Dear readers,

    As I’ve mentioned before, I signed up for various volunteer work at the club fair. Not long ago, I participated in my first community service activity in college.

    I first learned of the activity through an e-mail sent by the club about a week ago. In the e-mail, the club listed information about the nature of the effort: We are going to volunteer as roof-painters. At first I wondered: “What’s the point of painting rooves white?”

    After reading the e-mail, I learned that white rooves, as opposed to darker ones, can help reduce heat and conserve energy. I was interested in it so I decided to sign up. Only a limited number of volunteers would be allowed to participate so I had to apply. I was one of only 15 volunteers to be accepted.

    What we were to paint was a government building located in Brooklyn, New York, and we had to meet at 7:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning to get there on time.

    When we got there, the roof was so bright that sunglasses and sunscreen were required. After the leaders, who had already done the first coat, instructed us on painting techniques, we began to paint the second coat around the edges and corners.

    When we finished with the brushwork it was around noontime. After lunch, we applied the second coat to the entire roof. We dipped rollers into large buckets of paint and went across the rooftop. In less than two hours, the task was finished. The paint job left our jeans, shoes and hair stained with white paint. It was also a stiflingly hot day, but looking at our work made it all worthwhile.

    On the way back, several of us fell asleep on the subway. Indeed, it was a long and tiring day for us. However, it was a great start, and none of us can wait till our next event.

    Sincerely, Bingyin