Friday

Friday, February 13, 2015

Good morning!  Today is our last full day in the DR and we got an early start as we joined the Palo Blanco staff for worship at 7:30a.m.  Neil played guitar while we sang several of our favorite worship songs.  It was amazing to hear our favorite songs in Spanish and English at the same time.  As Neil has commented before, “at times like this, it is obvious that God is not American.”

 

After worship, we got to see the kiddos go through their daily routine of singing the national anthem before running off to class.  As usual, we enjoyed the many “holas” and hi-fives from all the kiddos as they ran in to their classes.  It is heart-warming to see so many children eager to attend school.

 

As we prepared for our final Valentine lesson, Chris B and Jason took care of the finishing touches for Ramon’s guard shack.  A custom sign was made with Ramon’s name as well as a reference to a verse in the bible.  We also took up a collection to be able to help Ramon and his family with funeral expenses for his mother who had passed away earlier in the week.  Our group was able to cover the unpaid portion of her casket as well as provide necessary food items for the family.  The Dominican culture celebrates for 11 days after someone passes and on the 11^th day, the family provides a meal for family and friends (which can be hundreds of people).  Our hope was that we were able to provide a little relief to this family during their time of grief.

 

Today we got a special treat for lunch….we were able to go downtown and enjoy lunch with Derrick and Katie Allen at one of their favorite places.  Most of us enjoyed a burger and fries (yes, American food).  Throughout the week, we ate rice and beans every day for lunch with the Palo Blanco kids and staff so the burgers and fries were a welcome change!  After lunch, we were able to do a little shopping for the usual coffee, vanilla and souvenirs for family and friends.  As we walked the streets amongst the vendors we got to experience another side of the Dominican culture.  It was not unusual to walk past dozens of people trying to sell clothing, fruit and vegetables and other services on the sidewalks.  A little Dominican boy was shining shoes on a corner as another one was begging for a peso in exchange for “guarding your car”.  How sad to think that there are so many young children who have to work the streets to earn enough money to eat. 

 

After shopping, we went back to the Ark for one last visit with the kiddos before heading home on Saturday.  There were many laughs as we watched the house fathers play baseball with the young boys. Jason and Tyler grabbed gloves and bats and joined in the fun (they are kids at heart).  Even though there was an obvious language barrier, there was a complete understanding of a team and they were able to play the game without any problems.

 

Although there was laughter, there were many, many tears when it came time to say goodbye.   Although the week was amazing and life-changing, the goodbyes were the worst part (goodbye is the worst part of every trip to the DR).  We are in a place where love is not Spanish or English.  Love is not material things or gifts.  Love is what we see in the smiles and the hugs of all the children to have captured our hearts and who are now a part of our lives.   Those of us who have made this trip before have left a piece of our hearts in the Dominican with every trip.  With this trip, Jenna and Jason are now a part of the brokenness that the rest of us feel from being a part of this experience.

 

 

 

Saturday, February 14, 2015

This morning Jenna, Neil, Jason, Tyler and Keith loaded their luggage into the van and headed to the airport for the trip back to the U.S.  We pray for safe travels as they return home and attempt to find some sort of normalcy in their lives.  Please continue to pray for each of them as they process their week and re-connect with their friends and family.

 

Chris, Rachel, Chris and Chris will remain in the DR another week.  As we will not have access to the internet, this will be the last blog posted.  Thank you for following our team and for the continued prayers and encouragement during our trip.

 

 

 

 

Thursday

Thursday, February 12

This morning we started our day at Palo Blanco where we held 3 more Valentine parties.  The weather was overcast and dreary but the smiles and laughter of all the kiddos were a welcome substitute for the sun which did not shine today.  We were happy to see Luz (an employee at Palo Blanco) return to school today as she had been transported to the local hospital on Wednesday.  We ask for continued prayers for her and her doctors as they continue to run tests to determine what is causing the issues she has been having recently.

Chris B. and Jason continued their work on the new guard shack which was built this week at Palo Blanco.  Once they are finished, this will be an amazing little “casa” for Ramon who watches the gates outside Palo.  He serves a very important role as he keeps the children safe by only opening the gates for parents, staff and authorized visitors.  Because of the location of Palo Blanco, it is critical to keep the school and the children out of harm’s way.

Chris W. and Rachel were able to pass out the gifts from the CCW sponsors this afternoon.  It was heart-warming to see the curious eyes of many little children peeking around the doorway to see who was getting a gift and to inquire “is it my turn yet?”   It was so rewarding to see the huge smiles on the little faces of the kiddos who received gifts.  It is amazing to see how the simplest gifts can mean so much to these children who have very little otherwise.  We heard many thank-you’s from children to their madrinos/padrinos (sponsors).

Several of our team members were able to join Katie Allen on home visits where we got an inside look at a Dominican home and the living conditions that most of our sponsored kiddos call “home”.   Several team members were able to see a Dominican washer which consists of filling one side with water from a hose or bucket, washing and spinning.  Then you remove the clothes to the other side, empty the water, fill it back up for rinsing, add your clothes to the clean water, rinse and spin.  Imagine how long it would take to do laundry if we had to go through these steps with every load!  Not only is it heart-breaking to see, it has been a real reality-check for us and serves as a reminder of how very blessed we are. 

Tonight we had dinner at the VanDermolen’s with our sponsored kiddos from the Ark.  We enjoyed playing volleyball, jumping on the trampoline and playing foos-ball.  Afterwards, we ate pizza and handed out gifts to the kiddos.  Karen Green was able to join us and it was great to be able to spend some time with her and to hear more about her life while serving in the D.R.

This morning we woke up bright and early so that we can get to Palo Blanco early to share in devotions with the staff. We were surprised to wake up to the smell of breakfast cooking. Jason had gotten up earlier than the rest of us, set a nice table, and was taking personalized orders for breakfast including toast, eggs, ham, fruit and coffee. What a gentleman! Darla, when Jason gets home don’t let him fool you…..he can cook and provide great service! (Maybe his motivation was the big tip jar on the counter. J Actually, the tip jar is for donations the team is collecting as a donation for Ramon, the Palo Blanco guard, whose family recently experienced the death of their matriarch.)

Neil had a whole swarm of kids surrounding him within minutes of starting to play.
 



Chris R and Josue
 

Maria launched Rachel into the air on the trampoline.
 

Neil and Chris W twirling the jump rope for Coralma

Daniella loves it when Jenna is a caballito (little horse).

Wednesday

I didn't have time to write last night but wanted to let you all know that you are well. A few team members are fighting colds so we ask for prayers for health and that the germs wont spread to the rest of us. We were able to pass out the gifts to the ANIJA kids yesterday. They were all very grateful and had a lot of fun! We are going to have a special dinner with the Ark kids tonight and give them their gifts. It should be lots of fun.

Tuesday

Tuesday February 10, 2015

I want to take a few minutes to paint the scene that I’m currently surrounded with while I write this entry. I am sitting in the living room of our team house with the front door wide open to the porch. The breeze is warm and I hear the buzz of insects, the crunch of truck tires on the gravel road, the roar of moped engines, the occasional intrusion of loud merengue music blaring from a passing truck, and the clank of bamboo shoots that are taller than the house waving in the wind across the street. Some of the team is sitting out on the front porch chatting with Karen Green who joined us for dinner tonight.

Another fun-filled, energizing, tiring, loud, chaotic day at Palo Blanco is under our belts. Jason and Chris Bennett finished up work on the guard house at Palo Blanco. They even installed a metal louvered window for air circulation. As they finished their work the Skim Ice man pushed his little freezer cart by the school gate and Chris Bennett purchased a bunch of cherry and apple skim ices (which are equivalent to flavor ice popsicles) to share with the team and some lucky children.

Jenna, Jason, Chris Russell and Rachel went on some home visits this afternoon. We walked past the houses closest to the road (which tend to be the nicer homes), down a little muddy foot path to some small shacks. At the bottom of the hill we encountered two Haitian children who were approximately 2 and 4 years old, by themselves. There was a fire burning in the outside kitchen (which was a little wooden lean-to) and no adult watching out for the children’s safety. We learned that it is not uncommon at all for children to be left alone to fend for themselves for the day. Many times children as young as 6 are left at home to care for infants while their parents are away – often without any milk or supplies to feed the baby. This reality makes the importance of a school program, such as Palo Blanco, much more evident. At Palo Blanco the kids are given a uniform, fed nutritious meals, educated, and taught about God’s love. We are all so thankful for this program’s existence and humbled to play a small part in the ministry and these kid’s lives.

Well, that is all I have for now. The team is going to head up the hill to Pizza Pepperoni for a snack and some WiFi. Good night all!

 

 (Neil's David Ortiz mural at Palo Blanco)

(Tyler helping Andy with his art project.)

(Chris Bennett finishing up work on the guard shack. Chris Russell is really just watching. )

Pictures!

 (Dinner at Delicias Columbiano's on Sunday night.

(Rachel and Maria at church)

 (Carmen taking Jason down in an arm wrestling match)

 (Daniella and Jenna)

(Coralma, Chris, Destini and Janna at the waterfall.)

(Underwater picture of Teresa at the waterfall)

(Richard and Chris W)

Monday

February 9, 2015 – Monday

I thought I would start off today’s blog with a few things we are thankful for. 1) We haven’t seen any cockroaches yet. 2) We haven’t been served chicken feet in our rice and beans yet (although I have to say that I’m dismayed that Jason has put in a special request for them!). 3) Carmen’s cooking is just as good as we remember!

On our way to our first day at Palo Blanco School this morning we stopped to exchange our money. It is always fun to hand over $25 and get 1000 pesos back. We feel like the Dominicans are getting the raw end of the deal on that one!

We did quite a mixture of activities at Palo Blanco today. We had a Valentine’s Day Party for one of the older classes. Chris Russell decided to be a scientist and did a fun experiment with hydrogen peroxide, yeast and dish soap. The ingredients were poured into a tall plastic bottle and the combination caused a foam to grown uncontrollably and spew out of the bottle. The kids were taught that God’s love grows exponentially just like the foam in the experiment. The kids were also able to work on an art project under the instruction of our resident art teacher, Neil and decorate a cookie with frosting and sprinkles.

Jenna spent hours playing with the kids on the playground being followed around like a mother goose and her ducklings. The kids fell in love with her quickly and were sad to see her go at the end of the day!

As anyone who spends much time in the Dominican Republic quickly learns, plans change by the minute and it is important to be flexible. Our initial plan for the day at Palo Blanco went out the window before we even arrived. We learned that the mother of the gatekeeper had unexpectedly passed away in the middle of the night. Her daughter-in-law is one of the cooks in the kitchen and many of her grandchildren attend the school as well. In the DR the majority of people have no money for embalming and the body is not sent to a funeral home. Because of this the burial must take place within 24 hours of death. The entire school was shut down early so that the staff could go to the family’s home to pay respects. The body was laid on ice in a casket inside the home where people could come and pay respects. It is custom to stay with the family for hours and often times wail loudly to express how much you love the deceased. The cultural and socioeconomic differences in how the family and community responds to death is, in many ways, a stark contrast to our customs in the U.S. – but the grief is still the same.

After leaving Palo Blanco we headed to the Ark for recreation time before dinner. It was pouring rain so we spent much of the time under the porches of the homes hanging out with the kids and house parents. When the rain let up many of us went down to the soccer field to watch a very muddy, messy soccer practice.

Dinner was a special treat as we were joined by Vic and Leslie Trautwein, some of our favorite missionaries. This couple is an amazing blessing to Kids Alive, this country, this community, and to each of us as individuals. We were blessed to listen to how the ministry has grown as well as to hear updates about their four children.

Tomorrow is another day at Palo Blanco with more parties, projects, and playtime. It is time to head to bed and get some sleep because the roosters wake us up early! (Oh wait, it is after 10pm and I am hearing at least 5 roosters already. I think they are a little confused about their job!)

 

Sunday

Sunday, February 8^th

The day to see the kids finally arrived!  Even though we didn’t get picked up until 10:00a.m., we were all wide awake and raring to go by 8:00 (did I mention we were excited?!) 

We went to the Ark Orphanage where we enjoyed worshipping with the kids and house parents at the orphanage as well as other local families and missionaries who came to join us.  We enjoyed familiar music in worship (in Spanish) and loved watching such a variety of people and ethnicities joining together to worship our awesome God. 

After service, we returned to the team house to enjoy a home-cooked Dominican meal consisting of roasted chicken, beans and rice, arepita (fried yucca), and a carrot/raisin salad. Upon finishing the meal, we returned to the Ark where we were able to take a number of the kids to the local waterfall.

 

 We had to cross four fun swinging bridges before reaching the water.  The water was quite cold (I know, I know, you’re in Indiana where the water is literally frozen so what are we complaining about here where it was 85 degrees today!). Jason, Chris and Jenna were brave enough (or dumb enough depending on how you want to look at it!) to jump in with the kids.

 

After dropping the kiddos back at the Ark, we headed back to the team house to get cleaned up before we headed to one of our local favorite restaurants. It is called Delicias Columbianos and had a variety of delicious foods such as empanadas and papas.

 

The evening ended with us working on preparing supplies for the 10 classes we will be teaching this week at Palo Blanco.  The school is in the poorest area of Jarabacoa.  We will be doing a lesson, craft and snack with nearly 270 children this week. Whew! 

 

More pictures and stories to come. Thanks so much for all of your support and prayers! We are feeling them!

Team 2015 is on the road!

It is 2am and we are officially on the road to O'Hare airport in Chicago. The roads are clear and most of us are too hyped up to sleep on the trip. A big thank you to Sheena Tallman and Mike Clemons for meeting us at the church to pray for us before we left. Thank you to Steve Dils for being graciously roped into being our driver. We appreciate your prayers throughout our trip. So you can pray for us by name I am listing our team members below.

Chris Wert
Chris Bennett
Chris Russell
Rachel Russell
Jenna Minier
Neil Boston
Keith Miller
Tyler Hager
Jason Mavis

We are excited to love on some kiddos and show them how crazy God is about them. Let's get this party started!