Hola readers!
We had a busy day to start off our November in
the Dominican Republic. Our group ventured out of Sosua with our friend Steve,
a rotarian form Wasaga Beach, and Wilbur, our wonderful local translator, to
visit a couple of villages where Steve works with the people and helps with
numerous initiatives. We hopped on an open air bus in the rain and made our way
to our first destination while motorcycles and cars daringly zoomed around both
sides of our vehicle. As wild as the driving seems, we have yet to see an
accident or a traffic jam for that matter.
No sooner had we made it to the first village
we were ushered toward the local church. We hardly needed a guide as you could
hear the shouts of joy and feel the energy emanating from the building all the
way down the street. Their congregation welcomed us with open arms, prayed for
us and invited Dr. Doug to come to the front and speak to them. After offering
we moved further into the village and were joined by Wilbur's friends Delfin
and Stanley. These three men were extremely passionate about their community
and so dedicated to improving the living conditions in any way. They started by
showing us the original buildings that their village was formed around. The
long and narrow dwellings were once used to house the men working in the sugar
cane fields. When the sugar cane companies went under the men were left without
jobs. A new law made the situation even more difficult for Haitian workers
living in the Dominican Republic because they were no longer legally allowed to
work. So a large number of people live in these sugar can dorms and rely on the
community as they have no family and no means to provide for themselves. While
the living conditions are quite poor, the people are incredibly
optimistic. As Wilbur, Stanley and Delfin showed us around their village they
were quick to point out all of the improvements they had made. Delfin would
constantly point to different buildings and say, "with the help of our
friends, the rotarians, we painted the houses to improve the appearance of our
village," or "with the help of our friends, the rotarians, we built
these homes. The relationship between the locals, their Rotary branch and the
Rotary Club at large seems to be a powerful one. We were invited into their
community room to see where the children come to do their homework and learn
computer skills. Featured prominently on the wall was a large Rotary symbol,
but our local guides were most excited to show us and talk with us about what
they called "our BIG VISION." We were led to the edge of the village
to see acres and acres of untouched land. Delfin explained that their hope is
to buy the land and build a new community with proper infrastructure so that
everyone has plumbing and access to clean drinking water. On the border between
their current community and the land they dream will be home to their next,
they showed us the pens awaiting the goats that will come in the new year with
the help of Rotary and talked animatedly about their plans to make cheese with
the goats milk. Their optimism and belief in a better future was infectious! We
left the village with the joyous sound of the church band echoing in the
streets.
The second village we visited was in a very
remote area. We travelled rocky paths cut through abandoned sugar cane fields
and all of a sudden we jumped up onto beautifully paved roads. As soon as our
bus entered the village, people, especially children, started coming out of
their neatly kept, multi coloured homes. Steve explained that the village was part
of a project where families were relocated and given a house for five years and
if, after the time was up, the families had maintained their houses they were
given the papers. The children were quick to grab onto our sweaty hands and
pull us around wanting to show us their homes, their playground and demonstrate
their English speaking skills. The biggest hit with the kids was Lori's candy
apple scented hand sanitizer. They had an absolute blast washing their hands
and then showing each other how good their hands smelt.
Emily
