Under a hot sun on a beautiful Palos Verdes Saturday, over 50 Marymount College students joined staff and faculty to build a house right in the College’s parking lot.
This wasn’t just any house and these weren’t just any students: the loft house is destined for a needy family in Mexico and the majority of students were freshman participating in orientation week.
With the help of Hands of Mercy, the 12 foot square pre-fabricated loft home was constructed in panels. Slowly the peak of the roof, the staircase to the loft, and the walls of the home came into focus until everyone wielding a hammer or using a saw had to pause and smile at the fruits of their labor. But that Saturday they wouldn’t see the final product. When all was said and done, each piece of the house was loaded on a trailer to be trucked to Mexico. The students and their advisors will follow to the small town outside of Ensenada where they will finish their mission. The house will be put together, painted and presented to the family who will live in it.
Victoria Boyd, a freshman from Rancho Palos Verdes, and Anthony “Chip” Angeles of Manhattan Beach, both hope to be one of the 25 students chosen to accompany the house to Mexico.
“I wanted to get involved from day one,” Victoria said. “I got a chance to meet people. After today, I hope I get a chance to follow this project through to the end.”
That sentiment was echoed by Chip Angeles who made the day of service a family affair. His mother – dressed in a ‘Marymount Mom’ T-shirt – pitched in alongside her son. Chip pointed out that he has “always liked helping and giving back.”
The family in Mexico is lucky indeed; Marymount is luckier still to have Victoria, Chip and so many other wonderful young people in our student body.
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