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Westchester Country Day is a service-oriented school. A grade level or class has something going on all the time.

But the student government’s Student Life Committee wanted to do something as a school, to celebrate being a school that serves kindergartners through seniors.

So they voted to volunteer with Habitat for Humanity to build a home for a family in need. The house is the seventh one Habitat is building in the Graves Avenue/ Hoskins Street area.

The Future Business Leaders of America raised $15,000 needed to pay for the framing of the house and for 10 days — Aug. 10-14 and Aug. 17-21 — students ages 16 and older showed up to help build the house.

Later on, younger students will help with landscaping, painting and other activities that don’t involve power tools.

Gardner Barrier, head of upper school and FBLA adviser, said students and other volunteers will work on the house on Saturdays until it’s complete. The family — refugees from Vietnam — is expected to move in sometime in the spring.

The school will move on to the next house after that.

“The first day I went was very rewarding,” senior Robyn Terrell said. “I got to work with the people whose house it’s going to be. It was great to hear their experiences.”

Jay Kennedy, another senior, said the experience has been a bonding experience for the student body as well.

“It feels good to work together and accomplish something,” Carson Thorn, a senior, said.

Students, parents and faculty have enjoyed the experience so much, often there are more volunteers than needed. Barrier said 12 people are scheduled to work each day, but sometimes as many as 23 show up to help.

And it wasn’t because it was all fun and games.

“It was hard work,” Terrell said. Especially on a hot day. But at the end of the day, when tired and exhausted, she really enjoyed the experience.

Thorn said they got to learn a lot of new things, from framing a house to putting up a roof. “I thought we’d just do painting or something like that,” she said.

“But then they handed us hammer and nails,” senior Jessica Grzyb said.

“I was thinking, ‘Oh, my gosh. If I put up this house it’s going to fall over,’ ” Kennedy said.

Barrier said the Habitat leaders were patient. “They start every day with teaching skills (to new volunteers).”

Thorn said she liked this volunteer project more than other volunteering she’s done. “It’s a better project because it lasts. It’s not like a regular donation to a food (bank).”

“Giving a home is really special,” Grzyb said.

Westchester started planning this project in the spring and expects it to be an ongoing service project. “This is the right way to end and start the school year,” Barrier said.

Contact E.A. Seagraves at 883-4422, Ext. 241, or elizabeth. seagraves@news-record.com