Pedaling for Affordable Housing

Hello All!

Welcome to 2x4, the blog about 2 women biking across the country on 4 wheels for 4,000 miles and building houses along the way. Let's start with some introductions-

We are Annamaria Viazzo and Kathryn Small, both of us are students at Stony Brook University in New York, but we haven't let that interfere with our free time! Annamaria grew up in New York and is currently studying Biology and Bioengineering. Previously she has spent her summers as a camp counselor first in North Carolina at Surf Camp and more recently at Sanborn Western Camps in Colorado.  Kathryn came to Stony Brook from New Mexico and is working on earning a Biomedical Engineering degree during the school year, but thought her past two summers would be much better spent outside as a rock climbing instructor at Boy Scout camps. (To learn more about each of us check out our bios by clicking on our pictures at the top of the page.)

We are both super excited for the upcoming summer, which we will spend cycling across the country building houses and raising awareness for the affordable housing cause across the U.S.! How are we able to do all this? Through a great non-profit organization called Bike & Build. Each summer Bike & Build organizes eight cross-country trips - each one accepts about 30 young adults as cyclists which means that every summer Bike & Build has hundreds of participants. On our bike trip across the country we plan on pushing our limits, meeting some amazing people, and rating the country's best food (and beer!). The trip that we chose will take us from Rhode Island to California over a period of 10 weeks, but while we are pedaling our way across the country we will also be contributing to an amazing cause that is affecting people across the country.

We will stop in several towns across America to support the affordable housing cause; not only will we raise money and awareness for this effort, but we will pitch in with local affordable housing organizations to build houses in communities we stop at along the way. Affordable housing is defined as shelter that costs no more than 30% of a household's income, which is almost impossible to find in many places in the U.S.! Some people think renting, instead of buying, housing will fix this problem, but the amount of renters spending more than 30% of their household income on rent rose to 53% in 2010, up 3% from the number in 2008.¹ In fact, a family with one full-time worker earning minimum wage cannot afford a two bedroom apartment at the local fair-market rent anywhere in the United States.² Many people are faced with a difficult decision: do they use more of their income on housing and end up with less to spend on necessities like food, or do they settle for housing that is comparatively cheaper but is old, filthy, and falling apart?

That's why we think getting involved in the housing crisis of the country is a fantastic way to spend our summer of 2013. Not only will this trip go toward benefitting those people in need, but we're absolutely thrilled about the chance to bike across the country! We're not kidding ourselves, it'll definitely be difficult - before we're able to get started on our trip we have to bike 500 miles, spend time volunteering at our local affordable housing effort, and raise $4,500 each for the cause. Not only will these requirements prepare us for the physically and mentally demanding summer we have ahead of us, but the money we raise will go toward fortifying the efforts of affordable housing organizations in communities in need across the nation. That's where we need your help! Any donation you make to this unique and deserving cause will help us to reach our goal, and help those in need to be able to afford a basic human necessity for themselves and their families.

For the next few months you will be able to follow our progress as we train and fundraise for this excellent mission. We will update this blog with more information about ourselves, affordable housing, the towns we'll be cycling through, videos and photos of our training, and anything else we think you might find interesting. So please consider donating and visit the Bike and Build website to find more information about this awesome effort!

You'll be hearing from us soon!
Annamaria and Kathryn