Students spend spring break in a tool shed

Editor's note: This is a first-person account of participating in the national initiative, Alternative Spring Break.

"Are we gonna make it up THAT?"

Those were the first words that ran through my mind as my Alternative Spring Break group struggled up the steep incline as we arrived at Once Upon a Time in Maryville, Tenn. last week.

Once Upon a Time is "a member of BreakAway, a national organization which links college students with communities to perform service projects addressing social, cultural and environmental needs," according to their Web site.  Ed and Arleen Decker own Once Upon a Time, which is on their residential land, and they were our gracious hosts for the week.

Three college groups stayed there for the week, so due to a lack of space elsewhere, the ISU group slept in a tool shed for six days It was quite cozy though, with the woodburning stove inside. We also had to use an outhouse for the week.  I wasn't looking forward to that, but we all got used to it after a while.

Monday, we volunteered at the senior citizen center in the Snowbird Cherokee community in Robbinsville, N.C. To get there, we had to travel along an 11-mile stretch of Highway 129, nicknamed "The Dragon" because of its winding curves. It made me a little queasy the first time we drove on it. 

We met some of the Cherokee elders and made birdhouses out of gourds.  Then we worked at a Cherokee family's house "lopping" branches from trees to be used for firewood, building a handrail and placing new stepping stones on a steep path to the house. The weather was sunny and warm that day, so it was nice to spend our service time outside. That evening, we learned the Cherokee "fish game," which was traditionally used in courting, then we were invited to a bonfire at the same house we volunteered at earlier, where we learned about Cherokee language and legends.  We spent the night at Little Snowbird Baptist Church.

Tuesday, we played with two- and three-year-old kids at the Child Development Center in the Cherokee community. We ate a picnic lunch, visited a local craft store with traditional Cherokee items and then picked up trash in an elderly Cherokee woman's yard.  To end the day, we hiked three miles in the Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest, known for having huge trees that up to six people can link their arms together and fit around.

Wednesday was a free day for all the groups at Once Upon a Time, and the ISU group spent our day in Gatlinburg, Tenn We went shopping, visited the Ripley's Aquarium and some people were even brave enough to go on the Sky Lift. It was fun to have a break from all the hard labor we did the past two days.

Thursday, we removed lots and lots of honeysuckle and privet from the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The plants are harmful to trees, so we were doing our part to save them. We ate lunch under an overpass since it was raining pretty hard.  That night, Arleen Decker taught us how to make blackberry jam, so we got to help and each take a jar home.

Friday, we removed more invasive plants along the trail at the Sequoyah Museum in Vonore, Tenn.  When we heard thunder in the distance, we went inside the museum to learn about Sequoyah's contributions to the Cherokee language.  We then returned to our little tool shed, where most of us took a lengthy nap since it stormed throughout the afternoon and we were unable to do our service project.  The storm was pretty bad—it hailed twice. After dinner we went to the "hootenanny" at Rocky Branch.  There were several bluegrass bands there, many of whom were locals, and they were so talented. 

Everyone seemed to have a wonderful time, and it was a fun way to wrap up the trip.

Saturday we, tearfully (for some of us) departed Once Upon a Time and returned to Terre Haute.  Our group transformed from acquaintances into good friends during the trip, which could be attributed to the fact that we were not only often in close proximity, but we had to learn to communicate effectively with one another.

What I will remember most about the trip is seeing the smiles on the people's faces we helped, singing the Cherokee morning song, staying up late playing mafia in the tool shed, making new friends, the wonderful homemade meals, Ed and Arleen's hospitality and the beautiful Smoky Mountains.  I can't wait to participate in Alternative Spring Break 2011!