Missing DR

This last trip has truly blessed me. There were so many people on this trip that I would have never gotten to know otherwise, and now I feel close to many of them. I love how God brings us there to help others, yet I feel like we got more out of the trip. Our team dynamics were awesome - which believe me, this doesn't happen on every trip- we all carried traits and strengths that didn't clash, and that fit well together to do extraordinary work. I wish there were a way to keep that team in my life always, but we all have separate lives, separate jobs, separate responsibilities to tend to... The Dominican is truly a place where I feel most valuable. I think talking with the kids has always been one of my favorite points of the trips. They love you before you even look at them it seems. God will bring me back to this place in His time.

Dominican Republic Pictures

(Group Photo!)

(Another Group photo in the Tres Ojos caves)

(The Leese Family)

(A little froggy friend the girls found)

(A Dominican Sunrise.)

(Jackie's new little friend.)

(On the work site)

(Kobe Bryant? or Jeff Curtis?)

(Some on-lookers of our work)

(George with his sponsor child)

(Eleana and the Leese's sponsor girl)

(Bird eating a lizard)

(A couple of guys, hitching a ride.)

(The girls waiting in the airport)

Back, Safe and Sound

We have arrived back to Mason County in one piece. Our flight got into Detroit around 1:30ish, and we pressed on to arrive back to MCRC around 6.
Pictures to come!

Mucho Concreto

Today we returned to work. More cementing, shoveling, mixing, and sweating. Everyone is still doing really well. We are mostly really sore and tired, but in good, ambitious spirits. Here are some more pictures for you all to check out! Hopefully the

format works a bit better with these:

Some Pics!

Here are just a few pictures of what has been going on. I hope to get more of the actual work up, but since we are all so busy working, it's hard to take many pictures. I'll try and track down someone who has some though! Enjoy these for now!

(Left: Our work site. Those holes are probably about 7 feet deep.)

(Right: One of the filled holes. We'll be filling these times 21, with 25 mixes per hole - that's 100 wheelbarrow trips each, and a lot of water, dirt, cement, and gravel.)

(Left: A small view of the community of Los Alcarrizos)

(Right: Walking over a gross river in the community.)

Today, we took a break for Sunday. We attended an awesome church service in the community and now some of us are playing baseball with some of the kids at the school. Tomorrow, we will be back to work, mixing cement. It is sure to be hot, long work, but we are an ambitous team. Thanks for the prayers!

We've made it!

Currently, we are on our second day of hardcore work here in the Dominican Republic! The last two days have consisted of mixing cement, which for the cement mixing you may be thinking of...nothing like it in the States. We break off into 5 groups: 1 group is shoveling gravel into buckets, another shoveling dirt, one is passing water, another opening bags of cement and passing it to the mixer, and the last group is wheel-barrowing it to where it is needed. About 25 mixes is used to fill one pylons (8x8x3ft) of the kitchen, and there are 22 total. That is 100 wheelbarrows to fill one! We have a very strong team, however, who are determined to get a lot done! The size of the building we are working on is a little bigger than MCRC's multi-purpose room. The guys are hardworkers, literally running wheel-barrows to dump them into the pylons.
We are all doing well, and there have been no major injuries or illnesses. Only minor bumps, scrapes and bruises! God has been good in providing the breeze when we need it the most.
Hopefully we'll be getting some pictures up soon!
Thanks again for all of your support and prayers back home! Know we are all doing great!

Preparing for Takeoff!

The 18 members of the DR team is getting ready to depart for Detroit Wednesday, at midnight. We will depart from Detroit to Miami on a 6:35am flight, and from there to Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
I will do my best to keep all of our loved ones updated back home with stories and pictures! We would appreciate all your prayers and support, and thank you all for all you have given our team members and the people of Dominican already! This is one passion that will keep burning in the hearts of many.