Dominican Republic 12/2007 - Tropical Storm Olga

Based on what I had heard before leaving the United States on December 10th, I expected my trip to the DR to be pretty routine. Amongst the items on my list of things to do: distribute Christmas funds to the childrens homes, gather an update report and photographs on a kitchen renovation project, update the rosters of new children and others who have been lucky enough to return home with family, and attend meetings regarding further support that we are trying to receive for the homes.

I had heard nothing of Tropical Storm Olga bearing down on the island of Hispañola. As soon as I arrived I was quickly informed about the local buzz. The country was still struggling to get back on its feet after Tropical Storm Noel blasted them with 5 consecutive days of wind and beating rains. It seemed that everyone was especially nervous about the strength with which Olga would hit.

The city of Sanitago got the worst of the storm. Not only are they already dealing with low elevation and a large river, but the dam that monitors the water flow on that river was nearing a bursting point and had to be opened. The entire city was severly flooded. Thousands of homes were lost and sadly, many lives as well. We sat and watched the evening news in horror as it showed the water rushing over entire homes and throwing an SUV onto a second story balcony.

Unless you have traveled outside of our borders, it is very hard to imagine the poverty and living conditions of many of the people that we serve. Homes are merely shacks made of scrap pieces of metal and wood. Roofs are constructed of plastic, palm, and tin. Lives are balancing on invented shelters and makeshift comforts. One single thunderstorm can be devastating to someone living in these conditions, much less any level of Tropical Storm. One strong flow of water will destroy an entire home in seconds. The news was full of stories of mothers losing small children in the current. Lives swept away at a moment's notice.

Once the rain let up, we checked up on our Angels of Hope sponsored homes. Aside from leaking roofs and water creeping in under the doors, the homes were unaffected by the storm. It was exam week and school was closed for two days. The kids were having a great time, but the administrators were feeling a little stressed given the end of the term and the storm throwing their schedules off.

I spent some time talking to a couple of young boys in one of the homes. We were talking about Christmas and whether they would be going home to stay with their parents or other relatives for the holiday. Many of these children do have living relatives, just that they are not economically stable enough to care for the children full time. It was interesting to hear the boys' responses.

One said that the home administrators do not allow them to leave for Christmas because its not safe for them at home. Everyone would be drinking and shooting firearms and fireworks. Its better for them to stay at the home for Christmas where they are safe with their "real" family. Another boy said that he was not excited about going home to see his family because he has six siblings, and all of them live at home with his mother. If she did not want him and abandon him at the orphanage, he did not want her either.

It was so sad to hear these 12 year old boys speak about the realities of their lives. Neglected or mistreated by their own families, these boys find comfort in one another and the orphanage that has come to represent family and home to them.

To brighten their day, I happened to be delivering packages of letters from their sponsors and the boys each received a letter and a Christmas card. It may seem like a simple gesture from the sponsor, but to these children it means the world. They eyes lit up as they each ran to a different corner to read their letters. Quickly they all gathered back together around me to tell me what their letters said and compare the translations to the original English letter. They were comparing letters and teasing each other regarding comments on needing to work harder in school or how handsome the boy is in his photograph.

The trip was a mix of emotions: of shock over the storm and its consequences, of affection and joy from interacting with the children, and of satisfaction over the administrators' responses to receiving checks for the AOH Christmas Funds.

It was, however, far from the routine trip I expected.

Guatemala 11-07

Mid-November I was in Guatemala again. This time I went on my own for personal reasons and ended up staying a few extra days to take advantage of the fact that I was already there and get some work done. When I am working in the field I spend a lot of time visiting the different homes and meeting with their administrators. Sometimes I have the opportunity to spend time with the children and hang out for awhile, but usually I am running around all day long and we do not have much time to play.

I gather the photographs and letters necessary to maintain our sponsorship program and to cultivate the relationships between the children and their sponsors. I also speak to the home administrators about the support we are providing and if there are any other needs that we might be able to address.

I like to spend time getting to know each home and understanding their biggest struggles. This allows us to customize projects and support to meet their most desperate needs. We do not send cash directly to the homes. We send support in the form of staple food items, goods, furniture, clothing, school supplies, cleaning products, personal hyigene items, etc. on a regular basis. So understanding each individual home and their needs helps us to complete that support with projects and specific donations.

The situations of the children in our supported orphanages throughout Latin America and the Caribbean are different than our stereotypical idea of Orphan Annie. Most of these children are not orphans in the sense that both of their parents are deceased. The homes that we support play the role of foster home, nutritional rehabilitation center, long term child care, as well as orphanage. Most of the children are brought to live in the homes merely because their families are suffering from extreme poverty and are unable to maintain them. Many are from very poor families who do not have access to proper nutrition, health care, or education. These children come to the homes and are not only taken care of, but also receive the opportunity for a quality education. Some children are the victims of mistreatment and abuse, while others are temporarily residing in the homes until the courts determine custody and guardian issues.

The children are amazing and beautiful. Its so difficult to hear their stories and hear them talk about what they have all been through. We are so truly blessed here in the United States. So much of what we have we take for granted. These children talk about getting their first pair of shoes the way our children talk about getting their Playstation 2 or their new Ipod. There are 12 year old children in first grade classrooms because it is the first time they have ever been to school. Its just amazing and inspirational to spend time with them and learn more about them.

All Saints Day in El Salvador 11/07

Despite some large setbacks with the airlines, my recent trip to El Salvador was a great experience. First of all, I had to deal with a cancelled flight and as a result a complete lack of luggage once I arrived. Thankfully I finally did receive my baggage the night before I was scheduled to return back to Miami.

The trip itself was a wonderful mixture of family, cultural holiday, and work. We hosted an end of the year meeting with all the directors of the different orphanages. We discussed project possibilities for the upcoming year and evaluated all the support they have been receiving up to this point. The homes in El Salvador greatly benefit from our Angels of Hope program. In fact, we are the primary, and perhaps only, source of outside support that many of them receive.

This year we completed water-related and/or construction-related projects in all the homes. Now that they are already benefiting from their new bathrooms, cisterns, cupboards, etc, we are looking forward to starting to work with agricultural and animal husbandry projects that will further enrich the nutrition and quality of life within the homes.

Within the past four months we have added three new homes to the program. I took the time to visit each of the homes and meet the administration and staff. I love visiting the homes. The children always have a "show" prepared and are very eager to receive us. I get a tour of the facility and always call the children out who have not made their beds yet. It was wonderful to see all of the new homes and welcome them into our Angels of Hope family.

I love the children in El Salvador because they are very affectionate. I enough hugs and kisses to last me a year. All the kids line up to say hello and goodbye with hugs and kisses each time I see them. It's great!

On top of a great work trip, I also happened to be present for All Saint's Day. This Friday is a national holiday and nearly everything in the country was shut down. I spent the day with my in-country coordinator and her family. I found that all the people in El Salvador were in the cemetaries or out visiting relatives. We stopped every ten minutes for great home cooked food and more visiting. By the end of the day I had eaten my fill of Pupusas, elote asado, tortillas, requeson, caldo de gallina, frijoles, and jugos naturales.

We went to visit her grandparents, aunts, and uncles. They all lived in small little pueblos up in the mountains. The scenery was beautiful and each of the homes was filled with unique smells, food, and people. We picked beans out of the pods and an Aunt showed me how to make fresh cheese out of natural cream. We visited the cemetaries and decorated the tombs of different relatives who had passed. There were bands playing music for the dead and families gathering over the graves of their loved ones.

And I did all of this, five days of work and travel in El Salvador, in the same outfit because my luggage still had not arrived!

Guatemala 10/10

Since I had spent nearly a year working as a volunteer in Guatemala, its always exciting for me to go back. Luckily for me, I get to go back a couple times a year.

I spent time this trip in meetings and evaluating some different projects in our Angels of Hope sponsored homes. All of the children are now finishing the school year and looking forward to their summer break. They start classes again in January.

I love markets. I love crazy, loud, colorful, smelly, crowded, random, bustling village markets. This has always been one of my favorite things since I started traveling. You can find anything, from buttons and telephone cords to pirated dvd's and handwoven placemats. The traditional fabrics and patterns in Guatemala are beautiful. The colors are bold and risky in their combinations. Long running cultures and ethnic groups have their own individual patterns which have been adapted and are now appearing on journal covers and picture frames to cater to the ever-growing tourist crowd.

You could easily lose me for a couple hours, if not days, in a place like this.

Dominican Republic 09-07

Last week's trip to the Dominican Republic...

I was fortunate enough to be traveling with FFP's Project Manager for the DR. We traveled to see some of our current project sites including some incredible efforts along the Haitian-Dominican border. There are these tiny little forgotten communities of people struggling to survive along this no-man's-land. The mountains are the only thing embracing these suffering families.

Food For The Poor is completely changing the face of these villages. The initial facelift comes from buildling brand new concrete block homes for each of the families. Their shacks of sticks, mud, rotten wood, and scrap metal are being replaced with brightly-painted, sturdy, large, cement block homes. A large multi-purpose community center is nearly finished, along with a community school.

But this project is not just a face-lift... a communal chicken coop is nearly finished, and plans for further animal husbandry and agriculture are the next step for this revitalized community. The men and women of the village are being employed to construct their own homes and those of their neighbors.

Their is a spark of life and most importantly hope that can be seen in the faces of the villagers. I felt truly blessed to have been able to take part and see it with my own eyes. I look forward to seeing the finished projects.

After traveling the countryside I returned to Santo Domingo to spend time with the children's homes that we support through our Angels of Hope program.




We harvested tomatos, peppers, and plantains of a seperate FFP agricultural project and delivered large boxes of them to each of the six of our Angel of Hope sponsored homes.








The children are all back in school now and it was truly a joy to see them rolling into the homes with their school uniforms on... buzzing about what happened at school and who has a crush on who.


For most of these children it is an advantage that they have been placed in one of these homes. The majority of them are not orphans in the "orphan Annie" sense. They do have living parents or relatives, but unfortunately the parents are so poor that they are unable to provide and care for these children. Outside of the homes the children suffer from malnourishment and do not have the opportunity for an education. On the contrary, once these kids are brought to the homes they are nourished not only physically, but mentally and spiritually as well. They are often provided with the opportunity for vocational/skills training in a specific job field or scholarships for college tuition.