"The two most eye-opening and fulfilling periods of my college career came in my two trips to New Orleans with Alternative Break Club and brothers of Phi Alpha Delta. Essentially, we all drive down to New Orleans and stay there for a week, working with Project Homecoming or another organization and enjoying the beauty of the city during the day as well as at night. In 2005, Hurricane Katrina hit the Gulf Coast and even as of 2014, there is still a ton of work to be done. As I saw Hurricane Sandy hit New Jersey in 2012, I thought I realized the devastation that nature could cause. However, my first trip to New Orleans over winter break in 2013 showed me that it could get much worse. Learning about the city through tours when we were not on the work site was interesting. I did not know what levees were before I went to New Orleans, and it completely changed my perspective.
Community involvement changed my perspective in another way by showing how strong the community is. We worked on the house of a woman who had five kids, and she showed up every day to thank us and to make us understand how much it meant to us. She would talk with all of her neighbors who seemed to know her very well, and she even brought her kids by one of the days. This, to me, was unprecedented within a big city. Knowing New York City and Philadelphia, there seemed to be little to no community contact, but just from working in New Orleans, I know that it is different in other cities. They emphasize family, community, and being grateful for what you have. This has greatly affected me ever since I came back from the city. Community involvement has shaped me for the better, with the example of working in New Orleans with Alternative Break Club in both 2013 and 2014. I am a much more well-rounded person for having been involved."--Thomas Caroccia