When it comes to planning spring break trips, most Syracuse University students take a ‘go big or go home’ approach.

Just ask Facebook.’Timmy has updated spring break plans.”Ooh.’ -Click-‘Activity: Cancun. Description: bikinis and booze.’ ‘Sweet.’

And for those who don’t have big plans to liquor it up on a tropical island, there is probably a minivan waiting to whisk you home for a week of quality time with Mom and Dad.

Which there is absolutely nothing wrong with, by the way.

But for the students who would rather not go home or aren’t willing or able to fork over hundreds of dollars for a glorified sunburn, there is hope. In fact SU provides numerous opportunities for college coeds who are looking for a little more substance for a little less dough.

Organizations like Habitat for Humanity, Hillel and Campus Crusade for Christ offer alternative spring break programs.

I know from experience that they are worth looking into.

Last year I traveled to Louisiana with Hendricks Chapel to help with Hurricane Katrina relief in the area surrounding New Orleans. I am not ashamed to admit that I was apprehensive at first to spend the holy grail of vacations partaking in physical labor – forfeiting fun in the sun is never an easy decision to make.

But the week I spent living in a cardboard shack among the mosquitoes and port-a-potties in Houma, La. turned out to be one of the most worthwhile things I have ever done.

The people we helped were some of the kindest and most appreciative I have ever met. I will never forget the elderly woman known affectionately to us as ‘Miss Alice.’ The image of her standing teary eyed on the porch of her house, which we had just painted, as she sent us on our way with fried chicken and a slew of ‘God bless y’alls’ will always remain with me.

And did I mention how many friends I made and the fact that it only cost me $125?

‘I’ve made a lot of great friendships and met a variety of different people who I otherwise wouldn’t have met,’ said Shannon Dubois, a senior biology major and Spring Break 2007 Habitat for Humanity group leader. She has participated in spring break programs through Habitat for Humanity since she was a freshman. ‘The alternative spring break trips have been some of the best and most memorable weeks of my undergraduate years.’

I’m not saying that everyone should jump on the alternative spring break bandwagon. These trips aren’t for everyone. If you don’t want to be there, you will more than likely find the 6:30 a.m. wakeup calls and shared chores to be unbearable.

‘It’s like everything else in college,’ said Dubois. ‘The option to go on this type of spring break trip is available to you. It’s ultimately your decision if you want to go.’

If you decide that an alternative spring break is for you, one thing is for certain: It’s an experience you will always remember and never regret – and that’s not only because there isn’t alcohol involved.

Meghan Overdeep is a featured columnist whose columns appear Fridays in The Daily Orange. E-mail her at meoverde@syr.edu.

Published on March 1, 2007 at 12:00 pm