and social justice -- along the Texas/Mexico border will be
studied by a group of students led by University Chaplain Kathleen Buckley and
Associate Professor of Physics Aileen O'Donoghue. They will visit Su Casa de Esperanza,
a Presbyterian-affiliated agency that assists low-income families in the
colonia of Las Milpas south of Pharr, Texas, and the legal-assistance organization
Border Association For Refugees From Central America (BARCA) in Edinburg, Texas, plus
duty-free assembly plants located on the U.S./Mexican border, known as maquiladoras,
in Matamoros. Participants are Libby Varno '04, Victor, NY; Kaileah Christie '04,
Granville, VT; Shannon Fritts-Penniman '05, Trumansburg, NY; Roxanne Vilanova '04,
Clint, TX; and David Duran '05, Clint, TX.
Finally, the Laurentian Singers mixed-voice choir continues its long-standing tradition of
a spring break "tour" this year by traveling to New Mexico, to perform in Santa Fe,
Los Alamos, Taos and Albuquerque.