DRST 2025 - Day 5 - Batey 50 & Med Clinic

Hi everyone, it's Caroline G. We began today at 7, when (most) of us woke up, migrated downstairs, and has a delicious breakfast of french toast, fruit, bacon, and sausages. 

After we finished, the work began. We carried the MannaPacks, which is what we distribute on the bateyes, to the med team bus, which arrived first, as well as all of the meds that will be distributed today. We then packed the construction bus with MannaPacks as well, and then we were off to Batey 50!

 

A “short”—and immensely hot—pitstop was taken to buy a new wheelbarrow for our work today, which substantially improved our operations today.

 

After arriving to Batey 50, we split into two teams, one shoveling rocks to become concrete and the other to finish digging the trench. “I thought we were going to finish digging the trench, but then realized we were already in the trench. The Trenches.” -Caleb Gottesmann. I was on the digging team, but after finishing, we all joined the concrete team as they began mixing the concrete, by hand, to pour in the trench for the new house foundation.

It was very hot, so we traded off frequently to take water breaks or to play with some nearby children. 

Excitingly, it was also Elizabeth’s 13th birthday today, so we all sang to her and Hayden brought some gifts. Elizabeth is a girl on Batey 50 who I met last year, but the team has been involved in her life since birth, so it was very special to be able to celebrate her birthday with her both this year and last.

 

We took a late lunch of rice, meat, sandwiches, and cookies after finishing all of the concrete, before heading to Batey 30 to do some food distribution. There were also some very cute kids on this batey, who followed our two teams around as we walked.

 

We headed back to the compound, which luckily took much less time than our earlier voyage. After unpacking, showering, getting dressed, and having some rest back in the dorms, we got back on the bus with the med crew to have dinner at the hospital. The hospital is gorgeous—much nicer and more modern than any hospital I’ve been in. Dinner was vegetables, potato salad, chicken, plantains, and bread. Cake(s(!)) of the day were carrot, oreo, and vanilla(?), among others.

 

After refueling and engaging in some scintillating conversation, we heard from Moises—surprisingly not about how he parted the Red Sea—about how his upbringing and life on a batey shaped the man he is today; Moises is the coordinator of the Good Samaritan Hospital, and his story stands as a testament to the importance of treating and loving other human beings. He’s probably one of the busiest men alive, so we were very honored that he carved out time to talk to us. Most of us spent the bus ride back to the compound reflecting on what we had heard. It was late, and most of us were tired, so we packed MannaPacks quickly and did work signups for tomorrow before the majority headed up to the dorms for a deserved rest, before getting up bright and early for another full day tomorrow.

DRST 2025 - Day 4 - Batey 50 and Med Clinic

Buenas noches desde la Republica Dominicana!

Today was an eventful and fantastical day! We started our morning off eating breakfast---oatmeal, bacon, fruits, and bread---and drinking our daily cup of Sqwincher's (electrolytes). 

Hey, it's Ja Seng Ra here!

After a couple of us finished eating, we quickly loaded 30 MannaPacks onto a truck for the med clinic. Leading up to our long day, the med team drove about an hour and a half away from Casa Pastoral, which was a snug space to fit the bus through. My assignment for the day was to hand out "bug juice," an anti-parasitic medication, to the kids and the adults. However, we finished in about an hour since many of the kids were at school.

I ended up spending the rest of the time with the kids---handing out stickers and toys---and helping out in other stations when they needed it. We saw about 130 patients today, so we all took different lunch times to account for all of the patients. By the end of the work day, we were all exhausted and took the bus ride home as a napping session before our delightful afternoon at the beach.

Hey everyone! Julia, here :)

As I come back to the DR for my second year (as an alumna, now), all I can say is that I couldn't be happier to be a part of this amazing team of hard working, passionate, and kind-hearted individuals again. For those who may not know me, last year I was very construction involved, so it's no surprise I've spent the past two work days at Batey 50, or as I recently learned, goes by its second name Batey Esperanza, which translates to the Batey Hope. Being here for two years, now, I can see why that is---the people we work with are full of this exuberant energy and hospitality that is unique and, honestly, quite beautiful. They are the reason I came back.

As for what we did today, I dug a trench. The construction team today split into two groups; one repainted the communal pavilion, and the other dug a moat around a house to prepare for cement to be poured into the new space. (That's tomorrows work, YAY!) I was in the latter group, and while it was a hot and hefty day, by the time I saw the pavilion at the end of the day, it was practically unrecognizable! 

As for the digging, we broke through rocks and cement, cut through roots, and shoveled until we were able to dig around the entire house!

After the work day at Batey 50, the construction team had lunch and went right back to work, distributing food packs at another local Batey, known as Agua Blanca, which is translated to White Water. We're not really sure why it's called that, but it was my first time at this Batey, and every experience here is a grand one!

As I'm sure you've all been waiting for...the Cake of the Day was...really good!! We're not entirley sure what exactly it was, but we ate it nevertheless. And lastly, as Ja Seng Ra mentioned earlier, we ended our day at the beautiful beach! Stay tuned for more!

DRST 2025 - Day 3 - Workday Preparation & Joe Hartman School!

 
Buenos dias from Talia H. and Autumn W.!

We started the day off our day with Tata's amazing breakfast consisting of french toast, sausage, bacon, and fruit! Then quickly moved into preparation for the weeks med clinics and construction work. Specifically, sorting an array of medication, shoes, toys, and hygiene products till 11:30 until lunch at 12! 

After lunch, we had some free time before getting all packed and ready for our visit to Joe Hartman School in Kilometer six. Once we arrived, the kids greeted us with warm smiles and hugs, making us feel so welcomed!

Below we will share both of our reflections from the day!

Talia:

I learned many new dances moves, and despite not understanding the music I had a great time. After  dancing with the kids, I moved into the courtyard to play basketball with William H., Mr. Bro and 5 other boys. We had a great time and were all exhausted by the end of our game. But then, we decided to switch up the teams and play 2 more games. After finishing, we began playing a game of wiffleball and one of the boys hit a game winning home run! To wrap up our day the kids enjoyed some cotton candy, stickers, bubbles, and more music. Overall, it was such a great experience playing with the kids today, it made me feel like I was a kid again! I cannot wait for the week ahead and really enjoyed the day at Joe Hartman School!

Autumn: 

Upon arrival at Joe Hartman, we began gathering our games and toys we sorted earlier in the day! The kids came up to us eager to play with the assortment of stickers, bubbles, soccer balls, balloons, etc! I specifically met three little girls: two three year olds and one two year old girl who made my experience today so special. One of the three year old girls and her two year old sister came up to us repeatedly dancing, playing games or picking out more stickers from our ever-growing collection! While most of the group was handing out food for the kids the two year old girls mother came up to me and asked if I could get her daughter a plate of food. I happily agreed, and fed the little girl the delicious food being served by our team! I felt so honored that this mother felt comfortable enough for me to go off with her child and help her eat! After this experience the girls and I swung on the swings for a bit and played some games before wrapping up the day with some cotton candy! The second three year old girl came up to me later on while I was blowing bubbles for the other two girls. I asked for her name and age and after she replied she asked for mine. When I told her my aged she made a shocked face and started to laugh. She continued to come up to us blowing bubbles and hitting us with her balloon sword! Using the lollipop in her mouth she would make lipstick and go around to each of us asking how it looked (and of course we said amazing!) I am so grateful for these experiences I had today at Joe Hartman and cannot wait to experience more special moments like these throughout the trip!

 

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We finished off the day with dinner, cakes, and a quick trip to Jumbo!

Cake(s) of the day (plus Mrs.French!) :

Adios Amigos, Hasta Manana! :)