ELIAS PINA - OUR LAST DAY

It is so hard to believe that today is our last day.  The week went way too fast and the thought of leaving is very difficult for almost everyone.  As excited as we are to see our families at home and to tell you all about what we have experienced - the thought of leaving the new friends and families we have here weighs heavy on our hearts.

Yesterday we finished painting the wall in the afternoon and then spent the evening with our families since we have such limited time left.

Today we went with Fr Mike to a small little campo chapel called Plan Café.  It was a long ride through the mountains - at times we felt like we were on a rollercoaster but we sang and laughed and took in the beauty of God's creation around us.  We couldn't drive up to the chapel because it is tucked away in the mountains so we had to walk a rocky terrain for about a half an hour to finally get to this small chapel.  The people were so welcoming and we loved clapping along with the music and experiencing the sacrifice of the Mass with them.  After Mass we broke out some bubbles and other balls, Frisbees, etc.  The kids didn't know what to do with the stuff.  They had never seen anything like what we had before.  It took them quite awhile to warm up and even try the stuff.  It was nice to be able to bring some laughter to their lives and leave things there for them to play with after we leave.  It was a touching experience for all of us.

This afternoon we went to a daycare center and got our fill of babies and little kids - so many of them all wanting our attention.  Their laughter and enthusiasm brought smiles to our faces.  They loved the bubbles and spent at least an hour jumping after them popping them.  Such simple things that bring so much joy to these people.

The students each put together some money that they want to donate for the two boys (Miguel & Julio Cesar) who live each day with hunger.  They beg for food each day and pray that someone will give them something.  We washed their clothes for them yesterday but they both still need a bath.  We came up with over $200 that we are leaving here at the parish.  They are going to buy food for them to bring to their homes so they can make it and have food to eat each day.  This money will go so far for both of them and their families.  Our hope is to continue to send money to the parish here so they can continue to buy food for them and keep them off of the streets begging for food.

Fr Mike is treating us to pizza tonight and then it is back to our families for our final night before leaving at 7:00 am.  Our hope is to be able to stop by the beach on our way to the airport and spend some time taking in the beauty of this island.  We really are looking forward to seeing our families it is just so hard to think of leaving here.  We pray for safe travels and that we will see you all very soon!!


Ali & Grace with a little baby after the Mass today



Clapping along with the music before Mass began

Leah and David making friends with the bull

Our group with the people of Plan Cafe

Anne with one of the boys at the day care

This little girl cried every time Betty tried to put her down

Connor and his pal Julio Cesar

Matt was Mr Popular with bubbles

Millaine helping the kids at the daycare blow bubbles

It was love at first sight with Reed and this little guy

Troy getting a face full of bubbles brought lots of
laughs to these little ones

ELIAS PINA DAY 7

Yesterday afternoon we were able to go to the English school and give the students there a chance to speak with Americans and hear our accent and practice their English.  This is an intense English course taught by a man from Philadelphia.  They go to class for 4 hours every day for an entire semester.  We were all impressed by their English and had fun talking with them.

Connor, Troy, Matt and Betty saw Julio Cesar again today and they were able to buy him for a meal at a local restaurant.  He ate so much - they could tell how hungry he was.  He was still wearing his new tennis shoes.  It has really made all of us wanting to find a way to help him as well as another young boy named Miguel who has no parents to care for him.  We thought of sending money each month to cover food for him each day.  We don't know the best way to do this so we are going to talk to Fr Mike to see how we can help.  Father Mike's cook Alvira thinks it will be best to send Fr Mike money and she will buy groceries for them to be able to make a meal for themselves.  We are going to do all we can to make sure these two young boys do not have to live with hunger.

What a great night we had last night celebrating Troy and Matt's birthdays.  Many of our Dominican friends showed up to join in the festivities.  The girls were able to decorate the place with balloons and birthday signs that we brought along and they both seemed to be surprised.  Our 4 lb cake was a lot bigger than we thought it would be but we seemed to finish it all by giving away to some of the family members who couldn't make it to the party.  It was a great night.

Today we painted the wall that was built by the group from the Green Bay diocese who came in January.  We were able to interact with our Dominican friends and have a great time while doing something good for the parish that has welcomed us with open arms this past week.  After lunch we will go back and finish painting all that we can.  The Bishop of the diocese is coming to have lunch today on his way to Haiti - what a treat for us to be able to meet him and to be able to share a meal with him.

It is so hard to believe that tomorrow will be our last day here in Elias Pina - how will we say good bye?  How will we share this experience with everyone?  Will we ever return here?  So many questions running through our minds right now - hopefully our group sharing tonight will be able to help us sort through all of this in our minds and our hearts.


Betty giving gum to a little girl we saw at the English school



Troy and Matt with their massive birthday cake.
We had 18 candles for each of them to blow out.



One of the groups of students at the English school



Emily giving some of the frosting to her Dominican nephew

ELIAS PINA DAY 6

What a rollercoaster of emotions the last 24 hours have been for us. Yesterday we spent the afternoon playing on the playground because it was the last day of vacation for the kids before returning to school. We met some other Americans who are here as Morman missionaries and they played volleyball with us and then went to get ice cream with us. While eating ice cream there was a little boy who just sat at the entrance of the store and never begged for anything just watched all of us. He was filthy dirty - looked like his clothes hadn't been washed in at least a month and he hadn't bathed for as long. He had no shoes. Betty bought him an ice cream and she and Connor struck up a conversation with him. Troy, Connor & Matt decided that since the market was still going on that they were going to go through the market and buy him a pair of shoes - he came back with a nice pair of tennis shoes - then we made sure he got some bread, water and cookies before he went on his way. It was difficult to see this young boy so alone in the world - so innocent, so hungry and so dirty. The students started to question, WHY? Why was he born into such a situation? How could someone so young be so hungry and poor? It was a difficult afternoon of questioning and praying.

We also had a chance to work in the bakery - many hands make light work - with all 14 of us working it took so much less time to get all of the bread and cookies bagged so they could sell them.

Then at night we met to learn how to dance the Dominican way - we had fun and laughed and made great memories with our new friends here in the Dominican Republic.

On Tuesday morning we had the chance to go up into the mountains and have Mass with the La Rosa community. We now know how sardines feel because this was us on the back of the truck. But it was a fun ride through the mountains being able to see a different part of this beautiful country. There weren't many people at the Mass but they all made sure they gave up their seats so we had somewhere to sit. After Mass we had brought a bunch of toys and bubbles with us to keep up there. These children had never seen bubbles and didn't even know what to do with them - we had to show them how to use the bubble and the jumpropes but the balls were a different story. They immediately found a big stick and a game of stick ball began. We had so much fun!! Such a big difference in the mountains - they have so little - no toys to play with and not much as far as homes to live in. It really has opened our eyes to a different world here.

After the Mass we got a tour of the parish's technical high school and now we are waiting for lunch. No paint yet so we may get to the English school this afternoon and hopefully paint tomorrow. It is so hard to believe that we only have 2 full days left after today. The time is going to go by so fast - we are already dreading having to leave our new friends and family here.

We are having a surprise birthday party for Matt & Troy tonight - ordered a 4 pound cake and invited all of the families along. We have party hats and horns and candles so it should be a great celebration for them.

 



Ali teaching a little girl how to jump rope



Bagging bread in the bakery



Anne & Leah with two little girls at the camp Mass



Ice cream break with our new friends who are Morman
 missionaries



Matt, Connor & Troy showing off their friend's
new shoes



Packed in the truck like sardines but so much fun!

ELIAS PINA DAY 5

David looking for Easter eggs with a little girl



Rachel helping with the egg hunt

Emily helping a little girl on the Easter egg hunt
 

Matt used his height advantage to help this little one
get an egg out of a tree
 

We are loving Elias Pina
 

Handing out treat bags at the end of the party
 



Reed helping with the Easter egg hunt

Millaine and a new friend she made


 

A belated Happy Easter to everyone.  Sorry we did not get a chance to update the blog yesterday - it was a full day with lots happening since our last update.  On Saturday afternoon we had so much fun playing on the playground with the kids and a group of us went to the home of Ali, Reed & Grace to play with the children in their neighborhood.  They live too far from the church playground to walk there to play with us so we went to them.  Then we got all dressed up and participated in the Easter Vigil.  The Mass began around 9:00 outside with the bonfire and lighting of the Easter candle and concluded at about 11:00 with all of us handing out glow sticks to the children as they left Mass.  More of the adults wanted the glow sticks because many of them have never seen anything like them.  Next year we definitely have to bring more than we did this year.  Easter Sunday was a chance for us to sleep in a little and boy did it feel good after the full day we had on Saturday.  Everyone (not just Ms Simon & Betty) were a little sore from the mountain walk the day before.  We got a chance to get ice cream at the ice cream store and boy did that hit the spot - it was a great Easter treat.  Then we went to the Montero home and helped with a special Easter party for many children (there were over 150 kids there).  Cris Montero died in a car accident in 2007 when she was pregnant with her first child.  She always loved children and each Easter she organized a party for the children - her memory lived on today through our students and it made her family so happy to hear the children singing and laughing and having a wonderful time.  The Easter egg hunt was a blast and then each child was given a treat bag with a pencil, stickers, toothbrush & toothpaste and a few little toys.  It was so much fun!!  After the party we had a chance to share with each other about our experience so far.  It amazes all of us that people here can be so happy when they have so little.  That they are so content with their life when to most of us it looks like their life is so difficult.  It has really opened our eyes to the fact that we are so blessed and we take so much for granted.  All of the students admit that they do not miss their phones, their computers, etc.  It is so nice to just simply live and enjoy the moment we are in and enjoying the people we are with rather than constantly texting others and not fully enjoying the moment.  It is a different feeling and hopefully will be something we will always remember.  We had a great Easter feast prepared by the Montero family - we all got a chance to try goat - it didn't taste bad it was just hard to eat knowing that was a goat.  Today we plan to go to the market and then to the English school to converse with the students there so they can hear a native speaker speak English.  Tonight is a dance at Rachel, Emily & Millaine's house.  It is so hard to believe we only have 4 days left here - it has gone so fast.  Enjoy the pictures.

ELIAS PINA DAY 3

Today we tackled the mountain and we won!!!  Everyone made it to the top of the mountain even Ms Simon & Betty!!  It was a great sense of accomplishment.  We had fun walking with our new Dominican friends.  We observed how different life is up in the mountains.  Children walking barefoot carrying large jugs of water for their family and just really homes that are basically nothing compared to where we are living for the week.  It was much warmer today without a cloud in the sky.  Temperature in the shade reads 92 degrees. We all had a frozen fruit bar when we got done with our walk and that hit the spot.  We are all a little exhausted so after breaking into a little of the chocolate that we brought along, the students are resting a bit before heading out to play more with the kids.  Tonight is the Easter Vigil Mass at 9:00 pm so tomorrow we will sleep in and then we are SO EXCITED for the Easter party with the little kids.

It is looking like our paint will not arrive until Tuesday afternoon so on Monday we are going to do a little laundry and play some more with the kids on their last day of vacation and work in the bakery.  The students are really starting to get attached to some of the people here (especially the little kids).  We are having a blast.  Last night we spent more time with our families and have lots of stories to share!!

Our group at the top of the mountain

A little excited to get to the top of the mountain

Grace showing the kids the picture she took of them - they reacted like they hadn't seen a picture of themselves before

ELIAS PINA DAY 2

Today began early with the Stations of the Cross through town and ending at the top of a small hill along the border of Haiti.  It was a great way for us all to begin our Good Friday.  After the Stations we spent some time playing on the playground with the children who were waiting for us when we return to the parish.  After a hot morning of playing we had American Mac N Cheese for lunch - 10 boxes for 15 people and we finished almost all of it!!  This afternoon we are going to walk and see more of the town - yesterday was Market Day and too busy to walk around town too much.  We are going to visit all of the homes and see how everyone lives.  Most of the students are in homes with buckets for baths but most do have indoor plumbing except for Emily, Rachel & Millaine but they have been great sports about it and embracing the experience.  Here are some of our memories from the morning.

Connor giving out jelly beans to some of the kids

Betty, Rachel and Reed taking a break from bubbles for a group picture

Every looks pretty happy at 8 am - this is right before we began the Stations of the Cross

Matt & David posing with some of the girls in their family

 Rachel, Emily & Milaine with some new friends they made along the stations of the cross.

Our group after the stations of the cross with Elias Pina in the background

Anne & Leah coloring with a little girl on the playground

DAY 1 ELIAS PINA

Our day of travel couldn't have gone much smoother than it did.  We all arrived safely and all 28 bags made it as well.  Last night the students met their families for the next 9 days.  Everyone settled in and had a much needed good night of sleep.  Some have already commented on the roosters beginning to crow before the sun is even up but that is the Dominican way of life.  We got a chance to play for a little bit on the playground this morning before our first lunch of beans, rice and chicken.  Everyone seems to be doing well and fitting into life here.  God has a way of knowing what we all need.  Today was overcast with a few sprinkles here and there - not nearly as hot and humid as it normally is here but it is warm enough for all of us being that we came from such a cold climate.  It has been a way for our body's to adjust to such a change in climate.  We plan to play on the playground a little bit more this afternoon, work in the bakery for a little bit and then get ready for Mass at 8:00 tonight.  A full day but we are all getting along great and there have been lots of smiles and laughs and memories made already.  Enjoy our pictures from the playground.

Leah helping to put on a temporary tattoo

Troy playing "monkey in the middle" with two little boys

Emily found a new friend.  

Reed waiting to jump rope with her new friend

Millaine & Anne playing bubbles

A game of volleyball with the older kids

David & Emily painting Carolina's finger nails