Day 1: Welcome to Surf City, NC!!!!

We started our day at 8 am packing the vans in front of La Plata Hall. Shout-out to everyone for being on time!! :) (thank you parents). Getting ready for a 6-7 hour drive, we made sure that everyone brought snacks to share. The drive went very well, with no traffic for the entire day. During the drive, we experienced a variety of rural views and smells. Thankfully we all arrived safely and in one piece. We arrived at our awesome beach house at 4 pm and were able to check out the beach just across the street! Our house is 4 floors tall with more than enough space and ocean views for everyone to enjoy (shoutout to TI-Rentals for letting us stay here for the week). We have pictures of the house below.

After getting settled in our new home for the week, Mike, Helen, and Nicole H. went to the local Food Lion to get food for our first few days here. We were really lucky to receive a $30 gift card donation from the Surf City Food Lion, which greatly helped us with our food costs (thank you Food Lion). When they got back from grocery shopping, Mike and Helen started making dinner. It was really a group effort with help from many other participants that got dinner prepared so quickly (shoutout to the whole group!). Afterwards we sat down to a delicious chicken, broccoli, tofu, and rice meal. After cleaning up, we all actively participated in some group-bonding activities and got to know each other. We set some community guidelines and did a lifeline activity where we each shared the most significant aspects of our life that define who we are as people. It was a great activity to learn more about each other and prepare for a busy day ahead!