and so it begins!

Hello to everyone! Thank you so much for all of your kind words and support pre departure and for my arrival here. It’s been busy busy busy, but this week is my first official week as a big girl, working in the office, and I even had my first meeting. whoaaaa watch out world. Other than that, right now I am working with the fundraising office to contact local foundations, donors, and planning for some events we have coming up in the fall. Basically I am spreading the word, our mission, and philosophy to help further the lives of the children at Nuestros Pequeños Hermanos Dominican Republic (nph.org). 

Other than that, last weekend was my free weekend. How it works, is I work 11 days straight, 8am-8pm, and then have 3 days off. Last week, a handful of us went to a beach about an hour away, Bayahibe, which is a small fisherman’s town and absolutely beautiful. It was great to lay on the beach, be in good company, and have the time to reflect about this adventure I am embarking on. We went from Saturday to Sunday which was perfect and exactly what I needed. Here are a few pictures: 

The Friday before we left, we had a group of baseball players come meet the children, play, and learn about our organization. Just so happens this group was from Minnesota and to be more specific, they were from Minnetonka, Minnesota! I actually knew a few of them, which was crazy. One family, I went to grade school with her oldest son, and her 2 younger sons were in the same grades as Clare & Hannah. The mom, Mrs. Hoopes and her son, Tommy, both came, we caught up, showed them around, and it was just so great to be able to share something I love with people I know. Mrs. Hoopes and I were walking and she said something to me that really stuck out, in fact, it gave me goosebumps. She said, “You know, 2 years ago when we started fundraising for this trip and they asked me to go, I told them, the only way I will go is if we give back. This is a great opportunity for these boys to bring their passion to another country, but not only that, give back to those in need.” Their visit was just what I needed and beyond filled my heart with joy, happiness and excitement. Especially considering the first week of something new is always tough, so it was nice to have someone I know, someone who knows my family, to be able to be here and share the love I have for the children. 

This week was full of activities as well. I went roller blading with some of the kids, which was quite the shocker because they all were like, "Magdalena you're going to fall". I didn't. BOOM. roasted. Roller Blades are the new hit, I have to say. It's a big deal when you have them on. I also played basketball for the first time in a while with the older kids. yes I was the only girl because here it's a 'boy' sport. 

My friend, Avriel, who is the Communications Officer here, and myself took 5 of our kids to do a summer camp in a local Batey, which is a Haitian Migrant camp. It is a community in which is poorer than poor, kids running around naked, no running water, and puts a soft spot in my heart when the realities of my life are so much different than theirs. We took 5 of our children and put on a mini-summer camp for the children of the Batey which was kind of crazy. It was the first time we had done it and next week we now know how to tweak it. The kids had a great time, however, since there is no structure within the community at all, it got to be a little much at times, especially when the kids were fighting. For example, two kids started fighting and one of the kids pulled a machete on the other. I was in complete shock, as I had no idea if he was going to actually hurt someone or if he was doing it for attention, so I got in the kid's face and asked him to leave. I mean, C'mon! This is a kids camp. However, these are one of the realities of the life they live. It's tough, the kids are tough, but it's part of our world. All in all, it was good for our kids to see, because I think it teaches them to appreciate what they have here at NPH. 

Finally, I want to show everyone around the home. Although it’s virtual, I think you will get the idea about where I am :) 

The volunteer/visitor house.  Where I live!

The house where I volunteer in, Santo Domingo.  20 boys ages 9-14 full of energy

The office where I work

The chapel

I will show the school, multi-use area, park, kitchen, etc another time, but to wrap everything up, I have a video of Brito, one of our children, showing off his musical talents.  It'll make you smile, so be sure to watch! 

Enjoy!