Introduction
My trip to PEI (Prince Edward Island) in June was principally to volunteer on a Habitat for Humanity project as the team leader. The post is principally about the build, but a few other things are thrown in.
Sometimes called the Garden of the Gulf, those living in the region commonly refer to PEI as "The Island." PEI is well known for its red soil and red sand beaches, lighthouses, churches painted white, lobster dinners and other seafood delicacies, Anne of Green Gables, and for being the birthplace of Canada. The island province has a population just under 150,000 with about 35,000 of those people living calling the capital city of Charlottetown their home.
Habitat for Humanity Project
Habitat for Humanity (HFH) has been active on PEI since 1996 and since then has provided many Island families with a safe, decent and affordable home. My team in June worked on the 55th HFH house on The Island, which is a remarkable achievement for the local affiliate. They have been able to do this due to the contributions (time and financial) of local volunteers, partner families as well as teams comprised of people from across Canada, partnerships with local businesses, organizations and governments, and access to property at a reasonable cost.
On Monday morning, it was off to the build site which was about a 15-20 minute drive north of the city to a rural village called Harrington. The build site is located in an area where several HFH houses have already been built with more to come. Our efforts focused on a house that was already under construction and we started at the stage of
installing sheathing on the exterior walls and roof, installing external
Styrofoam insulation, framing interior walls, installing a number of windows and other tasks during the week.
We struggled a bit with persistent rain throughout the week and, while our work days were cut short on a couple of occasions, people hung in there despite uncomfortable weather conditions. One day, we spent about half the day helping at the HFH ReStore. Despite battling the wet weather off and on, we finished the last build day in sunshine knowing that we had moved the project along a great deal. By the time we left, the house was completely wrapped in Styrofoam insulation, roof is completely covered with OSB and waiting for shingles to be installed, the interior walls are framed, framing for ceilings is getting close to being ready for drywall to be installed, a number of windows were installed, a garden/storage shed was constructed and waiting for siding and roof shingles.
During our week there, we had some fantastic dinner meals at local restaurants - Piatto Pizzeria and Enoteca, The Gahan House, Terre Rouge Bistro and The Dunes. The food and service in all these were very good, but the atmosphere at The Dunes is truly unique.
The Dunes is located north of the city not too far from the build site. Before dinner, we drove to Brackley Beach in Prince Edward Island National Park - home to sand dines, beaches, sandstone cliffs and more. It has been a popular vacation spot since the late 19th century. It was wet and windy for our visit, so we did not stay long. Nevertheless, it was enticing as a place worthy of another visit. The Dunes is a combination of a gallery and restaurant. The gallery features a broad mix of the creations of local artisans as well as various forms of art from around the world that is displayed in a rambling building with many rooms. Many creations are featured in the gardens outside, but the weather did not cooperate for viewing these. Having been there previously, I scheduled dinner so people would have time to explore. This was a good call on my part and an excellent dinner topped off an interesting and fun day.
I was very pleased to hear recently that the new owner and her three children moved into their new home in July and a celebration was held on July 31 to welcome them to the community. Even though we were not there to share in this celebration, this project once again demonstrates the critically important role that Habitat for Humanity takes in giving people "a hand up" to improve their housing situation.
Want more PEI?
In addition to the HFH build, I was able to also spend a few days exploring this beautiful province on Canada's east coast. If you're interested to reading a bit more about PEI look for another post on my travel blog.
My trip to PEI (Prince Edward Island) in June was principally to volunteer on a Habitat for Humanity project as the team leader. The post is principally about the build, but a few other things are thrown in.
Sometimes called the Garden of the Gulf, those living in the region commonly refer to PEI as "The Island." PEI is well known for its red soil and red sand beaches, lighthouses, churches painted white, lobster dinners and other seafood delicacies, Anne of Green Gables, and for being the birthplace of Canada. The island province has a population just under 150,000 with about 35,000 of those people living calling the capital city of Charlottetown their home.
Habitat for Humanity Project
Habitat for Humanity (HFH) has been active on PEI since 1996 and since then has provided many Island families with a safe, decent and affordable home. My team in June worked on the 55th HFH house on The Island, which is a remarkable achievement for the local affiliate. They have been able to do this due to the contributions (time and financial) of local volunteers, partner families as well as teams comprised of people from across Canada, partnerships with local businesses, organizations and governments, and access to property at a reasonable cost.
All of the team arrived in Charlottetown by about 6:00 pm on June 4 (Saturday), so the first thing to do was ensure the team was introduced to each other which was followed by a short orientation by a local HFH representative. We then went out for dinner as a group, which provided a great forum for conversations and getting to know each other a bit. A few people came with a friend or partner, but most of us did not know each other before arriving on The Island. Many people were tired from travels, it was not a late evening. As a team leader on these trips, I always find it interesting to see how people come together to quickly work well together and have fun as a group.
The following day (Sunday), we spent the day with a mix of local historical and cultural experiences starting with a guided tour of the old area of downtown that included walking past Province House National Historic Site. This is the site of the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, the first meeting that led to Canadian confederation in 1867. The building's heritage value relates to its association with Canadian Confederation and the judicial system in PEI. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovations so we didn't get to see the interior.
Our tour guide
After the walking tour, we took some free time to explore a bit in the downtown before having lunch; then, it was off to Cow's Creamery for one of their delicious ice cream cones! Next on the agenda was a drive outside the city for a tour and tasting at Matos Winery. Matos is a family owned and operated business that started in 2007 after spending a great deal of time researching the most suitable grapes for The Island. They use the French approach of terroir - finding the best grapes for the combination of soil, slope, sun exposure and weather variations. The owners - Jaime and Heather Matos - were born on the island of Pico in the
Acores, just off of Portugal. They moved to Ontario when they were young and eventually made PEI their home. Already they have produced a number of awarding winning wines.
Our day concluded with dinner at a middle eastern restaurant owned by a HFH partner family who came to The Island as refugees from Afghanistan. They opened especially for our team and we were the only people in the restaurant. Our tasty meal was an indication of the good quality food over our week there. If you're ever in Charlottetown, try Sadat's restaurant.
The following day (Sunday), we spent the day with a mix of local historical and cultural experiences starting with a guided tour of the old area of downtown that included walking past Province House National Historic Site. This is the site of the Charlottetown Conference in 1864, the first meeting that led to Canadian confederation in 1867. The building's heritage value relates to its association with Canadian Confederation and the judicial system in PEI. Unfortunately, it was closed for renovations so we didn't get to see the interior.
Province House - site of Charlottetown Conference
At Cow's Creamery
Matos Winery
Our day concluded with dinner at a middle eastern restaurant owned by a HFH partner family who came to The Island as refugees from Afghanistan. They opened especially for our team and we were the only people in the restaurant. Our tasty meal was an indication of the good quality food over our week there. If you're ever in Charlottetown, try Sadat's restaurant.
We struggled a bit with persistent rain throughout the week and, while our work days were cut short on a couple of occasions, people hung in there despite uncomfortable weather conditions. One day, we spent about half the day helping at the HFH ReStore. Despite battling the wet weather off and on, we finished the last build day in sunshine knowing that we had moved the project along a great deal. By the time we left, the house was completely wrapped in Styrofoam insulation, roof is completely covered with OSB and waiting for shingles to be installed, the interior walls are framed, framing for ceilings is getting close to being ready for drywall to be installed, a number of windows were installed, a garden/storage shed was constructed and waiting for siding and roof shingles.
During our week there, we had some fantastic dinner meals at local restaurants - Piatto Pizzeria and Enoteca, The Gahan House, Terre Rouge Bistro and The Dunes. The food and service in all these were very good, but the atmosphere at The Dunes is truly unique.
The Dunes is located north of the city not too far from the build site. Before dinner, we drove to Brackley Beach in Prince Edward Island National Park - home to sand dines, beaches, sandstone cliffs and more. It has been a popular vacation spot since the late 19th century. It was wet and windy for our visit, so we did not stay long. Nevertheless, it was enticing as a place worthy of another visit. The Dunes is a combination of a gallery and restaurant. The gallery features a broad mix of the creations of local artisans as well as various forms of art from around the world that is displayed in a rambling building with many rooms. Many creations are featured in the gardens outside, but the weather did not cooperate for viewing these. Having been there previously, I scheduled dinner so people would have time to explore. This was a good call on my part and an excellent dinner topped off an interesting and fun day.
Brackley Beach
In addition to the HFH build, I was able to also spend a few days exploring this beautiful province on Canada's east coast. If you're interested to reading a bit more about PEI look for another post on my travel blog.
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