On this day of VBS, the craft was to make the boy with the five loaves and two fishes, using a clothespin, a piece of felt, a pipe cleaner, and a bit of yarn for his hair. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

Their parents said they cannot keep the children at home when the "Americanos" are in town. Jerry, Jonathan, and Allie are surrounded by some of their friends from Los Botadas. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

Rick and Jerry enjoy fresh coconuts. First, drink the milk. Then add a little sugar and scoop out the soft insides (it's like a pudding texture). Mm-mm! Photo courtesy of Jerry 

Our "home base" during the trip - La Senda (literally, the footpath, or The Way) church. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

A little bit of the scenery from the back of the truck. Photo courtesy of Jerry. 

Driving from the camp to the worksite each day, we passed this project in Yamasa. They're having a basketball tournament (IIRC), and this is the stadium being built. We enjoyed seeing the progess from day to day. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

We rode everywhere standing in the back of the Daihatsu truck. In this photo, Susan and Jenny are in front, with Sheila and Jonathan in back. The scenery in the Dominican Republic is GORGEOUS - this doesn't do it justice. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

Our friends and teammates from Food for the Hungry: Victor, Martires, and Andres. All were fluent in English and Spanish, and all want to help their countrymen (and women) have a strong faith in God. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

GRUB SHOT! Front row; L-R Noranne, Annie, Sheila, Rick, Jenny, Allie, Roxie, Vonda. Back Row: Andres, Jerry, Dr. Bill, Susan, Victor, Dr. James, Carol, and Martires. Photo courtesy of Jerry 

2005 Dominican Republic Trip: Sunday, August 21

Out of bed early enough to be at the airport by 7 a.m. Fortunately, the hotel wasn’t far! It took a while to check all of us in, but we had plenty of time. While we were waiting to board, several of us were able to get something for breakfast from a nearby shop. I had a cheese omelet, which I ate on the plane. After eating, I dosed off and on until we landed in Miami.

We passed through the immigration point without incident – there are separate lanes for US citizens and for visitors from other countries. Then we went on to claim our luggage to take it through customs. When the luggage carrier stopped moving, we were still missing 10 suitcases. I had my duffel with my dirty laundry – but not the suitcase with the souvenirs. We asked, and someone finally found our luggage. Seems the person driving the truck reached the end of her shift before delivering the luggage to the terminal, and couldn’t find anyone else to take over. So, our luggage had been sitting on the truck between the tarmac and the terminal. The airlines found someone to take over, and our luggage was delivered. Since we had to wait so long, Customs just waved us through without checking the bags.

We had time to get something for lunch. While we were waiting to board, Noranne called her sister in Tennessee, and found out that Stoughton, WI had been hit by a tornado while we were gone, and the damage had been so extensive that it made the national news.

Then, the airline announced that flights from Chicago were delayed, so our plane was delayed. Rick called Casey to let her know, and I asked him to ask Casey to call Fred for me. Rick asked me for Vicki’s phone number, because Casey told him that Fred was with a team Vicki had organized to help clean up from the Stoughton tornado. I didn’t have Vicki’s cell phone number, but I had Fred’s cell phone number, and Casey called him to let him know of the delayed flight.

We boarded about 30-45 minutes after the originally scheduled time, and I dosed off before the plane started taxiing to the runway. I woke when the person next to me flagged the stewardess, but fell asleep again shortly after that. I dosed off and on from Miami to Chicago.

Our flight from Chicago to Madison had also been delayed, so we were able to make our flight there, as well. We arrived in Madison only about 30 minutes late, when we expected to be an hour late. Tom and Kristie K, and Wayne met us there, and Carol M. brought homemade trail mix. She said she had planned to bring chocolate chip cookies, but thought we might need the protein more. Casey was there a few minutes later, and let me use her phone to call Fred and let him know we were there.

It was a great trip – but it sure is good to be back home!

Some of the children performed the Spanish version of "I'm In The Lord's Army". Here, they play imaginary trumpets. It was pretty neat. (Photo courtesy of Rick) 

This is a tarantula. There are larger tarantulas at the camp (just ask Janette from the 2000 team), but this is the one we saw this year. One of the workers at the camp picked it up so we could see the underside. (Photo courtesy of Rick) 

2005 Dominican Republic Trip: Saturday, August 20

After breakfast, it was time for the annual baseball game: Americans and Food for the Hungry against the players of Los Botadas! It was very hot, and there was little shade in the field where we played. We practiced pitching and catching for a while, and played with the children, until enough people showed up to play baseball. Almonte set the batting lineup. Since the women were not in the lineup, we stayed in the shade as much as possible and visited with the children.

A few of us needed to use a bano, so we walked to where we saw one and asked permission to make use of the facilities. While we were there, we saw a rope making factory behind the house, and asked permission to take pictures of the process. They were happy to demonstrate how they take shredded plastic and “spin” it into ropes.

It wasn’t long until the players of Los Botadas had defeated our team – the first time in four years! Some of the women said it was because they weren’t included this year, when they had played in the games that we won.

We drove back to the church, where Millie had prepared sandwiches for our trip to Santo Domingo. The Pastor and church members surprised us with another farewell ceremony in which they presented each of us with a certificate thanking us for our service, a souvenir keychain drum, and a tee shirt with a map of the Dominican Republic on one side, and the words “With great love from La iglesia “Senda”, Los Botadas, RD” We took more pictures, and then we played with the children and waited for Maximo to come with the van. It’s okay to ride in the back of the truck around Los Botadas and from the camp to the worksite or church, but from Los Botadas to Santo Domingo would be quite dangerous.

On the way, we passed the Phillies training camp. So Rick, an avid baseball fan, was thrilled when we stopped and he was able to take some pictures. There was a game in process, and the coach invited him inside the fence to take more pictures.

In Santo Domingo, we visited the market. Dr. James helped me find a gift for the white elephant exchange that evening (I’d forgotten to pack something from home), and I found a good souvenir for Melanie and another for my grandson.

Then we went to the hotel. On the drive over, Rick and I were curious about Andres’ age. He looks young enough to have just finished college, but he shared enough of his experiences that we didn’t think he could be that young. We asked him, and he’s older than he looks – and we’ll leave it at that!

Martires’ family joined us. It was great to see Christy again, and Isaac, Steven, and Chrismar have gotten so tall since I saw them two years ago! Victor’s wife, Lucy, also joined us.

There were four people to a room at the hotel, so Susan, Roxy, Carol and I shared a room. The first room we were assigned was flooded, so we had to get a different room. The humidity was so high, that the floor was quite wet in this room. Carol went on a walk to the beach with some of the others, and Susan, Roxy and I went for the pool. The water temperature was perfect! It felt so relaxing. Some others came down, and were going to walk to the beach, so Susan decided to go with them. Roxy and I stayed by the pool.

We each showered, and headed for the dining room to join the rest of the group. Supper was in the hotel, which has a buffet included in the price of the room. At the entrance are more opportunities for souvenirs. We bought a few things from Victor’s cousin, who had a stand there. The buffet was good, but not as good as Millie’s spaghetti!

After supper, we gathered near another of the hotel pools. Martires presented us with a plaque from Food for the Hungry, and each of us with a souvenir plate with our name on it, as well as a certificate. Then we began the gift exchange. The best was pair of oversized, star-shaped sunglasses from Noranne. Christy drew those, and they were perfectly coordinated with her earrings, which were also star-shaped. The mortar and pestals (there were two – one small and one larger) were very popular. Annie drew the first, and it was taken from her by a subsequent player. I think at least three of Annie’s gifts were “stolen” during the exchange.

Then it was off to bed. It took a while to get organized so that we were all ready to go in the morning, but we got to bed before midnight.

Another view of the water tower. (See picture below). Picture courtesy of Vonda 

The water tower of newest water well, built by Food for the Hungry International with funds donated by High Point Church members, and friends of members. (picture by Vonda) 

2005 Dominican Republic Trip: Friday, August 19

Susan wanted to work at the construction site, so I stayed back with VBS team. We had VBS in the morning this time. I thought we’d have fewer children, because of changing the time. We had far more children: 170! Victor led some singing, and had a neat “clapping” game that I think Kids’ Celebration will enjoy. He had the children divide into two groups. Then when he pointed at one group, they clapped once. Same for the other group. He walked down the aisle of the church slowly pointing at each group, then gradually accelerating until they were all continuously clapping. Millie’s daughter, Patricia, helped a lot. She helped us get the craft ready, and she speaks some English, so she helped us communicate with the children when the interpreters were busy elsewhere.

The construction team worked only the morning, so they could get time between work and the farewell ceremony later in the afternoon.

During lunch, Dr. Bill and I had a nice visit with Kelvin, the youth pastor. He is trying to learn English, so with the help of my electronic translator, and a good Spanish/English dictionary, we were able to have quite a long conversation without the help of our interpreters. Kelvin is one of four sons, and his father raises cocoa. I felt led to give him the Spanish/English dictionary to help his efforts, and wrote a little dedication in the front, which Andres translated into Spanish. He said it is difficult to find good reference books like that in the Dominican Republic. (We found our copy at Half Price Books.)

In the afternoon, the women on the team met with the women of the community. Roxy had planned a nice craft, and Rosie (one of the Dominican women who works for FH) had ordered a cake and some juice to serve as refreshments. Patricia helped again with the craft, and with communicating with the women. She has a sweet spirit, and is a very pretty girl. We met at a chapel a couple of miles away from the main church, and visited, prayed, and did the craft. It was a wonderful time of sharing. The chapel was quite warm, so Almonte brought electric fans over from the main church – unfortunately, we had no electricity that afternoon, so they didn’t work. Noranne mentioned that often we find it difficult to fit prayer and Bible study into busy lives, and asked how they fit this into their lives. Some get up earlier, some take some time during the day. One of the women who is a teacher said she prays with her class. Noranne pointed out that praying with their students is forbidden in the US. They were surprised to find that they have a freedom that we do not, and said they would pray for our country. The cake was delicious – a white cake with an almond cream filling, decorated with slices of almond and a few maraschino cherries. When we left, we were all hugging and crying together. It was a beautiful experience, and words do not do it justice.

After that, we joined the rest of the team at church, and then drove over to the school for the farewell ceremony. Josie spoke on behalf of the pastor, who had obligations elsewhere. I don’t remember all that was said, but I do remember one of the people who spoke said that when the Americans are here, it is impossible to keep the children at home – they want to be where the Americans are!

After the ceremony, we drove to the newest well and water tower, and there was a ceremony to dedicate the well to the community in the name of God. Jonathan admired the workmanship, and some people washed their hands in the first water to come from the spigots.

Then we went back to the camp for supper, and to get ready to leave the next day.

(L-R) Roxy, Annie, Jenny, Allie & Vonda fasten the rebar rectangles to the straight rebar to form reinforcement for the kitchen (cocina). Once finished, the schoolchildren will have breakfast and lunch at school, with food and staff provided by the Dominican government. (pic from Vonda's camera) 

On home visits with Luis. Our hostess brought out chairs for all of us, and seated the ladies in the shade. Luis was in the direct sun, so I offered him my "Winnie the Pooh" umbrella.  

2005 Dominican Republic Trip: Thursday, August 18

I was back at the job site. We made more of the rebar columns – this time Annie and Allie bent quite a bit of rebar. Then we fastened them to the straight pieces with heavy wire to form the column. I spent a lot of time playing with the children. I was able to carry five more concrete blocks, but mostly focused on making sure everyone drank enough water, and took pictures. We were told before the trip to make sure we had permission to take pictures, but that hasn’t been an issue. Most of the time, the children are asking us to take their pictures! They’ll gather in a group, and point to themselves and say “Photo? Photo?”

Medical clinic was only in the morning, as the doctors were meeting with the health care workers of the community in the afternoon. I’m told that went well.

VBS was the story of Jesus being laid in the tomb. Jonathan was “Jesus” for that day, and Rick and Noranne were disciples. From one side of the door, Rick decided to put a stone in front of the door to represent the stone in front of the tomb. Meanwhile, Noranne decided that the door should be slammed to give the sound effects for closing the tomb, not realizing that the door did not have a stop. She slammed the door from one side as Rick was bending over from the other side. She came through the door, and almost fell on Rick, who by now was trying not to laugh and spoil the story for the children. He had to turn his back and walk toward the altar to keep the children from knowing he was laughing. We were all glad he wasn’t hurt.

After VBS, we had an outing with the sponsored children. The idea was for all the sponsored children to join us after VBS finished, and get their letters and offer them an opportunity to write a letter or color a picture for their sponsors. It was rather chaotic! However, I did get to have another nice visit with Mary. She had written a letter for Fred, and the following day, Andres translated it for me.

Josie and Pastor Miguel - Engaging in a friendly discussion about which team would win the annual High Point & FH vs. Los Botadas baseball game. (Photo by Vonda) 

2005 Dominican Republic Trip: Wednesday, August 17

We were up and on the road by about 8 – pretty early for us! Rick led devotions. Jenny was delighted to find that Millie had fixed oatmeal for breakfast. Millie cooks it with vanilla, and has cinnamon, raisins, and brown sugar to add. The juice was also very good.

Annie, Allie and Susan did home visits with Andres and Luis, and I worked at the construction site. I managed to carry seven concrete blocks, one at a time, before I was too hot. So I went to the schoolroom with the water thermos, where Dr. Bill was conducting clinic. Roxy and I had the opportunity to get better acquainted, and Noranne joined us, so we were able to discuss plans for our get-together with the women of Los Botadas.

Vonda asked me to take the video camera and get some footage of the Dominican doctors. The battery was quite low, so I only got a few minutes. Then I took photographs with various team members’ cameras, and made sure everyone had plenty of water. I also delivered messages between the doctors and the pharmacy.

We piled on the truck for the trip back to the church around 12:30 or 1:00. Lunch was spaghetti, fried plaintains, salad and fruit. Vonda told Millie the spaghetti was better than anything offered in the finest Italian restaurants. I agree – it was excellent! I ate more than I have at any of our other meals.

Juanita introduced us to her son – she’s taken a liking to Susan, Roxy and me, since our nice long visit on Monday. Dr. Bill, Noranne, Dr. Chavez, and Roxy stayed back, and were to conduct a training session for AIDS/HIV education with some of the teens.

The rest of us returned to the school. It had clouded up and was much cooler. That made me much more comfortable. The banos at the school are quite deluxe, so I didn’t mind needing to make more frequent visits!

Dominican Republic Trip 2005: August 16, Tuesday

We were up by 6:30. I decided to put two packets of Spark into my water bottle, so as to handle the heat a little better. Breakfast was at the church: Millie had fixed eggs, and it was served with bread, peanut butter and jelly, and fruit. I think it was papaya, and it really tasted good.

After the construction and clinic teams headed to the school, Jonathan, Susan, Andres and I followed Luis for more home visits. The first home was for a child sponsored by people from HPC whom Jerry knew. We visited for a while, and Susan made sure the children were aware of VBS that afternoon.

We saw two of the wells paid for by donors from HPC and friends. The second well was not yet operational.

The second home was of Cosalario (I may have spelled this wrong), whose wife had a stroke many years ago. The first team met this family in 2000. We visited for a short time, prayed with the family, and then walked on.

At the third home, Felix and Yolanda asked about Tom Jones. Tom and Vivian were FH missionaries to the DR when the first team went down in 2000. Tom had given Felix a Bible, and Felix accepted Christ. Consequently, he refused to sell alcohol in his store.

As we walked up to the fourth home, I whispered to Susan that I should give this home the “home visit kit” that was in my backpack. There was a sewing machine on the porch, and my kit had a few spools of thread. We visited with the mother – Alexandrina – and the children who were home. She has nine children, and the two oldest daughters are attending University in SD. Alexandrina asked about Wanda, from Puerto Rico. We also noticed an “eggplant” near the house. The family had taken eggshells, blown out as we would for decorating, and put them on the tips of the yucca plant. It looked really neat! We left two home visit kits, since there were so many in the family. She was delighted to get the thread!

For lunch, Millie fixed what we were told is known as the “Dominican flag” – meat, rice, and beans. It was, as is everything Millie cooks, very good! Martires made sure I sat in front of the fan in the kitchen to eat, and I was joined by the three younger interpreters. We had a good visit, and I asked about the cost of attending the Institute for English. I had an idea in the back of my head to see if we could get Mary (one of the children we sponsor through FH) to the Institute, as I think it would provide her some opportunities.

In VBS, our story was about the boy with the loaves and fishes, feeding the 5000. For the skit, we recruited an older boy from the children in attendance. In helping him put on the tunic, I asked him to put his “caballo” through the center opening. He looked at me a little funny, but then got the robe on and the skit went well. Our project was to make the boy from the story, using a clothespin, a piece of felt, and a pipe cleaner. One of the children figured out how to make the “arms” as well, using the pipe cleaner that was the belt for the tunic. I was kept very busy after that modifying the other children’s “boy” so that he would have arms.

As VBS was ending, Mary walked in! With help from Andres, we were able to have a nice visit. She told me that she had wanted to study medicine, but the time involvement and the cost were too much, so she was going to study accounting. She said she really likes working with numbers. She has one more year of high school, and asked if we could continue to stay in contact after she is no longer sponsored. I had forgotten that she is the youngest of her family – Andres teased her about being the “Princess”. She is a very beautiful young woman. Mary is an artist, also. She said she would write a letter for my husband, and wanted to know why he did not come. I explained that he could not get the week off from his job.

After that, we all walked to the work site. On the way, a horse and rider met us. I thought it was a nice caballo – then I realized why the boy at VBS looked at me funny. I told him to put his caballo (horse) through the center opening, but I meant cabesa (head)!

We had rain on the way back to camp – a great relief from the heat. Millie had sent chicken noodle soup for supper, and we ate at about 8:00 p.m. The group got into a debate over some music – who recorded “Tie Me Kangaroo Down”. When they asked me, I said, “I don’t know, but if I had an internet connection right now, we’d find out pretty quickly.” So my task upon returning was to find out who recorded “Tie Me Kangaroo Down” (Rolf Harris, 1960) and “The Unicorn Song” (Poem by Shel Silverstein, recorded by The Irish Rovers).

We got to bed around 10, after our meeting, prayers, and organizing for the following day.