Three Members of the Rotary Club of Antelope Valley (Tina Borzage, Hudson Horner, and Gene Melchers) participated in the 2024 SuperBuild. The morning started at 6 AM with a briefing from District Governor Michael Soden and Robin Smith on what to expect going across the border and some safety tips.
After crossing the border and going through customs it was a very smooth one-hour bus ride to the build site in Cerro Azul, Tecate, Mexico. We arrived at 9 AM. Cerro Azul means Blue Hill. Rotary and Corazon have built many homes on this site.
We had 60 volunteers in our group, including: Rotarians, Interact club members from South Pasadena, with about 20 students, Corazon staff, and some local volunteers, including the family who will receive the keys to the house at the end of the day. Adela and her 7-year-old son will receive the keys to the house. People were assigned to groups according to their skills and we quickly had painters, roofers, people with saws cutting 2X4’s, and lots of workers with hammers ready for action.
From 9 AM to 12:30 PM - all the 4x8 plywood sheets were painted, all the framework for the walls and roof were built, and the four walls were secured to the pre-poured cement slab. The goal was to have that work done by lunchtime. The framing was completed on time.
From 12:30 to 1:30 PM a delicious lunch was prepared and served by Adela and her family. The meal included Pozole soup (beef, hominy, beans), tortillas, hot salsa, and Lemonade and Jamaica to drink.
From 1:30 to 5:00 PM the activity was brisk. The plywood was nailed to the wall frames, the roof frame was attached, plywood was nailed to the roof framework, shingles were nailed to the roof, the door, the bathroom walls, the windows, the kitchen counter, and the loft ladder were installed. Finally, the Rotary Wheel was placed on the front wall of the house.
At 5 PM - Our work was done!!! The house was completed! There was a quick clean up to remove all debris from the surrounding area before the presentation ceremony.
At 5:45 PM the keys were presented to Adela and her son. It was a very emotional moment for all who were there.
