Final thoughts - Speaking in Church

Every year when the pilgrims return home, we are asked to share our thoughts about our trip. What follows is what Frank and I presented:

It changed my life….

For the past two years, we’ve all listened to the pilgrims who return from the Dominican Republic say the same thing…it changed my life. The time was right for us to go, so we signed up in the spring to make the trip this year, along with Pat and Katie Collier; Dale, Marissa and Dave Rescott; Charlie Greene, Pat Messina, Penny Anderson; Kathleen, Mary and Shawn Doyle; Meghan Churney, and Ed and Mike Galka. We attended the monthly meetings and learned what we could about our upcoming visit. We got our shots, and took our malaria pills. Armed with our Spanish/English dictionary, our bug spray, mosquito nets, and battery operated fans, we were ready to go. But nothing prepared us for what we would experience there. The villagers in Don Juan opened their homes and their hearts to us.

Our days were filled from morning to night. We woke with the roosters in the morning. The home we stayed in had no running water, and we had power only 2 nights while we were there. During the days, we painted the school and the pharmacy, and taught the students how to use the sports equipment we as a parish had sent down - baseball, soccer and basketball equipment, hula hoops and jumpropes. We stocked the new bookshelves our parish provided with the books we had previously sent down. We traveled into Santo Domingo one evening and were treated to a cultural program of local dance and songs by the youth group from one of the churches there, who then shared food and conversation with the youth in our group. We traveled by pickup trucks to the very remote location of Los Llanos, the “poorest of the poor”, Father Ron told us, and painted the fronts of their cement block homes. We were joined in painting by the thankful villagers, who brought us coffee in what we would guess was their best glassware – their way to thank us for being there. At the churches we stopped at, the villagers came to mass on a moment’s notice when Father Ron arrived; he can visit most of the parishes only once a month due to their remote locations, but still celebrates mass to a full house, all giving thanks for their blessings. We witnessed baptisms, and presenting of infants. We listened to their joyful songs at all the churches we visited, always led by the never tiring Sister Veronica. In one of the villages, we drank milk from a coconut, and tasted sugar cane. And all of this done in 100+ degree heat.

We saw for ourselves where our donations to Mission from the Heart go; from the books, paint supplies, playground equipment and insurance for the school van that was our transportation while we were there, to the building of churches. We saw the smiles and heard the laughter from the children of the school, whose breakfast and lunches we provide through our Sponsor a Child program – it takes so little to do so much for them.

Did we miss some comforts from home? Sure we did…but we had what they had…food, shelter, and the love and support of friends. What else did we REALLY need?

Did it change our lives? Yes, it was a humbling experience – and physically and emotionally exhausting. But it was an experience we’re glad we had the opportunity to have, and share with you. We’re still not sure who got more out of it…them or us.

Please continue to keep the people of Don Juan and the surrounding villages in your thoughts and prayers, and know that your donations to Mission from the Heart DO make a difference. We were met with hugs and thanks from young and old; the villagers know and appreciate all that our parish does for them. That’s the message we bring back to you. Thank you.