Lachlan St. George (’17) spent the last few days of winter break volunteering for “Youth Rebuilding New Orleans” (YRNO), a non-profit organization with an educational focus.
Initiated in 2005, following the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, the organization focuses on renovating homes in flood damaged neighborhoods, hires local youth to be trained in the construction industry, utilizes volunteers to minimize costs and sells renovated properties at significantly below market cost to local teachers.
The St. George family have a close association with New Orleans as Lachlan’s father, Ian, travels there regularly to review a large computer installation project for the local Women Infants and Children Program in the Louisiana Health and Hospitals Department.
While in New Orleans last week, Lachlan and his parents joined a group of volunteers from Calgary University, Canada, to work on a block of several severely damaged homes that YRNO is renovating. The restorations are a major neighborhood beautification project and many of the local residents stopped by to express their gratitude. The team was fortunate to enjoy glorious weather that facilitated completion of some major outdoor tasks on two of the buildings at the project site.
- The ditch digging team – Lachlan with parents, Kirsten and Ian, and college students from Calgary University in Canada.