29 young adults stop at Habitat ReStore with Bike & Build program

STRUTHERS

More than two weeks of cycling from Providence, R.I., had brought 23-year-old Louise McCune to the Habitat for Humanity ReStore on Youngstown-Poland Road, where on Tuesday afternoon she sat on a floral-printed couch during a rare break from work.

From that couch and over the sounds of power tools, McCune, who plans to teach English and history to middle-schoolers in her hometown of San Francisco this fall, explained what, exactly, had motivated her cross-country trip.

Yes, she wanted to see the U.S. And of course she wanted to “have this great adventure.” But her chief reason for spending 71 days and 3,942 miles traversing the country by bicycle was a desire to further engage with the affordable housing cause.

McCune is one of 29 young adults between the ages of 18 and 28 who share that same desire and are spending the summer as Bike & Build volunteers. The bicyclists, who raise funds for and execute affordable housing projects in communities along their route, expect to arrive in Seattle on Aug. 15. Tuesday was their 19th day on the road.

“I wanted to think about and see [the affordable housing problem] on a national scale,” McCune said. “I hope to learn about the problem on a greater scale than I’ve been thinking about it, then go home as a more informed advocate of affordable housing.”

So far, bicyclists on the Providence to Seattle trip have raised $145,013, according to the organization’s website. Over the past 11 seasons, Bike & Build has donated more than $4.5 million to affordable housing groups, built for more than 160,000 hours and pedaled more than 7.5 million miles. The nonprofit organization seeks to foster activism and service-mindedness in young people.

Read more about the program in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.