My two weeks in Puerto Plata working with Dove Missions, with my brother Jencen, were without question two of the most memorable and life changing weeks of my life. I have lots of friends who’ve done humanitarian work like this, and have always come back with a similar “change of heart and attitude” that I always admired, but never really understood. I knew that doing something like this would make you feel good and more aware, but I honestly never believed how deeply it could touch your heart. And that’s exactly what the kids and families there did – imprinted my heart.
I still remember the first day when Liz took us around Playa Oeste and Aguas Negras. I don’t really know how to put into words what I felt… but the word “humbled” comes to mind. I sometimes complain about how my apartment’s A.C./heater is too loud or how once in a while a find a few ants on the kitchen counter. I’ve never really stopped to think, at least I have electricity and a roof over my head. A few minutes walking in these places where thousands of people live really put things into perspective. I’m also quite the germ-a-phobe and I’ll be honest, I sometimes cringe when I walk through slightly dirty Downtown Toronto streets. Seeing the little kids running around areas with flowing sewage, often with no shoes… again… humbling. I don’t know what I was expecting that first day, but I definitely wasn’t expecting the welcoming and absolutely warm atmosphere I was faced with. Kids came running fighting to hold your hand; parents were waving from their homes; smiles were beaming in your direction. Literally the moment I stepped out of the car, I felt so…full.
We did house visits to some of the students in the program. I remember we visited Marcos, Meriledi, and Andy, probably a few others. I learned very quickly that when you visit someone’s home, you MUST have a seat. Again, smiles and warmth. I only speak some Spanish, so not many words were shared – but wow, even within those first few visits, I already felt so connected to them. That afternoon, when my brother and I got back to our resort, we took some time to reflect and absorb. The theme in our discussions I would say was a new sense of gratefulness with an urge to… I don’t know… help? But where to start. Thinking of the millions of things the kids and families needed (clothes, food, play time, water, a sewage system, education, toiletries, health care access, money) we decided, breathe… let’s just see what happens tomorrow with Liz.
Day two was our first day at the Boy’s Club (Boys Club was Tuesdays and Saturdays, Girls Club was Thursday and Saturdays). Again, the boys came with smiles and helping hands – greeting us as soon as we got out of the car and carrying supplies into the class. We helped with bracelet making and teaching English… and within that first day, Jencen and I knew what we wanted to do for the next two weeks: spend as much time with the kids as possible. This is what was amazing about Liz/Dove; she really wanted us to do what we felt passionate about. She told us about the other options, many of which we also visited for a day (e.g. orphanages, pharmacy, hospitals, house building, etc.) So we decided teaching would be our main commitment.
And because I don’t want to write a whole novel, I’ll just give the highlights of the next 12 days. Although the classes were only a couple of days of the week, we were lucky enough to spend most of the days in between working on a special “Bench Making Project” with some of the older boys in the club. We were kindly hosted by Joe and Loase, where we had Samuel (a carpenter/wood worker) teach the kids how to make these art benches for the new classroom! It was so exciting! Mostly because I myself have never held a power tool and watching 9 year olds learn how to sand down a bench and drill holes into wood pieces was so impressive and to be honest, hilarious! They were so brave and so eager to learn. I was partnered with Luis Manuel and Jose Antonio (and fell completely in love with both of them). I was very impressed with how well they listened and picked up the skills – not because I didn’t think they could, but because kids that age (especially where I grew up) just seem so distracted and uninterested in anything other than video games or computers. If you could have seen their eyes and how concentrated they were... Anyways, that’s how I fell in love with the boys.
The girls were an absolute joy as well. We had a little less time with them because the bench-making was for boys only. But, after our Pool Party with the girls, how deeply I fell in love with them too. The pool in the place we took them was not even that big – a pool that size in Canada probably would have comfortably fit 4-8 people. That day, we brought about 25 girls, in TWO cars, for a day in the sun with music and pizza. So much fun! I remember thinking how sometimes when I have parties with my younger cousins, they get bored so easily! We are so over stimulated and I think it just leads to boredom and ungratefulness – not at anyone’s overt fault, but goodness, if we didn’t have EVERYTHING, I think we’d feel more satisfied in life because we could find the joy in the smaller things. Like a clean pool or a couple of slices of pizza – a normal night in Toronto, but a full out amazing day trip for the girls. We danced, laughed, and played – the only three things I’ve come to realize I’ll need in my life to be happy. We were also lucky enough to spend one day in a home for special-needs children, Casa Nazaret. Again, a soul lifting day. It was a pretty relaxed day just playing with the kids, helping feed them, and then helping the ladies their with some laundry folding. If I was there for more than two weeks, I definitely would have wanted to spend more days there.
The giving nature of the people in Puerto Plata is just shining wherever you go. You can tell that people really give their hand and hearts to the less fortunate… even when they themselves may not have much. I think this is a big thing I learned – it’s not how many suitcases of clothes, how many cheques you can sign, how much canned goods you can bring… it’s how much of your heart you can leave behind. By the end of our trip, I felt an overwhelming sense of gratitude from the students, parents, and teachers (not necessarily through words, but through smiles and hugs)… underserved gratitude at that. I mean, what did I do really? I sang some Spanish songs, played a few games, and taught a dance. If anything, near the end of my trip, part of me felt kind of like, “wait did I really do anything here?” I felt almost, um, selfish – as if this trip gave me SO MUCH, and what did I really do? I talked to Liz about this, and she filled my heart. She explained, beautifully, that it’s not the dances, the English words, or the games that they’ll remember. It’s the feeling that someone out there, for however long or short a time, was here with them; to play; to talk; to be with them. Liz told me this was her dream for Dove Missions – to connect people. To make people on other parts of the world not just see, but to FEEL that there is a big and different world out there. And whether or not you decide to come back ever, doesn’t matter – what matters is that these people living below the poverty line aren’t just another commercial on t.v. They are real families, real kids… that in all likelihood, you’ve come to love.
If you want a life changing trip, connect with Dove Missions… for a day, a week, a month, for life. I’m grateful God sent me there to meet all of you wonderful people. I’m currently planning a December visit (who needs savings when you graduate, right?). Can’t wait to be back.
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