Before the sun rose on November 4th, fifty Rotaractors, Rotarians, and Interactors piled into a bus in a parking lot in San Diego. Their destination: Tijuana.  Their mission: to build an entire house in one day for a deserving family.
 
This was the 7th year that Ventura Rotaract sponsored the Mexico Build through a non-profit called Corazon. Over the years, the build has grown from twenty to over fifty people and has become Ventura Rotaract’s largest annual project. Rachel Davis, Ventura Rotaract International Chair, organized the build for the past 4 years. “The reality for us in California is that we have an international border four hours away from where we live. I believe it’s really important to help our neighbors.”

Once in Tijuana, everyone lends a hand in sawing, nailing, drilling, painting and more – no building experience is required, just a willingness to help those less fortunate. The families who receive the houses are very deserving and have worked for years with Corazon to obtain enough hours to have their own home built. “It was really meaningful to be building a house for a specific family, and to have a chance to interact with them,” said Olivia Strohman, President of Ventura Rotaract.

This service project is special because it builds bonds across borders, cultures, languages, and even within the club itself. Said Dale Jaedtke, Ventura Rotaract Advisor, “What I’ve found over the years of working with the youth in Rotaract is when we come back after the Mexico Build, there’s such a bonding that goes on there because of what they’re giving back to the community.”