Kite Making

The Boys Club spent a class working on kite making. The kids are so creative and love doing projects like this. They went home with their kites, and shortly after, ran back to the Center to show Liz and Cathy their kites. They pointed in the distance, and there, tied to the house of one of the boys, were their kites flying high!

Salon Work

One of the longer term goals for Dove is to teach the kids vocations so that as they grow older, they can support their families. These older girls are interested in working in a salon. Conveniently, there is one located right near the Center. The girls are very excited to learn how to work in a salon, as you can see from their big smiles! The girls are: Yohani, Loraina, Vanessa, Rosemary, Elizabeth, Raysa, Anamilka, Isamay, Patricia, Tatiana, Alani, Cristina, and Yaneli.

Our Jefes

Our "jefes" (bosses) are our older boys in the Club. We are really wanting to expand our programs with them. Unlike the younger kids, they need more than just crafts, singing, dancing, and games. Many of them are considered adults in their culture, and we need to set them on the right track so that in the future they can support their families. If you are interested in supporting these programs, please use the paypal button on the sidebar and specify your funds for the older boys or the "jefes".

Promotional Video

Girls Club

Teaching the kids about cleanliness is very important. This is something that we often take for advantage, but this knowledge is not known by all the kids, and much of it is new to them. Here they are with a teacher, Teresa, learning about personal hygeine and its importance. In the second video they are just having fun with some free time- look at those smiles!

Sports Room

The Club is really coming together, and perhaps the best part of it all is that the kids are LOVING spending time in the building- even when class is over! I think it is a bit of a safe place for them to go and have fun and learn. Here they are after class one day playing in the sports room. Sports in the Dominican are typically geared towards the young boys, so the girls were nervous (but excited) to get their chance to play!

Music & The Arts

This Sunday, Cathy and her daughter Ally returned back to the DR after a 2 month vacation in Canada! Cathy is the Club Director, and everyone was happy to have her back. To celebrate, the kids put on performances and the parents all came to watch. They did an incredible job! Music is very important in the Dominican Republic and this showed in what they chose to perform. Both boys' groups did a rap, and the girls did a dance to a rap song. Another group of boys put on a skit about gangs and violence and the impact it has on families and communities. The kids really, really enjoyed taking part in this special day, and we hope to expand the Music & Arts Program soon to encourage more of this.


And if you are interested in hearing some music that is popular in the Dominican Republic, search Youtube for El Sol Y La Playa by Monkey Black, or Que Tengo Que Hacer by Daddy Yankee.

Saturday Clubs

The Girls Club... The older girls are working on an art project and the little kids are colouring. The girls, WAY more so than the boys, are very, very competitive in everything they do (not only in the Club- I notice this behaviour when they are at home playing as well). They all really want to get that extra attention and to feel special.


The Boys Club. They are singing one of the English-Spanish songs that we play for them in Class. Using music to teach English helps them to remember the words. We have songs for the days of the week, colours, body parts, etc.

Crabbing In Playa Oeste

Many of the kids in the Club are from Playa Oeste, a very poor area of Puerto Plata that means West Beach in english. We also have kids from Barrio Nuevo and Aguas Negras. This video shows what life is like in Playa Oeste. Kids in the video = Andy, Andrieli, and Coco (and a mother, Sonia). Andy was out in the water looking for crabs. He is 13 years old and because his father died, he takes on the role of 'man of the house' and does his best to provide for his family. Not only can you see the filth of the beach that they live on, but you can also see the work that goes into providing for a family in the DR.

Murals

The following is written by Sarah, one member of a team of 6 working in the DR and Haiti for three weeks.

Time is flying by - I cannot believe it has been a week since I last wrote. We were blessed enough to spend another day with Liz and the boys, which we all enjoyed. In the morning, we drove to Puerto Plata, met up with Liz, and drove to the boys' and girls' club building. We were greeted by the boys we met last friday with hugs and kisses, and then we headed up to check out Liz's new building. A beautiful spot for a club, but pretty bland to say the least. Liz asked if we would like to paint a mural, and of course, we took on the challenge! After a quick stretching/exercise session with the kids, we grabbed some paint brushes and paint and went at it. We had it completely finished by one o'clock, and rewarded ourselves with a lunch break. The boys helped us clean up and by that time we had to prepare for the afternoon session of classes. Liz made a special time for the club to meet this week so that we could take over and do some of the teaching! We were split into four sections: Danielle P. and Danielle C. teaching English, Rana and Jessica playing games and singing songs, Joslyn making bracelets, and I taught "How To Make Playdough". I can't speak for the rest of the girls, but my section was crazy! We had a great day with the kids though and it was awesome to see the boys again.

In this video you can see the beautiful murals, as well as Jose Manuel's dance moves!

Grand Opening!

On August 15th, Dove held the grand opening for the Club! A team of 6 from Canada is in the DR and Haiti for a few weeks, and came to help Liz for the day and run a fun grand opening for about 70 kids who are benefiting from Dove's services. They ran classes and made Playdough with the kids. The mothers all came as well and created a sign up sheet for who will come on what days to help clean and work in the Club. We are having them do this so they can learn that the Club is not about giving hand outs. We want them to work for the services they are being provided with, and because of this, they will make it their own and be proud of what they have because they have worked for it.

*August 15, 2009

Dove Is IN!

For months now Dove has been raising funds and working hard to prepare a new building for the Clubs to be held in. We needed something big enough to hold all of our new students, as well as all of our supplies and teaching materials. We wanted it secure and in a good area, but also close enough to the kids' houses that they would be able to easily and quickly walk to class. In May we found the perfect location- a huge building that used to be a bakery. It is in the Barrio Neuvo neighbourhood and is on the second floor, on top of a corner store. It took many weeks of renovations, but it is ready and this past Tuesday (August 11th) the first class was held in the new building, and the kids loved it! The first video is a tour of the building. The second is of the first class in the new building. It was the Boys Club and the boys in the video are talking about what they like about the Club and the new location.

Get To Know Them

These videos were taken during Saturday's class (August 8th). It was the last class being held in the old building (Hilda's school) before moving to the brand new building in Barrio Nuevo. The Boys Club is first and the Girls Club is second, so watch them and get to know some of the kids!

Video

The following is a video made by Nikki Cochrane following her 2 month volunteer trip to the DR. It focuses specifically on her work and friendship with the older boys whom Dove provides english classes for.

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