Pi Kappa Phi members ending their Push America projects in Washingtion, D.C., are, clockwise from left, Doug Stine, Mike Roche, Will Reed, Brian Schenck, Todd Heffner and Chris Doyle.

Six members of Tech's Pi Kappa Phi fraternity spent six to eight weeks of their summer volunteering for Push America, an organization that has a mission to build "leaders of tomorrow by serving people with disabilities today." The organization, now celebrating its 30th anniversary, realizes its mission through events that uphold its core values: ability, teamwork, empathy and integrity. Two such events with representatives from Tech this past summer were Journey of Hope and Build America.

Todd Heffner, a third-year biology student, participated in the Journey of Hope, an eight-week cross-country bike ride of just over 4,000 miles that raises funds and awareness for people with disabilities. The event began with just one man in 1987, Bruce Rogers, who wanted to spread the mission of Push America by riding his bike from Florence, Ore., to Richmond, Va. His trek inspired Push America to create Journey of Hope and the next year, the first team of 21 people rode from the West Coast to Washington, D.C. The event has now grown to three routes of about 30 men, who collectively raised $500,000 in the past year.

Heffner, like the other members of Pi Kappa Phi, heard about Push America and the Journey of Hope while he was an associate member of the fraternity, and decided that he wanted to join the ranks of those who have participated. While the bicyclists traveled about 75 miles a day on their trek from San Francisco to Washington, D.C., the teams' journey wasn't just about their riding — they also made "friendship visits" at various locations to spread awareness about or spend time with people who have disabilities.

Build America is another event that Push America holds during the summer. Over the course of six weeks, the Build America team traveled around the country visiting different camps and communities to improve accessibility of areas for people with disabilities. The money team members raised goes directly back to the community through various building projects. As with Journey of Hope, the team also made friendship visits along the way and spent time with the campers.

This past summer's team consisted of 22 members, five who were from Georgia Tech. They visited six different camps and completed six single-day service projects. Brian Schenck, a fifth-year building construction major who participated in the '06 Build America project, decided to take part in the '07 team as well by acting as the team's project manager. The other Tech members who participated were public relations chair Will Reed, a fifth-year chemical engineering student, historian Mike Roche, fourth-year biomedical engineering, Chris Doyle, fifth-year management, and Doug Stine, third-year management. They helped build access ramps for basketball courts, horseback riding centers and docks, constructed a large storage facility and converted a gravel path to a concrete one.

At the end of their journey, the Build America team met the Journey of Hope team in Washington, D.C., to celebrate and reflect upon everything that they had accomplished. Schenck, Reed and Heffner all say that being able to leave a lasting impression and knowing that they had impacted so many people's lives was one of the most rewarding parts of their experience. While there were challenges along the way, such as biking across and climbing the Sierra Nevada Mountains or working all day in 100-degree-plus heat, the men agree that being a part of a team that is doing something great makes it easier to go on. "It's easy to keep going," Heffner said, when you see everyone around you and know that they are working just as hard as you and that you're all working for the same ultimate purpose — to help those with and spread awareness about people who have disabilities.

To find out more about Push America projects, visit www.pushamerica.org.