Raise the Roof

See Matt run. See Matt and Emma run. See Matt and Emma raise money to build new roofs for our families by running. When Matt and Emma came here to visit they were deeply moved at the state of our families homes. Most of the roofs are made of tin boards that are layered on top of one another. When it rains there is nothing to prevent the leaking or assortment of criters that make their way in.So Emma and Matt decided to do something about it. As Emma put it, "no child should have to go to school tired or unable to concentrate becuase their roof leaked." After trying to raise money through a blog, emhills1.blogspot.com, and not being very successful Emma and Matt came up with other ideas. Matt ran and was sponsored in a 10k and a half marathon and Emma did a 10k half marathon. People sponsored their run to raise money for new roofs; and it worked. They are now talking with Dove on how to best make this happen and looking into other marathon sponsorship to provide more funds. Emma and Matt are a great example of how to use your individual talents and interests to good. Our families will be so thankful for a new roof and dry place to rest their heads!

Supplies going to Haiti soon!

Thank you to everyone who has donated to our Haiti relief fund. Today at the club we sorted through all of our emergency relief supplies, extra clothing, towels, sheets, toiletires and sorted it into bags. We put a bit of everything in each bag. We will be sending this very soon hopefully, and adding to it with the monies we raise in our Haiti relief fund. So far, we have spent over $1000 on medical supplies that will be flown over within the next couple of days. We bought all of our medical supplies from a good friend who owns a pharmacy, called Famracia Dolores, and he generously donated more than double the supplies of what we bought. We are still accepting donations, as this is not just a one time, donate relief effort. This will be an ongoing effort, where much assistance will be needed.

Haiti Relief

As many of you have probably already heard, on Tuesday, January 12, 2010 a massive Earthquake occurred in Haiti. Their capital, Port Au Prince has been destroyed with hospitals, homes, and major buildings collapsing. According to CNN, 100,000 have been confirmed dead, with a possible hundreds of thousands more missing and feared a casualty. For those who did survive, the city is in ruins and they have no where to go, and nothing to survive with. We, as a humanitarian organization cannot stand back when we are just a few hundred miles from this disaster. We have decided that the best way for us to help is to join forces with other mission groups in our area. We are collecting supplies and funds to purchase the items that will be sent to the earthquake area. The supplies being sent are sheets, towels, clothing, shoes, and the basic essentials. We are keeping in mind here that people's homes have been completely destroyed.
If you are interested in donating to the Haiti relief cause, please do so by making a donation through PAYPAL. There is a link on our blog and our website to do so, and please include a note with the donation, "For Haiti". Thank you.

Holiday Preparations

We are busy at the Club preparing for the Christmas party that will be held this Sunday for all of our children. We have a lot of volunteers coming to help out this Christmas, and the first of them arrived this week; Melissa Bazely (Dove's Volunteer Coordinator) and her Mom, Gail! So with their help, and two of the Mothers in the Club, we spread out little pieces of paper with the kids' names all across the Club to sort gifts for their Christmas baskets. Gifts were distributed according to age, gender, and size. Each child will be getting a basket full of toys, clothes, shoes, school supplies, and much more. One of the Mothers commented that this will be the best Christmas ever for her kids! The Christmas party is being held this Sunday, so you still have time to donate! We are going to need about $1000 total for everything. Thank you to everyone who has donated already, and to everyone who donated supplies to fill the baskets!

Around the Center

Here is what the Center is looking like right now with Christmas decorations and new supplies. The tree was a donation from Casa Nelson (a department store in Puerto Plata), and the cabinet was a donation from Shirley Smith, and Tony and Sharon Adams. A huge thank you to all of those people! The manger, pictured at the bottom, was created by our kids. It is made from palm tree leaves, and the pieces at the top are made from a specific palm tree leaf called Yagua, which is what the very poorest of Dominicans used to build their houses out of.

Items Needed

Whether you are coming to volunteer your time in the Dominican Republic with Dove Missions, or if you are vacationing and want to drop off some supplies, we would appreciate anything you can donate! Below is a list of items that are needed.
We are focusing on the very essential needs at this time. Everything is categorized, and everything in BOLD is on our top list of priorities. Thank you!

To our sponsors who are coming to visit. We do not want to sound ungrateful for the gifts that you are all so eager to bring for our kids. It is very difficult for our mothers to accept materialistic gifts for their children when they are battling holes in their roofs, and their children don't have beds to sleep in. Very extravagant gifts also cause many hard feelings between neighbors of children who are not members of our club. For this reason we ask you to please stick to the list below of necessities for the family. Remember also that your monthly donation is already paying for the most important gift, food, each month for your sponsor child. If you feel you need to bring a small gift for your sponsor child please speak with our volunteer coordinator for suggestions. Thank you!

Our top 5 most needed items are:
1.Children's Multi-Vitamins
2.Gently used or new black,close toed school shoes
3.Mosquito nets
4.Bed Sheets
5.Towels of all kinds


Food/Housewear:
Peanut butter
Jam
Juice Packets
Protein Bars
Blankets
Batteries (especially AA and AAA)

Hygiene/Health:
Shampoo
Sanitary pads
Soap
Deodorant
Toothbrushes/Toothpaste
Yeast Infection Medicine
Advil
Skin cream (polysporin)
Rash medicine
Hand Sanitizer

Clothes/Shoes:
Underwear
Socks

School/Art Supplies:
Backpacks
Notebooks
Pencil sharpeners
Colored Pens / Crayons
Rulers
Erasers
Pens / Pencils
Spanish-English dictionaries
Children's books in Spanish
Laptops
Cameras


*Updated May, 2013*

How To Donate

Lots of people who visit DOVE Missions are interested in how they can help more. Donations are what keep our programs running. Below is all the info you could want about how to donate...

To make a donation by check:

Make your check out to "DOVE Missions"
Send your check to:
DOVE Missions
c/o Deb Srbich
PO Box 32074, Minneapolis, MN 55432


You can also donate by paypal. Go to the Support Page on Dove's website and click on the paypal button. The paypal button is also to the right, at the top of the sidebar on this blog.


You also have the option of sending supplies to the DR, and instructions to do this are below. You are welcome and encouraged to send letters to your sponsor children. They love seeing photos of Canada and the USA, and photos of the people who are sponsoring them.

Pack your items in a sturdy box.
Weigh your box.
For every pound your package weighs, we ask that you make a donation of $1.50 to Dove Missions to cover the Agape service fee. So, for a 10 pound package, we ask for a $15 donation (this is what Agape charges Liz when she picks up your package at their office in Santiago). You can use PayPal or send a check to:
DOVE Missions
c/o Deb Srbich
PO Box 32074, Minneapolis, MN 55432

Send your package to: Liz McKie, c/o Agape Flights STI #20504, 100 Airport Avenue , Venice , FL , 34285 - or if you live in Florida you can drop your package off at Agape if you like.


A post will be coming with a list of specific items that we have a need for.

Donation For An Inverser

A big thank you to Rana, Danielle, Joslyn, Danielle, Sarah, and Jessica from Newfoundland, Canada. After spending a few days working with Dove Missions, they generously made a large donation for Dove to be able to purchase an inverser; a battery powered generator. Power often goes out in Puerto Plata and makes teaching the Club more difficult. With the inverser, Dove will be able to charge the batteries at night and then have electricity during the day! Last week, Liz and Cathy (along with volunteers Todd and Cindy) went to the hardware store to order the inverser. A huge thank you to this group for making this possible!

DONATE

Right now, Dove is expanding in huge ways as we move into our new building and double the amount of children we are providing programs for. The families are all sponsored, and this sponsorship fee pays for vouchers for the families for groceries every month. We also need donors fund our programs. Right now, school is starting and we hope to provide uniforms for all the kids. It is $40.00 US to buy 2 shirts, bottoms, undershirts and underpants, socks, shoes and gym clothes notebooks and pencils. While school is free, kids are unable to attend school if they can't pay for their uniform. We also have many other programs that we need donations to keep running. Every class, each child is given a snack of bread and peanut butter. We also pay for materials for art classes, and now, with the grand opening of the new building, we have rent to pay. Medical needs for the children come up often. Just last month, one of the boys, Andy, stepped on a nail and was unable to walk. He went to the clinic with his mother, but she was unable to pay for the medicine. Dove covered this for them and within 2 days the swelling was down and he was able to walk again. Very often, Dove will go onto the streets and provide meals for all the street boys who work every day, some as young as 6 years old, shining shoes to provide for their families. These are just a few of the many ways that Dove uses its funding, and we would love your support to not only keep these programs going, but also to create new ones!


To make a donation by check:

Make your check out to "DOVE Missions"
Send your check to: Dove Missions, c/o Caroline Santora, 5834 East Beck Lane, Scottsdale, AZ 85254


You can also donate by paypal. Go to the Support Page on Dove's website and click on the paypal button.


You also have the option of sending supplies to the DR, and instructions to do this are below. You are welcome and encouraged to send letters to your sponsor children. They love seeing photos of Canada and the USA, and photos of the people who are sponsoring them.

Pack your items in a sturdy box.
Weigh your box.
For every pound your package weighs, we ask that you make a donation of $1.50 to Dove Missions to cover the Agape service fee. So, for a 10 pound package, we ask for a $15 donation (this is what Agape charges Liz when she picks up your package at their office in Santiago). You can use PayPal or send a check to:
Dove Missions, 5834 East Beck Lane, Scottsdale, AZ 85254.

Send your package to: Liz McKie, c/o Agape Flights STI #20504, 100 Airport Avenue , Venice , FL , 34285 - or if you live in Florida you can drop your package off at Agape if you like.