Saturday, August 8, 2015 Community Service Day

(keep scrolling down for lots of photos AND a video - hope it works!)

After a long flight the day before we did get to sleep in this morning. It was much needed and everyone was well rested for the long day to come. To start our day off we had an AMAZING breakfast. At this resort they served American, Dominican, and English style breakfast. Foods ranging from mashed plantains, fresh tropical fruit drinks, to a festive omelet station (personally made for you). Our first stop was at the Ecological Foundation to separate our donated school supplies into two different boxes for the schools we would be visiting later in the day.

Our second stop was to the village of Domingo Maiz to conduct our community service projects. Our projects included painting a 4-H clover on a concrete mural in the middle of the park in their village.

Our second project was to work with the Dominican teens and local children to pick up trash throughout the streets. Many of the kids living in Domingo Maiz came out and helped us with picking up trash. There were around 30-40 kids who helped us. One of our chaperons, Charlie, met two Dominican boys who were also named Charlie and they spent the morning picking up trash together.

Evolution of the Virginia 4-H Clover in Domingo Maiz

After our projects were finished we had lunch in a local Dominican home. We had the “traditional meal” including: white rice, beans, and chicken. During all of this the teens as well as the Dominican teens interacted with the local kids at all times. Either passing the baseball back and forth, playing games with their hands, or having a good laugh “trying” to communicate with each other.

Being sweaty and already tired we climbed onto the bus and headed to our first school, Colegio Elizabeth, to donate supplies. Once arriving we found out that it had been turned into a daycare and a study hall for older kids. They were very grateful for the donations and will distribute the supplies to the neediest kids in their community. They also gave us a tour of the facility. When entering one of the rooms we noticed that the toilet had to be filled with water from a bucket. They also housed some of the kids in the village. Outside once again the teens were interacting with the children who followed our bus to Colegio Elizabeth. We also learned a new hand game from the local children.

For our last stop we went to a school in Cap Cana. We delivered supplies and toured again their facilities. This school taught 1^st grade through 8^th grade they also teach classes on how to make music without instruments and to use what they have available. We walked through their village to a church which is now used as a community center. By the end of this year they are hoping to add another grade to their school.

We then headed back to the resort. It was relaxing to spend a little time by the pool and to reflect on what we had experienced and accomplished in one day. Later in the evening we met in the lobby and had a brisk half-mile walk on the beach to our restaurant. During dinner we talked about the day and what we enjoyed most and also what our plans were for the next day. It is 10:29 and we are ready for bed. That usually never happens. We can’t wait to see what else this week holds for us.