Hollis Brookline group performs Habitat for Humanity project in New Orleans

On Nov. 6, 18 Hollis Brookline High School seniors traveled to New Orleans for a Habitat for Humanity trip inspired by the novel “Zeitoun” by Dave Eggers, which the students read in English teacher Ann Melim’s Memoirs and Biography class. Melim and English teacher Heidi Foster accompanied the group, along with Foster’s husband, Arne Godtfredsen. The group had no idea what they were in for or what the New Orleans culture would be like. “I loved the environment of the city,” Lex Wentworth said. “You could tell the people there really love where they live.” While working with Habitat for Humanity, the group made a great friend named Forest who taught them how to build a driveway. The crew grabbed shovels and mixed heavy bags of concrete with water.