For the past two years, Boy Scouts from Troop 33 have spent spring break on a special service project in Kentucky, helping to rehab an abandoned high school into a national disaster resource center.

The former Hughes-Kirk High School in Beechmont, Ky., will become a disaster resource center known as HIS House, operated by God’s Kitchen Inc., a faith-based organization dedicated to disaster relief work. The center is comprised of four buildings: general classroom, industrial arts, music and gymnasium.

HIS House will be used as a distribution center, disaster-relief/first-responder training center, and centrally located warehouse to organize items needed after any type of disaster. It also will serve as an emergency shelter and central communication center.

During the past year, the partially completed center has been coordinating the delivery of food and clothing to earthquake victims in Haiti.

Members of Boy Scout Troop 33, sponsored by First Lutheran Church in DeKalb, chose this project to help prepare for the next national disaster. In past years Troop 33 Scouts have responded to relief efforts following Hurricane Katrina in the Gulf states and Hurricane Ike in Texas.

This year, Scouts worked outdoors doing grounds clean-up, unloaded truckloads of equipment and supplies, moved equipment, and worked indoors clearing and cleaning classrooms.

After their daylong work projects Scouts still found fun in the evenings, enjoying ping pong, foosball, TV, basketball and various other games.

In addition to work projects, Scouts also visited Fort Knox, explored Mammoth Cave, and toured the Corvette assembly plant and museum.

Their eight-day trip was packed with hard work and play in the warmth of Kentucky. Since their project began last year, 11 Scouts and three adult leaders have contributed more than 700 hours of service work and raised more than $3,250 to help a cause they believe in.

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