Extreme Teams Spotlight : Eric

Eric Hofschire - Projects Team

What is your story about how you got involved in Extreme Community Makeover?

I’m a teacher, and with having summers off, I was looking for things to do. I had heard about ECM beginning (this is over ten years ago now) and it sounded right up my alley. I like being outside, doing projects, and working with people, so after I started, I was hooked. 

Why are you on the Projects Team?

The Projects Team fits both my skill set and my interests. I like having a clear goal of what we want to accomplish, then working with a small group of people to tangibly make a difference for a resident.

What do you enjoy most about being the team leader? 

I love the people on the Projects Team. I learn a lot from them, and they collectively have a great sense of humor.

What is a memorable experience from an ECM Work Day?

Before I committed to being on an Extreme Team and being a regular, I volunteered one day, maybe in 2010. I was at a house with a few yardwork projects, and the main group volunteering was a construction company. After we returned from lunch, the resident asked if we could remove a stump of an old tree he’d forgotten to ask about. We look at it, and it was not small. I’m thinking, How in the world? Then someone from the group makes a call, a half hour later a few people are carrying over a stump-grinder machine from someone’s pickup truck, they roar the thing to life and take out the stump. Just eliminate it. Then I’m thinking… I’m in the right place!

If you had one sentence to describe what ECM is about, what would you say?

Working together and building community along the way, to help each other out.

Anything else would you like to share?

I just want to thank anyone who’s volunteered with Extreme Community Makeover before. There are so many projects that seem challenging to pull off, but with enough people and the right attitude, it always seems to work.