Student Takeover: Day Three YEAH!

"Boulder Day" @ Batey Papita

by Cora

Our team at Batey Papita works everyday shoveling, pickaxing and wheelbarrowing our way to finishing a home. The homes we build are hurricane proof for the safety of the workers! Our goal for the day was to finish filling the subfloor in the biggest room of the home. How do you finish a subfloor, you ask? First, you fill it with big rocks and then top it off with dirt. The problem was that the rocks we needed were buried deep into the ground and were too big to carry. So we had to dig them up and then split them until we could carry or roll them into the house. There were a couple of them that took hours and hours to get free. We were able to fill the room almost all the way! 

The team worked straight through lunch because we all planned on going to the beach in the afternoon. At about 12 the whole team was exhausted but we all came together to finish the last third of the floor in less than an hour!! The previous two thirds took all morning! We packed up for the day and headed back to El Casa Pastoral. 

A symphony of pick-axes

Cora and Joe rock.

"BEST DAY EVER" @ Joe Hartman School

by Siola

Today we went to Joe Hartman. When we arrived at the school, the children were very excited because we had a surprise visit from the Toros!  The mascot of La Romana's baseball team led a short pep ralley, and the team graciously gave all the children free tickets to the game that night.  After that, we divided into two groups of four so we that could visit the different classes. For the younger kids, we taught the "Days of the Week" song in English, and for the  older kids, we made snow flakes out of paper plates. We also handed out stickers which the kids couldn't get enough of! One of my favorite parts of the visit was when I was drawing faces for the kids on their snowflakes. One of the kids gave me a Bible in return, which I thought was the kindest thing in the world. While I'm not religious, I thought this gesture was so beautiful. Of course, it's written in Spanish, so I'm definitely going to start reading it for language practice!

Dreams do come true!! Meeting the Toros mascot.

Bringing snow to fourth graders at Joe Hartman

Anika and her newest friends!

Bubble Bubble Toil & Trouble @ Batey La Gina
by Catie

After a scenic bus ride, filled with Spanish music and views of sugar cane, we arrived at Batey #412, La Gina. Almost immediately, we were showered in holas by small children, who were captivated by our bubbles and stickers. We also saw many stray animals that we had to restrain from petting. We spent an exhausting yet rewarding day handing out shoes, much needed medication, and hygiene products. Despite the high temperatures, watching a group of young Dominican children share Cheez-Its and a Paw Patrol coloring book was the thing that warmed our hearts the most. 

Bubbles 

Puppies galore!

Hard at work 

And then...
by Cora

We got home by 2:45pm and did a quick change. We all packed into the bus and headed to the beach. It was sunny and hot! Those of us who worked so hard in the morning ran into the water to cool down! We played some volleyball and tossed around a frisbee. It was such a great way to recharge!

After we got back and ate our delicious dinner, we were visited by Andrea, the woman who serves as a liaison between the mission and the hospital. She spoke about the importance of education. She was born on a batey, and she moved to the city at age 12 and is now an attorney! This was possible because she was able to educate herself. It was truly one of the most inspiring things I have ever heard. I couldn’t think of a better way to wrap up a day of hard work than hearing the story of the woman who is the reason we are able to do that work.