Released: Dec. 17, 1999
Chris DeHoag honored at Centre College
DANVILLE, KY - Chris DeHoag, a Centre College senior from Bowling Green, has been named the college's December Volunteer of the Month in honor of his leadership in Habitat for Humanity.
Drawing on skills he learned during summer work with a Bowling Green construction company, DeHoag has guided the Centre Habitat chapter through a variety of home repair and construction projects. He and fellow students have helped with home repair projects in Lexington and Danville, as well as improvements to a homeless shelter in Louisville.
DeHoag has donated his winter break vacation for the past two years to national Habitat projects in Tennessee and Kentucky. He will continue that tradition in February by working on a home construction project in West Virginia.
An economics major who plans a career in financial services, DeHoag joined the Centre Habitat chapter during his sophomore year. The chapter was seeking to reorganize and revitalize itself about that time, and DeHoag saw that many other students shared his interest in serving the community through home repairs and construction. After two years as an active member of the chapter, he was elected president for the 1999-2000 academic year. He speaks enthusiastically of the other students in the organization.
"People in Habitat want to do hands-on work for the community," says DeHoag. "They want to be involved. Our chapter gives them that opportunity."
After five summers of work for the Commercial Sheet Metal and Welding Company of Bowling Green, DeHoag has his own appreciation for hands-on work. "I love having a blueprint in my hand and then seeing it become reality. It's fascinating that you can take a two-dimensional piece of paper and use it to make something that's three-dimensional."
DeHoag says the Centre Habitat chapter now has become so strong that members have a goal of building an entire house in Danville. "So far we've played the role of helping other Habitat chapters or participating in projects organized by the national office, but we really would like to have an entire house built by the Centre community. That would take an incredible amount of work and money. It won't happen before I graduate in June, but I still think it's the right goal for our chapter."
DeHoag is a 1996 graduate of Greenwood High School. His parents are Judy and Frederick DeHoag of Bowling Green.
As a Centre volunteer of the month, DeHoag will receive a framed certificate and be treated to lunch by a group of Centre employees.
The college launched the volunteer award program to show appreciation to the many students who provide service to the local community. Each year, around 60 percent of all Centre students become community volunteers. The college encourages voluntary service by planning a community service day each year for all first-year students. Ann Young serves the campus as director of volunteer service.
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