Cole Delaney has been an intern with United Lutheran Church under the direction of Pastor Justin Boeding. Through his time, he has gotten to work with multiple non-profit organizations across the City of Red Wing. Cole has been working on the HOPE Heights build site with the Red Wing Go 2 Team twice a week.

As his time in Red Wing wraps up, Cole shares some thoughts about his experience.

What college, year, and what do you study?
I will be a senior at Grinnell College. I’m majoring in Psychology and Religious Studies.

Can you describe your internship journey?
I found this internship through my Religious Studies advisor, who mentioned a grant to me.
Then, I talked with my good friend and roommate, Eli (whose dad is a pastor at United
Lutheran), and he connected us. From there, we communicated by phone and email and
eventually arranged an internship through Grinnell’s summer internship program.

What has it been like being at these different sites?
As part of this internship, I’ve volunteered at a variety of organizations in Red Wing. The
diversity is what has made this internship feel very fulfilling and impactful. At Care Clinic,
Hispanic Outreach, and Next Steps, I spent more time doing office and people-facing work,
while the Habitat site gave me the opportunity to do hands-on physical, outdoor work. Having
that balance has been one of the best parts of the experience.

What is it like being at the Habitat site?
Helping out at the Habitat site has been one of the most enjoyable parts of my time supporting
different organizations in Red Wing. Not only are the guys I work with hardworking and always
willing to teach, but watching the house gradually come together has also been incredibly
rewarding. It’s clear that a great deal of care goes into every stage of construction -no corners are
cut, and every step is treated as important. When I first arrived, I had very little experience with
Habitat or construction work in general. Since then, I’ve learned a tremendous amount and
become at least a little more handy. Being able to work outdoors has been a huge bonus as well.

What have you learned about Habitat for Humanity?
I’ve learned a great deal about both the construction process and Habitat’s mission. Before this
internship, I knew very little about the technical side of homebuilding or how Habitat finances
homes and makes them affordable for families. Learning about those systems has been
fascinating. On the construction side, I’ve learned many practical skills and techniques, from patching
openings in Fox Blocks before a concrete pour to understanding why gravel is used beneath a
basement slab to help with drainage and radon resistance. Most importantly, I’ve learned that building a home truly takes a village. Skilled people like Nick are essential, but volunteers with little experience (like myself) also play an important role. Habitat’s work depends on people coming together and contributing in whatever ways they can, and I was fortunate to see that firsthand through the Go 2 Crew and the many volunteers who
have supported the project.

What are you going to take with you from this internship?
I’ll take with me the idea that it truly takes a village. A good team can make physically
demanding work and long, hot days much more manageable. I also hope to carry what I’ve
learned at Goodhue Habitat with me and apply it to Habitat chapters back home in Oregon and
wherever life takes me in the future.

Do you have a favorite memory or moment you remember from being on site?
I think my favorite memory was shoveling pea rock around the foundation to cover the landscape
fabric below. While it was certainly physically demanding, I liked that it was something I was
fully in charge of. It rained most of the day so conditions weren’t ideal, and everything was
muddy. At one point, Gary jumped in to help, and by the end we were shoveling pea rock out
from under the fabric with our hands. Gary was on his hands and knees in the mud and it became
such a comical situation. We were both caked in mud, the job seemed to take forever, and it was
a genuinely difficult task. Looking back, though, it’s the experience I remember the most fondly!