Day 6

After our long bus ride last night, we were so glad to have all day today to relax and debrief from the trip. This morning we began with a debrief on improvements for future years, as well as where we saw God working throughout the week, or God moments. It was awesome to hear everyone’s ideas for improvement, and will be interesting to see how they are implemented in the future. Hearing everyone’s God moments was so incredible to see how God was working in each of our lives this week. While there were certain patients or memories that are special to each person, one of the most common themes was how grateful we all were for our team. This week, our group of 33 got closer to one another and to God, which was so incredible to be apart of. There were many new faces on the trip, as well as many returners, and God used each one of us to make such a cohesive group to serve this week. Everyone was so willing to help out wherever they were needed, and was so upbeat throughout the entire week that created a very positive atmosphere. We will be sad to leave this country, but it was a great week with a great group of people serving the Lord! After our debrief we headed out to either spend some time on the beach, go into town, or go with Pastor Kenneth to see some of the progress his ministry has been making! It was a great way to end our busy week and reflect on how God worked this week in the midst of some of the beauty God created. We ended the night with some worship songs, communion, and by sharing the peace of Christ (and many hugs) with one another as we get ready to fly out tomorrow morning. It has been such an incredible week here in the Dominican Republic, and we are so excited to see how God continues to work in the hearts of everyone we encountered this week. Thank you for your continued prayers for our work and safety this week, and we just ask for a few more prayers for a safe return home tomorrow!

Day 5

For our last clinic day we had a half day where we were serving from about 9 AM to 12:30 PM. We had set up from the day before which meant we had less to do this morning and we could start seeing patients earlier. We were in another larger school cafeteria today, and seeing as it was day 4, we had pretty much perfected the flow of the clinic. We saw a lot of children again today, and we were so glad we could provide some care to this community as our last stop. One moving story from today was a domestic violence case with a teenage girl. One of our amazing providers was able to get her some help by connecting her with the local pastor as well as one of our doctors from the DR. We were so glad we could provide some sort of support for this girl, and we will be praying that her situation improves. At the end of the morning after we were finished seeing patients, we loaded our supplies back on the truck for the last time. We thanked our wonderful interpreters and hugged them goodbye, and then headed to the next hotel where we are staying for the next two nights. The bus ride was slightly shorter than the one we had last Saturday, clocking in at 7 hours, but we finally made it to the hotel! We will have all day tomorrow to debrief from the week and relax before our trip home!

Day 4

Today was our third day of clinic and it was another success! This time we were in one small school building and the surrounding courtyard, which was a tight fit for the 33 of us plus all the patients. The classroom happened to be for kindergarteners, so we sat in teeny tiny chairs and worked at very small desks meant for 5 year olds! There were many small children running around when we first arrived, many of whom would run up to us and give us big hugs! It was a blessing that we had received a few of the suitcases from the airport that had the pediatric medications in them, because we saw so many children and infants at today’s clinic. It was amazing to serve so many children, and there were also a few special stories that will stick with us. Today there was a man who was mute who came in with aches and pains and one of our providers, alongside her translator, were able to diagnose and treat the man using gestures. They eventually found out that this man was the town water man, who delivered jugs of water to every house each morning, and he was well-known by the community. He was given a new pair of shoes- bright blue crocs, as well as a pair of glasses, and we could tell that he was overjoyed as he sat there with a big smile on his face. It was incredible to be hear these stories from our providers at the end of the day knowing that that we were able to serve people in each community, and hopefully make a small difference in their lives—even if it is just through a pair of crocs! After the end our clinic today, we drove to our clinic site for tomorrow to set-up so that we could get an earlier start. Tomorrow the clinic will be for a half day, and then we will head back towards Santo Domingo! Thank you for all the prayers and thoughts this week, it has been incredible serving God’s people in this place! 

Day 3

Our second clinic day was another wonderful day! Today we were in a larger school, spread out between the basketball court and multiple classrooms. The school was farther than the one from yesterday, in a more rural area, meaning that for half of our bus ride out there was on a dirt road. The bus driver expertly swerved potholes and even navigated through a very large puddle that covered the road to get us there! Because it was our second day, we were able to work out some of the kinks from day 1 and it went very smoothly. We were able to help many people medically and spiritually, which was incredible to see! One of the most moving moments from today came from providing one woman who came into the clinic in pain from an accident 20 years ago with a wheelchair. When she came back out to see her children they ran up to her giving her big hugs, and then she was wheeled out past the people in the waiting area, who began clapping and cheering! It was uplifting to witness that moment and realize that those community members had probably watched that woman walk in pain for many years, and that we were able to provide her some sort of relief. Pastor Ryan and Wilken (or Team Mom and G Wagon- ask PR about it when we get home!) returned from Santo Domingo where they had been working hard to retrieve the suitcases from the airport! They came back with some but not all, but it was such a blessing to have the medications we did not have for the last 2 days! Thank you for all your prayers and praise God for answering those prayers! We are looking forward to another full day of clinic tomorrow! 

Day 2

Today was our first clinic day at Ana Patria Martinez School in Elías Pina, and for the first day without some medications that are being held at the airport, it went well! The word of the week is flexibility, and our entire team was able to accommodate and work with a few limitations. We started the morning by setting up the clinic in a school cafeteria, setting up provider stations, a triage area, glasses station, pharmacy, and prayer station, all the while stopping to chat with the curious school children. When people had arrived at the clinic, Pastor Kenneth preached the gospel and encouraged them to put their faith and trust in God. Kenneth speaks genuinely and passionately about a relationship with Jesus Christ, and it was really special to be able to watch him bring people to Christ this morning. Then we were off, and patients were seen by our team of providers alongside a few providers from the DR. Patients ranging from infants to elderly (we actually had a 100 year old woman!) with all sorts of medical issues were seen and prescribed medication. We were lucky to have so many wonderful providers in many different specialties as well: Dr. Rex was doing all things dental, Patrick was providing physical therapy, and many children were able to be seen by Dr. Dan. Although it was hectic, all our team members were always compassionate and patient with one another, which helped the day flow smoothly. Once we had seen all the patients there and filled all the prescriptions, we broke down and headed back to the hotel. We are looking forward to another awesome clinic tomorrow! Please send your prayers for Pastor Ryan and some of our DR partners as they work to retrieve the last few suitcases from airport customs tomorrow morning!

Spirit tunnel to the bus!

Day 1

Today was a warm and beautiful day in Las Matas de Farfan, and it was perfect for our first full day in the DR. We started the day by attending a church service in one of the surrounding villages that is put on by Kenneth, one of our DR partners. It was a wonderful outdoor service with many Spanish songs led by Pastor Ryan on guitar, the sharing of following Christ testimonials from some our DR partners, and fun interactions with many of the Dominican children and young adults who attended the service. After the service we headed back to the hotel where we had an incredible lunch and then began our preparation for our first clinic day tomorrow! We sorted out details, got some basic training, and tried to get organized before we head to our first clinic site. One group headed back to the same community space we were at for the church service this morning to present a few classes- CPR, Heimlich maneuver, and body mechanics. We reconvened for dinner and devotion and then headed to bed for some rest before a busy day tomorrow!

At the church service:

Training back at the hotel:

 

We Made it!

Hola! After many hours of travel, we finally made it to the Dominican Republic! First we had a four hour flight from Santa Ana to Newark then a three hour flight from Newark to Santo Domingo. We spent a short time spent in the airport trying to get all our bags through customs (some were left behind but will hopefully be retrieved or delivered in the next day or two), and then met up with our team members from the DR. We embarked on a 7 hour bus ride to our hotel in Las Matas de Farfan, stopping for bathroom breaks and empanadas! We are very thankful for our wonderful bus drivers who got us safely to our hotel just after 8 PM. Dinner was waiting for us when we got to the hotel, and then we were able to shower and head to bed to end our long travel day! Thank you for all you prayers for safe travels!

Ready to Go!

With just a few more hours until departure, it is hard to believe that by this time tomorrow we will be in the Dominican Republic! Tonight we fly out at 9:30 PM to Newark, NJ, and then arrive in Santo Domingo at 11:30 AM tomorrow, so attempting to sleep on the flights if possible will be essential. We cannot wait to meet all the members of our group traveling from other parts of the US, and excited to connect with our partners in the DR! We would appreciate any and all prayers for safe travels!