I'm still Posting!

It's been a day since most of our group returned home uneventfully (if you count our Dunkirk-like retreat in the Santo Domnigo airport uneventful).  In past years, the blog has ended when the trip ended.  Not this year.  I am going to try and keep it going this year.  I would love to have the blog be a spot where we can share thoughts and communications with the larger DR Projects team.  Those who went this year, those who have gone in past years, and those who have supported us.  So please spread the word (as I will in other media.  I want to discover the best way to continue our work, and this may be it.  So get used to the idea that I will be posting every day for a while.

There was a small reunion this morning at the Church of Christ at Dartmouth in Hanover.  Mandy, Rob and Amy all showed up to help lead worship:  Amy in the choir, Mandy opening the service with a wonderful reflection on the trip, and Rob preaching the sermon he wrote on the plane while being elbowed in the middle seat.  But it became a reunion when we looked out and there was Nicole in the pew!  Yay!  Next week at CCDC, we are hoping for a bigger reunion.  We would like to invite as many DR friends as possible,  Mandy will be preaching on the transformative power of service and discipleship, and maybe Nicole will sing.  But we need to get as many of the other students to be willing to back her up -  at the very least in the pews, but better as her backups.  We'll find the right piece -  Nicole's working on that. Maybe something gospelly.  After church, we hope to present the first draft of our slide show.  I need some volunteers to help with editing and scoring.  Any takers?

So if anyone's out there reading this, get ready for some daily observations that help us reflect fully on an amazing week, and keep the process going as we support our sisters and brothers in the DR. Stay tuned.

Goodbye, Cotui; Hello, Santo Domingo

We have great WiFi tonight in Boca Chica, a suburb of Santo Domingo, so here’s a farewell blog post before we head home tomorrow.  We checked out of our hotel this morning, crammed our bus with all of our luggage, and stopped by the Altagracia school to say goodbye.  Actually, it turned out to be a bit more than that.  We assembled in the main courtyard with all of the students and teachers, and shared a wonderful goodbye ceremony.  The school Director presented Rita with a wonderful plaque, and every member of our team received certificates of appreciation (frame-worthy).  We also got gifts!  Many of us received really cool hats. The guys all got fedoras.  Several of the women got nice floppy sun hats.  We presented the school with an American flag. Some speeches were made. Then, wow!  The school has been preparing for weeks for a city-wide Carnival parade.  It’s a competition between many schools got best costumes, dancing and overall presentation.  Think Rose Bowl Parade. We have seen them preparing costumes and props all week, and wished we could se the parade.  So they showed us!  They did a full costume dress rehearsal with all of the pageantry that will surely win them a prize.  Words fail, but luckily we can attach photos. Then, finally, goodbye for a year, with many hugs and tears. Perhaps we have helped make a difference.  We know we have been changed.  We headed south to the capital.

We made several stops along the way, pulling off the road in Piedra Blanco so we could browse and buy some of the colorful handmade rugs by local craftspeople hanging on racks by the dozens on the roadside.  Sort of like pulling over on Rt. 89 to buy maple syrup.  We actually pulled over later to buy fresh cashews from local vendors.  We also made a more prosaic stop at a local plaza at a sleek market to buy local treats like dulche de leche and macaroons.  We avoided the heavy traffic that delayed us last year and arrived in the Colonial Zone, the oldest part of the city.  It’s also the oldest European settlement in the hemisphere, as in founded by Columbus in 1493.  The cathedral, built in1530, is also the first. It’s also 20 degrees cooler inside.  We set up headquarters on the outdoor porch of a pizza place facing the cathedral square (better than Dominos) and then fanned out to sightsee and shop for chocolate, coffee and in some cases larimar jewelry, fashioned from the distinctive milky blue gemstone found in the DR.  Then we boarded the bus and headed to Boca Chica, the seaside resort town 30 minutes away.  We checked into our beachfront hotel, changed, walked through the lobby and literally right onto the beach.  The beach faces a huge lagoon protected by a breakwater, forming an amazing swimming area with an all sand bottom.  One can wade for half a mile before the water gets head height.  The students did the most swimming, otter-like.  Many of the adults waded or swam.  Mandy got her hair braided like they do at resorts, because it’s a resort. We had supper on the open porch facing the beach, enjoying fresh red snapper.  Then we had our final meeting, reflecting on the week.  Not surprisingly there was a lot of emotion.  We have become close, and its ending.  We have been changed by our work.  There’s more to do.  We’ll be back!

Last Day Teaching; Night on the Town

Dear Friends-
This is our seventh day, and our last night in Cotui.  We’ll stop by the school tomorrow to say goodbye, but today was essentially our last day at Altagracia. It was our best one, given that the teachers, students and visitors all knew their roles.  We feel very much at home in the building, and the novelty of our presence has worn off enough to allow us to communicate well and maximize our presence.  Both teaching teams taught two periods, and it was clear that the students and their teachers are gaining significantly. We will be leaving this new program in great shape!  Recess was extended, and it turned into a dance party, with music blasting and every manner of dancing breaking out.  We had time for another teaching period before we left for lunch, and then returned to distribute the gifts we had careforepated the night before.  Every child received a gift package, with a new colorful shirt, a mini-journal and pencil, and toothpaste and new toothbrush.  There were many, many heartfelt goodbyes.  These kids are so smart.  They know that we’re leaving, and it’s that we will miss each other.  But we will be back! We are fiercely dedicated to this program’s success, given all we have seen.  After school, some of us stopped by a local nursing home to drop off a donation of supplies, and some went to a local store to buy spices and coffee. Tonight we’re going to a karaoke club to celebrate.  I hope to blog tomorrow, but may not have WiFi.  We’ll be home soon enough.  It’s  been grand!

School in the Morning, Afternoon at the Treehouse

There is a real rhythm to our days now, and it’s serving us well. We are creatures of habit, and we were up with the roosters (ask us later about the roosters), are at 7:00, and we’re on the bus to the Altagracia school by 7:30.  We were at school in time for the opening ceremony.  The students all filed off to their first class, and we gathered at the School Director’s office for a brief ceremony, presenting her and the school (and the English program in particular) with 12 gently-used Chromebooks designed for school use.  Frank Perotti had obtained these from one of the schools he superintends, once their contracted use was over.  It’s a transformational gift for the school, and they were very excited.  We had two morning class periods, and it was clear that things went more smoothly and productively.  The two English teachers, Lewis and Valentina, have gained confidence and did a wonderful job directing us in our small groups.  We reviewed past lessons, learned new words, played learning games, and produced some hilarious skits. The ones about Becky’s mom are now part of Altagracia culture.  Then it was recess time, 25 minutes of chaos with every child in the school turned loose to find their favorite American.  Some of us played games.  Mandy led Simon Says. Amy Smith led chalk drawing.  Most of the students were awash in a scrum of children, sort of massive group hugs. Rob sat in the shade and took on dozens and dozens of children in thumb wrestling. The aggressive children who pushed to the front to play had less luck.  Some of the first and second graders had very good luck.  Recess ended at 10:30, and we made our way to the bus.  It was time for an afternoon of R and R.  We drove the very familiar (to some of us) route to the village of Hernando Alanso, where we had worked in the school for the past two years.  Passing the school, we came to the “Tree House” a unique mini-resort on a hillside overlooking the reservoir.  Some of Rita’s groups had stayed there in past years.  There have several open rooms with balconies, a pol table, and a swimming pool. Many of us headed straight for the pool.  Others played pool.  Soon we were served a delicious meal of barbecued chicken, rice, cassava and pineapple. It will be weeks before we can try the bland, stringy version we get back home. Cotui is not just the pineapple center of the country - it’s known as one of the world’ best.  After lunch, some of us returned to the pool.  Some took long walks to the reservoir. Some napped. After a while, a detachment of us got a ride in a little red mini-taxi to the Hernando Alanso school. We got there in time to see many of the students who were hanging around after school.  It was amazing that we recognized some of them, and were remembered in kind.  We saw the playground we had built, so well used that many of the markings on the basketball court and hopscotch area were almost worn off.  Frank and Rob promised themselves that they would be back next year to repaint them.  We saw the library we had built in a sectioned-off part of a classroom.  It was thrilling to see that it was clean, full, and obviously used regularly.  We were happily surprised with a small reception organized by Jenny, the Assistant Director and a dear friend.  All too soon our bus was at the gate.  We hopped on, continued to
Tree House, and headed back to Cotui for supper, renewed and ready for our last day at school.  After supper, we spent nearly two hours organizing gifts for every student: a new t shirt, a journal, toothbrushes and toothpaste. It’s quite a task for hundreds of kids.  But we now have little packets, sorted by size, tied with ribbons, and ready for these children that we have come to love. We’ll stop by school Friday morning on the way to Santo Domingo to say a final goodbye, but the realization that tomorrow is our last teaching day is bittersweet.

Back to School: A Long, Positive Day

Our second day at the Altagracia school was full and successful.  We got an early start and arrived as the students were streaming in on foot, on motor scooters, and a few in cars.  No school busses here. We had the honor of being present for the daily opening ceremony.  The students lined up in the courtyard, and sang the national anthem, hands over hearts, as the flag was raised.  We then divided into our two teaching teams, each following one of the designated English teachers, Valentina and Lewis. The lesson for the fifth grade class was family and family names:  mother, father, sister and brother.  We drilled on the words, performed skits, and even had time to review some past lessons. This first class, by the way, was outdoors in the courtyard so we could divide into small groups, and also use sidewalk chalk as an additional teaching tool.  The next two classes were Lewis’ Physical Education classes, again in the courtyard.  We combined English and PE, with vigorous games of “Head, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” and “Hokey Pokey”.  Then it was time for recess, and the courtyard flooded with children, all eager to connect with los Americanos.  Our young people stepped up with all sorts of games of tag, hopscotch, basketball and fancy handshakes.  Kyle tried to dribble a soccer ball through the entire student body with limited success.  Then it was time for lunch.  We sent the students back inside reluctantly, with promises of “hasta pronto “.  We hopped onto the bus and had a quick lunch at the hotel, eager to return for the afternoon. The last class of the day for Lewis was sixth graders.  They also had the family lesson, and did a splendid job with their skits, having appreciated the example set by our students.  All too soon it was the end of the school day. We all poured out of the building together, now used to the chaos and noise of Altagracia in transition.  We had the joy of walking through a gauntlet of hugs, high fives and greetings as we boarded the bus, with promises of “hasta manana”.

Our day wasn’t done.  We left a tough part of the city for a tougher part, La Colonia, where we visited     a wonderfully successful womens’ collective, organized by Rita more than a decade ago with great support from the Norwich church.  It was moving to see Norwich Pastor Mary Brownlow see this place for the first time.  Over the years, many local women have established a successful business weaving tote bags in vivid colors out of recycled plastic bags. The business has grown to the extent that members are traveling to the U.S. to sell these high quality crafts at trade shows.  We had a warm welcomed with delicious local fruit,  beautiful bracelets that each member placed on our wrists in a way that was sacramental, introduced ourselves to each other, and danced to the music from a nearby club.  Yes, we danced.  It’s a DR thing.  We heard some stories of struggle and success, and had a chance to purchase several of the bags.  Each sale helps support local families, and lifts the entire community.

We are half way through our trip.  It’s hard to believe we have only two days left at school.  We will be sad to leave but feel wonderful that this amazing program has a strong chance of being successful (with your support) and sustainable.  We promise to make the most of every minute we have left.

Our First Day st School

Finally!  After a nearly a year of planning, scheduling, fundraising and constant communication with our counterparts in Cotuí, we brought our road show to the school.  The Centro Educativo Altagracia is a large (453 students) K-6 school in a challenging part of the city, 10 minutes from our hotel.  We ate breakfast, had a quick bus ride, and pulled through the sliding game into the walled compound surrounding the school. The school community had been planning our welcome for weeks.  Two sixth graders with very good English skills were the masters of ceremonies,  even politely telling us when to applaud.  The School Director welcomed us, and then a group of students performed a song and dance in English.  Another group of students with signs introduced us to the school’s core values. A third group of student dancers in colorful local costumes did a spirited dance number. Rita Severinghaus, feeling all of the emotion which comes with seeing a dream realized, introduced our group and then Frank Perotti, whose tireless efforts and trips on his own to the DR brought about the professional connections that allowed this school to be one of a very few selected for this pilot program. Finally we heard from Professor Juan Valdez, a superstar in the DR world of Education, and the head of a decades-long effort to bring English education to public schools in the DR.  Few schools have this, and it is truly a social justice issue.  The rich and those attending private schools have the chance to be bilingual, greatly increasing the possibilities for jobs and careers.  Professional Training Systems, the consulting firm led by Professor Valdez, has developed the curriculum to make it possible for English to be taught in underserved schools.  There is a significant cost for this, and our successful fundraising (thank you!) has already paid for all of this year and some of next. Thanks to the constant work of Rita and Frank, the Altagracia school in the city where Rita grew up was one of few selected, and it stared in December with two dedicated teachers who are in touch with Rita almost every day to share their work and receive advice and support.  Rita has also visited the school to support the program and plan our visit.  And today, 19 of us joined the effort.  After the ceremony we got right to work, splitting into two groups to work with the classes.  Each of us had the chance to work individually with small groups of students in the 4th-6th grades.  We followed the curriculum, which today had use working on words for family members, and also animals, colors and numbers.  We have brought all sorts of teaching tools and school materials, but the most important tool always will be relationship and enthusiasm for what we are doing.  The kids were excited and we were excited and the match is a good one.  Even with all of the excitement and confusion of this first day, it was clear that this program is off to a solid start and has caught the attention and imagination of the teachers and students.  They are grateful for our presence and support.  We are grateful for their trust and buy-in.  It’s a good match.  You will hear more every day about how this is unrolling, but we are so proud of the work being done by our nine students.  They are brave, flexible and dedicated to this task.  They know they are changing lives. They feel good about it.

The adults try to keep up, surrounded by noise, energy and synergy. We’re resting now, getting ready for three more days of intense engagement.  We already have many new friends.  One of our students already has a love letter, sent to the subject of his admiration by two female friends.  It was written in excellent English.