Global Youth Service Day (April 23-25) is an annual campaign that celebrates and mobilizes children and youth who improve their communities each day of the year through service and service-learning.  The New School students chose to build picnic tables for HfHYC as their project after a three-week intensive study about shelter and survival. The New School was awarded the State Farm Good Neighbor and Youth Service America Service-Learning Grant for their service learning project on “Shelter”. 
 Shelter is a basic but essential concept, meaning a structure protecting one from the elements. After studying different modes of shelter (locally and in cultures throughout the world where Habitat for Humanity’s volunteers build homes for low-income families), one group of TNS students spent time building their own shelters as part of a wilderness survival week.
 Another group spent time in several cities including Cambridge and Boston, where they slept and volunteered at the Harvard Square Homeless Shelter. The Boston group found it especially difficult to find things to do that didn't cost anything during the long days; they had to wait until 9:00 each night to volunteer for 4 hour shifts at the Harvard shelter.
 As the culmination of the 3-week study, students decided to help HfHYC.  They volunteered to build picnic tables for upcoming Habitat projects.  The first table will be taken to Limerick where it will initially be used to seat volunteers during lunch and breaks during construction before being turned over to the new homeowners.