The Construction Department has had a wonderful experience with Brandon Kelley serving as an intern this summer. “We can’t thank Brandon enough for all his hard work and great attitude,” said Bob Mathley, Construction Manager.
In many instances, our volunteers get their first taste of what its like to be on a construction site when they build with us. In Brandon’s case, joining as a volunteer proved a great way to dip his toes before committing to a big life decision.
“I was going to school at Ball State and wasn’t feeling as good as I did when I started about my major in Journalism,” shared Brandon. “I had told myself after a summer working for another non-profit a while back that if I didn’t end up in the field of journalism that I would move into something more physical, such as construction. I wasn’t entirely sure about this so my family recommended I give my time to an organization that was in the field this summer to see how I liked it. I started out offering them my time as a regular volunteer but then I found that Habitat was offering an internship and I jumped at the opportunity.”
Throughout the summer Brandon had the opportunity to work on seven homes, from the ground up! Working alongside our Construction Site Supervisors, volunteers and partner families, he got the experience many new skills and building techniques.
“It’s been a great summer. I’ve learned a lot and met a lot of different and caring individuals who all work hard with the same goals in mind,” Brandon shared. “Working and learning with the T&T crew has been one of my favorite things and getting to know them personally has been a big blessing to me. Seeing the partner families working towards their homes as well as the homes of other families in the community is, for me, the very essence of what Habitat attempts to cultivate.”
Even though the summer internship is over, Brandon can take away many important life lessons from his time with Habitat.
“Meeting Cassie, Sweeter, and Ty as well as their friends and family has been great and working alongside them has made all the difference this summer,” he said. “I learned how to build homes, I learned how to lead a crew, and I learned what it takes to bring community together. I’m glad I got to work this summer at a place that made a difference.”
Brandon will be moving to Indianapolis to become an electrical apprentice, then journeyman. While we don’t like saying goodbye, we wish him nothing but success in the next chapter of life!
