Sunday morning, people were busy in Morton parking lot tearing down everything from a cardboard pirate ship to cardboard outhouses, all of which housed students and Athens residents Saturday night.
Cardboard City, an annual event sponsored by the Athens County Habitat for Humanity, took over Morton’s Parking lot to raise money and awareness for the homeless.
“Habitat for Humanity is about engaging the community and making them aware of substandard housing,” said Athens County Habitat for Humanity Executive Director Kenneth Oehlers.
About 200 people showed up for the event, with an average of ten people to a house, raising about $12,000 during the weekend, Oehlers said.
“(The money will) mainly go to the next house (built),” said Rebecca Fischer, a senior studying middle childhood education.
Each team required a $25 donation to participate, with the donation fee funding T-shirts and food for the event, said Sarah Vaughn, resource development director of Athens County Habitat for Humanity.
The cost of one house is about $35,000, making the total raised this year a little more than a third of what’s needed for one project, she said.
Athens Catholic Teens, from St. Paul’s Catholic Church and Christ the King University Parish, fundraised the most for the third consecutive year, raising $1,200.
“We turned in $400,” said Mary Catherine Kennedy, member of Athens Catholic Teens. She later learned an anonymous donor gave another $800 to their fund.
The United Campus Ministries Youth Ministry placed second raising $730.
While the goal of the event is to raise money, some OU students decided to go beyond building a basic cardboard house with residents from Biddle Hall building a pirate ship.
“This has been a blast,” said Ryan Altenbach, a junior studying broadcast journalism. His group, consisting of 10-12 students, raised $50 and won second place for best design.
First place for best design went to Team Sojo, a team organized with members of Sojourners—an organization dedicated to help the homeless runaway youth in Ohio.
“Everyone did a terrific job and everyone was creative,” Oehlers said, adding he hopes to continue the turnout next year.
kc645811@ohiou.edu
