Non-stop awesomeness? Yes.

vrrrrrrr vrrrrrr vrrrroooooooooom. Non-stop awesomeness? yes. School started today! The kids were prepping all weekend, washing their uniforms, trying on their new shoes, and even though my boys would say, “No Magdalena, I am not excited,” they're so full of it. they totally were. They were looking pretty sharp this morning on their way down to the school. Boys at that age.... it cracks me up. I get a good chuckle every day, especially when one of them asks me something in English, for example, one of my boys came up to me and goes, “Magdalena, I want some Macaroni and Chet” apparently cheese is a hard word to pronounce. Of course I laughed, he was confused at why I was laughing, but I mean, c’mon. That’s hysterical. And on top of that, don't try and tell me that you're not excited when you totally are. Everyone gets excited for the first day of school. 

Claro que si we love soccer! 

We enjoyed our last weekend of summer before normal starts to set in again. A weekend filled with soccer, card games, and lots of smiles. But if we are being honest, I for sure broke up 2 fights. Hey, not everything is perfect as it sounds. Kids fight, but it’s a minor detail in a really great weekend. One of my boys is very strong, verbally and physically. Let me take a step back. In the DR, there is a lot of discrimination between Haitians and Dominicans. If you have light skin, you’re Dominican. Dark skin, you’re Haitian. It’s uncomfortable, especially having white skin, when you are put in a situation that you learned about in school. Rosa Parks? It’s real here. Well, one of my boys got into a fight with another in the house and he said, “Be quiet, Haitian!” Uncomfortable? Yes. However, this doesn’t work in my book. Nope, no it does not. There were about 5 boys around when this happened. My response, excuse me? We talked about it and here is what happened- 

“How am I different than you? Take your hand. Put it on your chest. Feel that? What’s under there?” 

 “A heart.”

“I have one too, just like you, just like him. What’s here?” 

 “A brain.” 

“Do you have one?” 

 “Yes.” 

 “Me too. What are these?” 

“Hands.” 

“I have them too. Your skin color doesn’t define who you are. We are all the same. So when you say, Be Quiet Hatian, it not only is mean to him, but it hurts me and everyone else as well. Look at me. I am Haitian. I am from Haiti. Did you know that? 

“No...” 

“What makes me different than you? My skin? That’s it? Look, let’s say you don’t know anything about me. Let’s say I am a criminal and I have killed a lot of people. Is that because of my skin?” 

“No...” 

“Exactly, it was a choice I made. I chose to do that. Did I choose to have white skin?” 

“No.” 

“Then what makes a Haitian and Dominican different?” 

“Their language” 

“Exactly. We are all people. We are human. We don’t have control over where we come from, what the color of our skin is, but what makes us who we are is our actions.” 

Such a powerful chat, something I am passionate about. It’s reality here. It’s hard, but it’s reality. They are fighting something that we are reading about in history books. I was talking to one of our older boys later that afternoon and I said, “Victor. I have to ask you a question and I don’t want you to get offended. What if I were to say to you, Be quiet, Haitian! How would that make you feel?” 

“Not good” 

“Why?”

“Because that has nothing to do with who I am as a person. I am a human being. Skin color is skin color. It’s not about who we are, it’s about what we do.” 

Powerful? The quote in bold gave me goosebumps. Just a concept here that is a reality. To us it’s not right. To me, it’s not right. But it’s definitely a cultural thing. It’s not right. But it’s reality. They deal with it all the time. Towards Santiago, I have seen signs saying, “Haitians stay out!” Has anyone seen or heard about Jane Elliott, a teacher in the 70s, that did an activity of racism in her class by dividing the children up by eye color? She was a 3rd or 4th grade teacher and one day she told that everyone with blue eyes was able to talk, were able to go to recess early, and weren’t allowed to talk with the people who had brown eyes. The kids were very frustrated, upset, and didn’t think it was fair. They also had no idea what was going on. The teacher later sat down with the kids and explained to them what and why she did what she did. She asked how it made the kids feel, they talked, and it was just a very powerful and emotional video. I suggest everyone take a look at it.
The link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bWlTZZN3DY 


I am going to do a similar activity with my boys within the next coming weeks. I did it when I was in 7th grade and have never forgotten that day. It was so frustrating. No one knew what was going on, but then after the experiment was over, we learned so much more. Experiential learning, to an extent. It's tough. I will let you know how it goes. 

 

Aside from that, I would also like to introduce to you some of the kids we have from Haiti who stay with us because, unfortunately, they are fighting cancer. In Haiti, there is no radiation treatment available, so, we take in children from St. Damien’s Hospital (a hospital in which NPH works with and has a strong connection with also founded by NPH founder). The kids come with a guardian and stay here at the home for the duration of their treatment. Now, this next part is no way intended to ask, however, the program for these children is currently running off of no funds, which is a difficulty for us, because the program is important to our home and helping these kids get better. If you’d like to send down some things for the children to do during their treatment (coloring books, games, books), any snacks, or anything you may think would be fun for a kid who isn’t always feeling that hot, let me know! Avriel is the volunteer of this house and is very closely connected to the children. She has lots of great posts about the children and her experience at NPH as well. 

If you would like to make a monetary donation which will go towards the children’s treatment, shoot me an email and I will give you all of the details! madelonrosemorin@gmail.com

Djimica & Leo

Burman

Giggly Djimica

For more information on Casa Santa Maria or our Haiti House, check out this article: 

Some final pictures of the week! Santiago this weekend to visit the host family!  Cheers to everyone! Missing you all!!! 

Happy Birthday Av!!!

Nairobi comes for a visit! 

Holy Tarantula

Hanging with the older kids! 

Madelon

What a Week!

This past week has been filled to the max with energy, motivation, and determination. My high school was here visiting and we were on high speed the whole time. 20 students and 3 chaperones came to the home and were given the mission of painting the school. Not quite the smallest task, but, their hard work paid off and I am more than impressed with how far they got. They scraped for 2 days and painted for 2 and the work they did is beyond the words of not only myself but also fellow volunteers and employees at the home. I read this quote a while back and it more than applies to what the group accomplished,"Work for a cause, not for applause. Live life to express, not to impress. Don't Strive to make your presence noticed, just make your absence felt." I can assure you the group did just that. They worked hard, played harder, and made relationships with the kids here that touched each one of the students. Not only that, each kid received a Jack Jablonski bracelet, so it's cool to see the Jabby bracelets and t-shirts become a part of our community here in the DR. The kids know about the accident so it's cool to be sending our support from here to Minnesota.

Aside from that, I am finally starting to feel adjusted. Ready for this? Picture time!

Jimica, filled with smiles & sass. Beautiful girl!

Me & Yomelvin

Me and Marcos! We went into San Pedro as a treat for good behavior. 

Sup rainy season. Thanks for starting.

Kendy and I- Beautiful smiles. 

Lastly, this video is of Hannah and Kaki, one of our special needs children. Aside from one other, Kaki can put a smile on my face when the days here get tough. His smile, contagious laughter, and urge to just be with you is something I keep dear to my heart. It's all about the simple things here, they go a long way. 

Tim would NOT approve

This past week has been a sprint without sitting on the bench for a water break because we have been on such a HIGH since Hannah arrived. Pause, before I get into all of the fun, let me give you an explanation of the title- Tim would NOT approve- well, my Dad, Tim, is a protector of his ladies, understandably, and actually, awesome to have a Dad like Tim, however, on our adventures, there are a couple of things that Tim wouldn’t approve of, which is what Hannah and I would say to one another during the event, with an emphasis on the NOT. Obviously. Now that you know, let’s start from the beginning.


Wednesday, Hannah gets here. Avriel and I as well as a pequeña, Marileen (friend of Hannah’s) went to go get her and she was so surprised to see the visitors I brought. We got back to the home and Hannah quickly got reaquainted with the kids, playing, laughing, lots of hugs and smiles. After, we went out for dinner for a fellow volunteer’s birthday, Milena, we went to a local favorite, Paco Taco, Mexican, naturally, and it was SO good. We then go dancing in a nearby Batey MonteCristi which NPH does a lot for the community, so it is safe, we are well respected, and vice versa. Where we went dancing isn’t some fancy shmancy disco with air conditioning, waitresses and waiters, rather, it’s basically the inside of a garage, loud music (and if you have teenagers that like to blast the music, that doesn’t even get remotely close to how loud this music gets) locals coming to dance, and it is just pure culture, pure Dominican. Hannah had a blast, it was approaching 1am and of course, me, the one who loves her sleep, was ready for bedtime, when Hannah only had 2 hours of sleep the night before and had traveled all day, wanted to stay and dance because she absoLUTELY loved it. Tim would NOT approve.

Marileen & Hannah

Cheese!

  

Batey Dancing

Clare- Brewer's training camp is right by NPH

Thursday, at 4pm, our travels to Santiago began. We traveled to visit the stomping grounds where my Dominican adventure began with Regis. We left at 4pm and got up to Santiago at 9pm. Get to our hotel and we were so fortunate to get the penthouse suite, rooftop to ourselves, incredible views, and pure bliss. Okay, not so much a penthouse suite, we stayed in the cheapest room, aka, old maid quarters, costed $2.50 per person for the night, hi. volunteer stipend, and instead of having the luxury of an automatic locking door, we got to padlock ourselves into the room!  Tim would NOT approve.  We then meet up with a couple of friends, Antonio and Rafael, to go out, dance, and just hang. It was so fun! 

reading stories

Best $2.50 I have spent in my life

Friday, we head to Antonio and Rafael’s Batey. (I have been to this community a number of times with Regis and the word nice, doesn’t even begin to describe the people in the community). We only stay for an hour, say hi, show everyone around, and then have to head out. Avriel, Kristen, and I are going back in a couple of weeks to do a day camp with the kids there.

Hannah in Batey Libertad

After the Batey, we start heading towards the campo, which is where my host family, again, Regis connection,  The campo is tucked away in the mountains of the Dominican Republic, so, how did we get up there? Well, let me tell you. We take a public bus to the base of the mountain. Now the bus isn’t one like in the states, rather it’s a beat up old mini van, usually the steering wheel is crooked, no carpeting, holes in the metal, you know, normal.  Anyway, a normal seat usually fits 3 people and that’s even squished, right? here, it’s 4 people to one bench. and there are 4 benches, 16 people, GROWN people, children on laps, Tim would NOT approve. We make it to the base of the mountain, so how did we get up? Motorcycles. a 40 minute ride to the campo. 

What do you think Tim?

Actually one of the MOST beautiful rides because it overlooks Santiago and the view is just unreal. Tim would NOT approve. We get to my host family, and my host mom, Miguelina, is filled with joy to see us. She has 6 kids and only 2 boys live at the house, so she was so excited to have girls and by the end of our stay, which was less than 24 hours, she started referring to us as her daughters. I have never met any one who could be more genuine. 

Host Brothers (Henry and Samuel) with the Sisters!

Campo

Host Mom's kitchen

There are 70 people in the community, it's small, quaint, and quiet. After a delicious meal on Friday night, we head over to my first host family's house to have a small prayer service, which was super cool to share and be apart of, and then celebrated the birthday of my host sister, Yolenney, who just turned 17, married, and has a 10 month old baby. Can you imagine?

Kristen with Jazmin

Before I continue with the adventures, I want to extend a HUGE thank you to all of the people who donated birthday supplies. They came in great use over the weekend and will be awesome to use over the next year, especially the sprinkles! Seriously, cannot find them here. I truly appreciate everything, as will the children. It is something that they will feel special and not just another kid at an orphanage. Rather, it is a day to celebrate them, their life, and their presence, which is a HUGE tribute to everyone who contributed to the birthday donations. Thank you! 

On Saturday Morning, we woke up around 6am to watch the sun rise in the mountains- unreal. Around 8am, we walked about a mile to get to a HUGE cave, where we went inside, sunk into the mud, climbed up and down, Tim would NOT approve. It was pitch black, the kids who came with us made homemade torches and got a huge kick out of us because we kept falling. They are pros at this. They do it as a past time, so naturally they don't fall at all. It was muddy, we got dirty, and everyone was laughing to the point of tears. Memories for a lifetime.

Unreal

Daniel- Insurance smile goes international

We returned back to the home Saturday evening, wanting to stay longer, but had to work on Sunday because is was Family day. A day full of emotions and it was important we were there to support the children. 

My high school, Benilde- St. Margaret's (BSM), is here. I am in charge of planning, making sure they are doing okay, and everything is under control. With that, I should probably go check on them. Next blog I will go into more detail about their time here. 

Thanks for reading! 

We're doing it live!

Hello to all! Sorry I haven't written in a while, it's been busy, busy here! Are you ready for a juicy filled update? Hope so! Sit back, relax, and read. Here we go, BOOM. 

Two of our girls, Mireya and Debora, just graduated from High School which is a HUGE accomplishment for them. They had quite the fan club at the ceremony, from volunteers, staff, and employees from the home. It was huge for them, for us, and it really was a such an incredible moment, one I will never forget. To see the smile on their faces, how proud they were to be in that cap and gown, and receive that diploma was absolutely amazing.   They are driven and motivated beyond words which is so inspirational. They will give one year of service back to the home before going to University. 

The morning of graduation, I went with two of the older girls to get beautified before the big event. Hair, nails, and girl time. It was beyond awesome. We did the normal girl talk, aka boy talk, had coffee, and just hung out at the salon for 4 hours. I really enjoyed my time with them.  They are like having Clare and Hannah here. I don't have to discipline them, they are on the same page, they are respectful, and it reminds me of my sisters at home, so it's great to be able to have them here and play that role in my life. Plus, they both make me laugh, not like Clare and Hannah do, but close. With them, I don't sit in the corner and make jokes that I think are funny and laugh to myself. They laugh with me. (Clare and Hannah, I think I made the yearbook here. WATTUPPPPP.) 

Anyway, I got my hair cut, which I really like how the lady did it and will definitely go back. She washed, cut, blew dry, and straightened it for $300 pesos which is roughly $7.50. BARGAIN! Awesome considering I usually spend at least $40 in the States for the same thing. Besides that, the girls I went with, Wisilina and Kenna, were very into me getting my hair done and watching my every step. Of course they were giggling through it all because they knew I had never gotten my hair cut in the DR before and it is a little different than the salons in the US. But nonetheless, I loved what she did, just what I wanted, and I will definitely return. 

Pictures of the 'new-do' and graduation with the girls! 

Marileen and I 

Marileen and I 

Kenna, Me, & Marileen

 

All the vols and graduates! 

Peace Corps Dan & I 

Remember outreach camp where the kid pulled the machete the first time? Well, I have been back twice since and it has been MUCH better. The kids are much more attentive, our kids are doing great as leaders, and it’s nice to break it up, get out of the house, and really experience Dominican Culture. Not to mention, it’s really good for our kids to see what life is like here outside of the NPH walls. They are doing great and I am so proud of them.  


I have been playing more of a supervisor role, which has been great. I have made a little buddy, her name is AltaGracia, and she is just the sweetest. She is quiet and shy, but is so attentive and loves to read stories, play, and color. On the flip side, this wittle pip squeak can hold her own. No means no and when another kid is bugging her, she makes sure they know. Too funny. She usually comes out of no where and grabs my hand, well, more like my finger, to just hold onto while the activities are going on. Can you say Snuggle buddy? Precious. 

Josecito & Jose (NPH Leaders)

AltaGracia, my new buddy from the Batey. Such a sweetheart! 

Reading Corduroy in Spanish. Classic! 

Ricardo, NPH Leader, doing an AWESOME Dynamica! 

Avriel and some of the Leaders. 

This video is a must see! Some of you may have seen it on my Facebook, but it is one of the many videos that instantly puts a smile on my face. Josecito and I playing. I won, naturally. :)

Lastly, Hannah comes on Wednesday! We are all SO excited to have her. One of my boys, Sebastiancito, said to my tía yesterday, "Tía! La loca viene!" Meaning, Tía! The crazy is coming! And she was like, what? Sebatiancito said, "Hannah. Magadalena's sister is coming Wednesday. She is crazier than Magdalena!" We are so excited for her to be here as well as the group of students from my High School. It's going to be a busy next couple of weeks, but I am excited for all of the craziness. It keeps me busy, the kids happy, and the drive I have to be here. It's the experiences like these where I love for people to come see what I do. It's a full time job, not one where I can sit back, kick my feet up, and go to the beach when I want. It's demanding, tiring, but you get so much back in return. And you can see that on the faces of the visitors when they come, which to me, is everything. This is the life I love. The kids here have touched my heart and everyday is a new adventure. Sun up to Sun down. Just keep going and live every second of it. 

That's all I have for now! Big update next week when Hannah is here! 

Hasta Pronto

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! 

we made it!

The adventure officially began yesterday at 325am. A cluster of things happened between the time I woke up and the time my plane took off. As I went to bed the night before, I set my alarm for 245am (mind you, I went to bed at 1130). I chose to ignore the sleep button when instead I turned off my alarm and kept sleeping. Smart. My Dad woke me up at 3:25 am, saying we have to leave in 5 minutes, turned into 35 minutes for the last minute running around. Flight is at 5:25am, on the road at 4, we get about 10 minutes away when I realized I forgot my passport. Are you overwhelmed ready this? We go back home, turn around, and it’s about 4:17am. We get to the airport at about 4:45am and I have about 40 minutes to check 2 bags and get to security. Thank God my Dad was there to open up the next security line so I didnt have to wait in another one, rather, I was the first one thru. 

I arrived at the home close to 3 and have becoming acclimated since. I am the volunteer in the same house of 20 boys, Casa Santo Domingo, ages 9-14 as well as my Special Projects job. Since, we have done lots of reading, hanging out, and relaxing. It’s great to be back, but different at the same time because I am playing more of a permanent role, rather then leaving after 6 weeks. Off to play some basketball and eat some delicious bollo (which is a flour dumpling with salami and onions on top...want some?)  for dinner. :)  Pictures to come! 

My Dream Is...

When we are young, we have dreams upon dreams about what we want to do with our lives when we grow up. For many, it's becoming a doctor, a dentist, an architect, or as I wrote in kindergarten, a waitress. As we go through school, we start to see the world in different ways and the dreams start to become more narrow as the reality of life starts to sink in. Some stay on the path of becoming a doctor, a successful business man or woman, and live a rich lifestyle, but I believe that this year will give me a perspective on life that I have not yet come across. We never know what the future has in store. 


George Bernard Shaw once said, "Life isn't about finding yourself, it's about creating yourself." To me, this quote is about taking every experience for what it is, learning from it, and growing from it. It's a continuous process, a never ending process that you literally have to take for what it is and most don't realize it until it's over. Creating yourself. Following the path and going the direction in which you are called. There are realities to this (for me, student loans), but having faith that this year will only benefit me for the future, gives me the strength I need for the year and the doubts I have. Regis University shaped who I am today. Looking back, the reality of staying at Regis was doubtful, but what kept me strong throughout those 4 years was faith. Regis has given me opportunity, they have given me the ability to narrow the doubts and go confidently in the direction of my dreams in order to make those dreams a reality. 


As we grow and learn about who we are as people, we start to lose sight of those dreams, the dreams of becoming a doctor, a dentist, or an architect. But faith is what keeps us grounded. Having faith in that dreams do come true and as scary as that is, people will be supporting you along the way. Believe that. 


Below is a video of the children I will be working with. They are the inspiration behind my work and passion. They keep me determined and motivated on a day to day basis. They keep me following my dreams. 

My position in the DR will be special projects, which means an array of things. Some of what I'll be doing is instilling new programs within the home, improving existing programs, fundraising, etc. I will also be in charge of 20 boys, ages 8-13, who all live in the same house together. I am quite excited as these are the same boys I have worked with for the past two summers and I am looking forward to be able to watch them grow over this next year. Along with my position at the orphanage, I will also be taking part in supporting a friend, Kristina Cavit, a fellow DR volunteer, who has just started a new international fundraising office for NPH in her native land of New Zealand. My position with the new office is Social Media and Communications in which I am in charge of twitter, facebook, and blogging. Regis University has played a huge role in making this dream a reality for me. Because their impacts on my life and their generous donation, I will be able to do the work I love and work with the children in which I have worked with for the past 2 years. They have made it possible for me to turn my volunteer position into a job where I will be able to tend to my financial obligations. Thank You!!! 


Check out the tabs at the top of my blog! They are recently updated and fully equipped with videos to inform you about where I will be