November, 20 -- our third annual visit to Batey Guazabal

This batey is more spread out, rural (it is almost pastoral) than the batey we went to on Monday. We love this place for several reasons. Over the course of our three visits here we have made some very special friends here. Plus, this batey really feels like a community, whereas some others feel very transient. There were numerous highlights from today, but for now the one we will share is a super sweet round of "Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes" led by Liz Benfield '07.

From Rachel C.

At Batey Guazabel two years ago, I was on traffic control in the med clinic when a woman came in alone, causing a stir among several other women who demanded that she bring her son to see the doctor. She reluctantly left and returned with a small boy who waited with me while his mother was examined.

He was filthy, his clothes were full of holes, he didn't speak -- except the word Mami -- and I spent most of the time trying to getting him to play patty cake with me. The best he could manage was to hold his hands up in front of him, palms together, while I slowly clapped first one of his hands and then the other, over and over.

Last year, as we drove to Guazabel, I wondered if we would see him again, an odd question perhaps (where else would he be?). When we got off the bus, he was there to greet us along with all the other kids. This time, when we asked como te llamas? he told us his name is Jacson and he needed zapatos nuevos -- new shoes.

Though the shoes he was wearing were too small, his clothes were clean, his mother was much more attentive to him (though she still asked us to take him with us when we left), and he had a lot to say. When it was his turn at bat in the whiffle ball game, Mason started to help him swing, but Jacson waved him off and smacked the first pitch that Ian tossed. He is perhaps a lot less compromised than we at first thought.

Yesterday, we saw Jacson again. He's still very small -- 12 years old and only 41 pounds -- but he has clearly made a lot of progress in the last year. Still more verbal, he seems to have figured out how to make his way in his world.

Another pair of new shoes, cookies and a soda after our lunch, lots of attention during our visit. We showed him the photos we took of him last year, and he led us to his house when we were distributing the food. He danced with us and played "head, shoulders, knees, and toes" (mostly focused on his toes). As always, it was hard to leave.

Monday, November 19

Day 1 saw a return to Batey Pinita for our first med clinic. This is the same batey we went to on day 1 in 2011. The clinic went very well. Some of the first year travelers dove right in and got to work: Grace, Winnie, Suzanne D. (Hannah's mom), Katie. Batey Pinita is very, very poor. It is often a place where new transplants from Haiti are taken. There is something very raw about this place.

The clinic went very well; we treated 117 patients. We did take an 11-day-old baby back to the hospital with us to be rehydrated and give some lactation consulting to the 18-year-old mom. After the clinic was finished, we had the absolute joy of doing door to door and delivering food kits to the residents. What an incredible and wonderful experience. It made all of our work fundraising feel totally worth it!

The construction team had their first day out on Batey 50. Anchored by John Bracker and alumni parent Richard Benfield, the men on the team (Jimmy P, Greg V, David Benfield, Jake D) worked like dogs and poured a cement floor in a three room house that is big enough for nine people. Jake D hauled 19 loads of cement over the day! Photos of the construction team to come!

Sunday, November 18

Happy 17th birthday to Jimmy Petras!

We spent our morning unpacking all the meds, shoes and toys we brought with us. All of our 47 duffle bags needed to be unpacked, brought to the main room (dining hall) where we congregate. It is controlled chaos at its best.


After lunch a group of us took a walk around La Romana. Then the whole team traveled to see Pilar and Francisco, an elderly couple that lives alone out in the midst of miles and miles of sugar cane.

Traveling to La Romana

We are here and all of our travel details went very well! Our day started with learning that Jimmy Petras' dad was able to help us get our second bag fees waived by JetBlue. We were elated to learn that all the shoes and meds that the community donated would now be able to come with us at no extra cost. While we were prepared to spend the $50 per bag, it sure is heartwarming that now all of the funds we raised from all our generous donors can go directly to providing life changing necessities for the very poor of this region.

The second exciting moment came when we connected with one of our alumni travelers in the midst of JFK Airport. Lauren Freisinger '10, a junior at St. Olaf in Minnesota, left her campus at 4:30 a.m. and we reunited with her in the JetBlue terminal. Her dad, Ron, is also one of our team members and no one was more excited to see Lauren than Tio Ron!

Third on the list was connecting with another alum and an alumni parent, David Benfield '09 and his dad Richard, in the Santo Domingo Airport. Now 28 or our 29 travelers are in La Romana. Our last team member arrives at the end of our first workday (Monday).

Thanks for checking in on our travel day. More news from La Romana tomorrow!

An Embarrassment of Riches

La Fuerza Azul, the blue force, is what we call the Dominican Republic Service Team. Part of our pre-trip preparations include collecting shoes and over-the-counter meds from all the families connected to the Watkinson community. Here is what it amounted to...it was so much that we decided to film it in the midst of packing.

2012 Car Wash Fundraiser

Over the course of 12 hours of washing cars, the DRST raised more than $1,300. We think that might set some sort of record!