Saturday Service Projects, Part 3

Suzanne Loveland hanging out in Macao

Aly Cutlip with a girl in Domingo Maiz

This morning was very interesting learning about the Peace Corp and its goals as well as Kayla’s experiences in the Peace Corp.  Admittedly, it is a slow process to implement changes, but it is so important for our youth to see the opportunities that exist for them as well as the importance of service to community and the world. 

Kayla lives with a host family in her own small one room apartment with a bathroom off of it. She lives like all the other Dominicans in her neighborhood and writes grants as well as runs programs assigned to her. 

The trash pickup this morning is part of her project for waste management.   I was amazed at the enthusiasm of the youth and somewhat discouraged with some of the Dominican adults.  However their frustrations run deep with promises of trash pick-up and other services that we take for granted rarely occurring.  Apparently money is collected is collected for trash pick-up and then no one shows up….so everything piles up. I was most proud of our teens and their willingness to help and get our task done. 

The meal afterwards was an awesome opportunity for us all to be a part of the village for a while - taking in how the meal was prepared, watching the children play, seeing the poor looking dogs wandering, hearing music playing somewhere, seeing meat hanging for drying……… just taking it all in.

Dogs were wandering in the streets

Old water bottle functions as a basketball goal in Veron

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

At Veron, we dropped off school supplies.  I noticed that they had done some remodeling to the school which gave each classroom more privacy.  Although the school was not in session, one of the teachers met us there to receive the school supplies.  Of course, the local kids showed up and our teens played basketball with them,   shooting a ball into a plastic water container that had been nailed to the top of a pole.  The teacher pointed out a deaf child that was very smart and she had high hopes for him.  She introduced us to 2 children who had developmental delays that included speech difficulties.  She recognized that they had special needs and was doing the best that she could to try to help them.  In the USA the opportunities to help these children is much greater, but thank God for this teacher who at least knew that she had children with special needs.

Carol Nansel, Elizabeth (teacher at Collegio Elizabeth, Christine Hodges

Heading to Macao, the poorest village that we have seen, it was so “cool” to see the new bright green school that replaced the tin shack we saw last year.  The leader of the neighborhood met us as well as the teacher.  They both said that they remembered me from last year!  Wow!  Although no program was planned, the whole village showed up and all of the kids came to see us.  This teacher is the one who just decided she needed to do something for her community and quit her job at the resort to open this school.  The local Rotary built this school and obtained 3 toilets for the school.  The leaders of the community decided to use only two of the toilets and surprised the teacher by giving her a toilet for her home.  The teacher commented that she never thought she would ever own her own toilet……Can you imagine your home without a toilet?

The sincerity of these teachers was heartwarming and provoked some tears from several of us.

Children in Macao who welcomed us

I would like to thank all of my family, patients, friends, coworkers, and St. Paul’s UCC for all of their support for Bobby and me.  We have been  learning so much and are so proud to be a part of this service. 

Contributed by:  Suzanne Loveland, Shenandoah County

Teacher in Macao, Carol Nansel, President of the Macao Neighborhood Assoc., Christine Hodges

Saturday Service Projects, Part 2

Group photo at Domingo Maiz

Today we visited a couple Dominican Republic villages. Our first stop was in Domingo Maiz, and this is where we started our service project. We picked up trash on a few streets and by the end of the morning we had plenty of kids wanting to help and plenty of new friends.

After picking up trash we sat down to an amazing traditional Dominican lunch. As we enjoyed our lunch we also got to take in the different sights of the village. 

We had also dropped of school supplies to schools both there and in Veron. In Veron we got see a new school and meet a great community.  Everyone was thankful for the new supplies.

After that we ended the trip by spending a few minutes visiting the amazing Dominican beach at Macao.

Submitted by Garrett Coffey, Shenandoah County

Beans and Rice for lunch in Domingo Maiz - delicious!

 

Open air restaurant in Domingo Maiz

Enjoying lunch

Beans and rice, with pasta salad, chicken and beef

At lunch in Domingo Maiz

The local kids hung out with us in Domingo Maiz

Garrett learned a new Dominican game on the beach 

Grayson, Garrett, Bobby and Liam on the beach at Macao

Saturday's Service Projects

Jacob Love picking up trash in Domingo Maiz

Today was a very different experience for me.  Today was the day that we went on our service project and picked up trash.  Some of the trash that we had to pick up was very disgusting. 

After we picked up trash we went to two different villages and delivered school supplies to the schools.  We got to see most of the village and it was very different to what we are used to in the United States.  A fun part of today was when we delivered the school supplies and handed out candy to the children.  It was great to see the way their faces lit up when we arrived. 

Today was a really good day and I am glad I got to see a different culture and see the how different they live from us.

Contributed by Jacob Love, Rappahannock County

Entrance to Domingo Maiz - BEFORE

Busy trash pickers - 4-H teens and local children

What we collected in the main entrance to Domingo Maiz

The entrance to Domingo Maiz - AFTER!

 

The 4-H Day Camp Experience

Wow, what an experience this has been.  We have met so many wonderful teens and kids.  Some of them could speak a little English but a lot of them could not speak any English.  This didn’t stop the 4-H teens from communicating and helping 53 Dominican kids enjoy their two days at our 4-H day camp.  The first full day here was spent meeting the Dominican teens and preparing everything for the two days of Day Camp.  The Dominican kids bonded with the 4-H kids like they have known each other all their lives.   

 

53 Dominican campers + 14 American + 8 Dominican teens
+ 7 adults = one great 4-H Day Camp!

 The first day of Day Camp was spent tie-dying shirts, making different crafts, playing games, touring a bee farm and a worm compost farm, and getting ready for an afternoon of water sports, which the kids absolutely loved.  I am not so sure Cody Ross and I felt the same way after filling all those water balloons. 

The second day of Day Camp was even better.  The communication gap was a lot easier.  The Dominican kids learned a lot of English words and the 4-H counselors learned a lot of Spanish words, which made it a lot easier to communicate. 



Cody Ross and Kim Ryman fill water balloons

We also completed the crafts that we started on the first day and did a couple of extra ones day as well.  A huge thanks to our Virginia friends for donating so much stuff that we were able to do with the Dominican kids. 



The Iguana Preserve

We also toured an Iguana preserve as well as a ranch where we got to see a lot of the same animals that we have back home.  The afternoon was spent at the beach, where the Dominican kids had a blast!!!!  They were able to play with the counselors in the water and have a great time.  It was sad to see them go home at the end of the day but it was very rewarding see what an awesome time they had at Day Camp.

Campers from Domingo Maiz - We paid for their transportation and registration fee
so that they could participate in the 4-H Day Camp.  Kayla, from the Peace Corps, has been working with them.

I am looking forward to tomorrow.  We will be going into Domingo Maiz for a service project of trash pickup along the streets of the village.  We will also be having lunch in a small restaurant in the village.

Contributed by Kim Ryman, Shenandoah County

Final Day of 4-H Day Camp

Grayson Love, Bobby Loveland and Liam Matthews with campers

Today was a great day. We started out bright and early at 8:15 a.m. and we prepared for the second day of day camp. The children arrived and were ready for the day’s festivities. We took a big group picture and then headed to the iguana farm and petting zoo. It was hot, but the campers were excited to see the animals. We then ate an American lunch consisting of hot dogs and French fries.

We headed to the beach (on a bus thankfully). We got there, all hot and sweaty, ready to go in.  We enjoyed every second of it. Unfortunately, we had to say our adios to our Day Campers today.

Grayson Love and campers

We returned to the resort and played water polo. Boys rule, girls drool. We invited the Dominican teens to join us for dinner at La Cana, which was scrumptious. We had a meeting, and now here we are, blogging away. Until next time…..

Contributed by Bobby Loveland, Shenandoah County and Grayson Love, Rappahannock County



Nicole Kibler saying goodbye to a camper

The water polo game

The girls ruled!

Hanging out in the evening

Grayson and Bobby blogging

First Day of 4-H Day Camp - A Success!

Campers playing Twister

Two of my favorite days throughout this week are when we host our 4-H Day Camp. This morning we all woke up early and headed over to get a good breakfast in and then we headed to the Ecological Foundation at 8:15 a.m. When we arrived we already had a couple of campers there patiently waiting on us playing UNO that they had found in our bag of activities. Then the big rush of campers came in pretty quickly. We all gathered around tables playing Jenga, cards, playing with soccer/beach balls, and socializing with each other. I was so glad to see more Dominican Teens to help us out with the camp, especially because they are bilingual and they could help us when needed to communicate with other campers. Although, one thing I have noticed is that even though we may speak different languages we still can communicate with each other through bits and pieces of our language and hand gestures.

Chase with a special friend

About an hour into the camp I look over and see a familiar face, one of my best buds from two years ago, Edwin. I wasn’t exactly sure if it was him or not so I walked over behind him and said Edwin, to see if he would turn around, which he did. When he saw me his eyes got big and he let out a loud “CHAAASSSEEE”, I have never been so happy to see someone again after so long. We hugged and started talking to each other, with the help of a translator, he was glad to come again this year and he was glad that we got to see each other again.

Painting picture frames

The Incredible Journey

Our first activity for the campers was for them to paint their picture frame which will house our group photo that we will take tomorrow. Then we taught them about the water cycle using the “Incredible Journey Game”. They ran around to different stations (river, ocean, groundwater, clouds, etc.) and collected a bead then rolled the dice to see where they go next as if they were a water molecule. After the Incredible Journey we played games until lunch time. During that time I noticed a little boy sitting on the floor all by himself; I went over and tried to see if something was wrong. He was alright; I think he was just bored. Little did I know when I offered him to play UNO with me that Lucas and I had immediately formed a tight bond. He was the cutest kid I have ever seen, he was so friendly and it seemed like he hugged me hundreds of times today, it really shows you that they really care about who we are and they appreciate what we are doing for them.

Bead necklace at the end of The Incredible Journey

After lunch we split into two; one group made a caterpillar out of pom-poms, glue, googly eyes, and other materials. It went fairly well, though it was a little difficult to get the campers focused, but they enjoyed making them.
The other group went on a tour to learn about the worm composting project and the bees that they raise. It was actually very interesting. When the guide raked his hand through the manure he turned up a ton of worms. I really like that they are doing a lot to make use of their resources. During the craft the campers also got to have a tasty snack of crackers and peanut butter and honey, they loved them.

Worms doing their part to make compost

Then to end the day we had some fun with water relays. The campers loved them and it really made them use teamwork, they were even cheering each other on. Then we did one of their favorites, the water balloon toss. It went fairly well, it did get a little hectic towards the end as they started to throw them at each other and pop them over each other’s heads.

After the water games, the camper’s parents began to show up to pick them up and take them home. It was really sad to know that we only had one day left with them. I love them so much and wish we had more time to spend with them. We all said our goodbyes knowing that tomorrow is going to be a great day. I cannot wait; I plan on spending every precious moment with them.

Caterpillar craft

After camp a lot of us went to the pool and started a game of water polo, which was great! I love playing water polo. We played boys against girls and unfortunately the girls won, because of their backup. Then we ate at the employee restaurant to finish off the night. Well I better get to bed, it is going to be a very busy and fun-fulfilled day with all of my great friends.

Susanna, Arielle, Kelsey and Heather - new friends

Contributed by Chase Smith, Bath County

Communicating during 4-H Day Camp

Nicole Kibler, Rachel Harriman and Kathryn Flynn get ready for the campers during the Incredible Journey

Today we met the Dominican teens.  It was amazing and fun when getting to know them.  Even though I couldn’t understand the campers, I learned some Spanish words and got to play and have fun with them. I really enjoyed trying out some Spanish words and speaking with the kids. My favorite part was when we all got together and had a water balloon fight, I could tell everyone was enjoying themselves!

Contributed by Nicole D. Kibler, Shenandoah County

 

Lexus Ryman staffing a station during the Incredible Journey

Today was definitely very frustrating for me! Trying to talk to the campers and trying to understand what they were saying was hardest part. Thankfully there were some campers who did speak a little English and we also had the Dominican teens. Everything we did today was very fun. The crafts were really easy to explain to the kids. I figured out that the kids here are way more “high strung” then the kids in Virginia. Some of them are so funny though, you just can’t help but fall in love with them. The water balloon fight was really intense today too. I had water balloons coming from everywhere towards me, which was pretty scary! But over all I’m having a really good time.  

 

Contributed by Lexus Ryman, Shenandoah County