Day 4 in San Pedro

Today was the last day for the team on site. We gathered in the morning for Eucharist at the Church, again impressively celebrated in Spanish by Callie. There was a sense of urgency about our work today as we realized this was the last chance to complete the various painting, construction and maintenance projects around the Buen Pastor complex, and to be able to hopefully see some real progress over the four days we have been here. With almost all illnesses now behind us, a group set to work completing the concrete alongside, and at the back of the church – this together with the large concrete area we laid at the front will stop flooding when it inevitably rains. We also set about painting the doors in the clinic, and the walls of the office building. The construction work at the new school site was now almost complete, and ready for the rebar reinforcement and concrete to be poured. This, however, won’t happen until maybe Monday or Tuesday of next week.
Before we left the site in the afternoon, we gathered with our brother Dominican workers in the lunch area we had used all week, to join together and congratulate ourselves on the incredible amount of work we had achieved, side by side, all week. We had made many friends here – not only amongst the staff of Buen Pastor and the local construction team, but also the friendly and always-smiling local people of the surrounding area. It struck me that despite the incredible poverty and unbelievable living conditions of the people here, they always smile, treat each other ( and visitors) – with respect, and live with hope in their heart. It was truly a privilege to be here and make a small difference to the community and the work of Sister Jean Gabriel and her dedicated team. Until next year…..

Day 3 in San Pedro

Day 3 saw good progress, both for the team and the construction project - we were back to almost full strength after the few tummy bug scares we had yesterday, thanks to our good friend Cipro. Most of the morning was spent preparing the foundation for the new concrete slab in front of the Church, which will stop flooding in the future by bringing the path up to sidewalk level. In the afternoon, the concrete was mixed and laid - you can see the results below!

At the new school, we helped the local construction workers erect the wooden framing over the whole building which will be the form for the concrete 2nd floor eventually - and short term the roof! It is interesting that everywhere you go in the Dominican Republic you can see rebar shooting into the air from many, many apparently unfinished single story buildings - Callie remarked that this is called the 'Rebar of Hope'....hoping that one day they will build a new level!

An exhausting day again for all, but one of many joyous, and fulfilling moments as we worked alongside, and met many of the local people of the area.

Day 2 in San Pedro

Day two in San Pedro started a little shakily - several of the team were feeling a little unwell - an occupational hazard of working in a country like the Dominican Republic. We nevertheless proceeded to the worksite, but a few were feeling too unwell to work. The reduced squad carried on - we moved plenty of rubble from the front of the school to form a foundation for the new concrete slab in front of the church. Also the painting of the blue railings around the properties continued. Again at lunch time the girls looked like smurfs, covered in the blue paint!

On one journey during the afternoon, carrying yet another wheelbarrow-load of rubble from the new school to the church - about 50 yards distance - I was stopped by a local man driving a newish Toyota SUV - he clearly was not a resident in the area we were working in - he asked inquisitively, in English, who we were and what we were doing. I explained that we there on behalf of the Episcopal church, working to improve the school buildings for the local children, and he nodded gratefully and said in a sincere tone - "Thank You for helping my country..."

That certainly made my day, and underlined why we are here - to make a difference to these poeple who are trapped in an environment where it is difficult - maybe impossible - to help themselves, and to bring them an awareness of the way the Church can unconditionally bring light where there was only darkness.

Tomorrow, we look forward to fully fit crew. We thank Jason for his organisational leadership, and Callie for her spiritual leadership - the team is bonding and excited about our work here.

Day 1 in San Pedro

Today was the first day for the construction team in the new school site of Buen Pastor in San Pedro de Macoris. We arrived, full of anticipation, and ready to start work! Sister Jean Gabriel showed us the site and explained the tasks ahaead of us - build a wall here, demolish that floor there.... Luckily there were several local construction workers to help and guide us in our work. We took direction from them, and split ourselves into groups according to what we were best suited to do - there was painting to be done, and many different manual tasks. The morning was hot and the sun was high and bright. After lunch the clouds thankfully came and we found it much easier to work. At the end of the day, the cinder block walls were up, and much progress had been made on the painting of the fences around the Buen Pastor sites. Tomorrow we start on raising the path to the church up to sidewalk level, and start on the carpentry to make the false floor for the new building.

Sunday, June 26

Meditations for the mission

A few weeks before the departure date, Jason suggested sharing a daily meditation with the members of the mission team. The Reverend Callie Perkins has gathered and sent out these messages each day starting on June 13. “The purpose is to stimulate daily thought and contemplation about where and how the Holy Spirit is guiding and preparing each one of us,” she says.

Here are the readings the team has been sharing as it prepares for the trip.

Departure Tomorrow, 6/25

Our team of 17 will leave tomorrow morning from Charleston (very early...meeting at the airport at 5:00 a.m.) for Santo Domingo. We'll travel by bus from the SD airport to San Pedro de Macoris, just about 40 miles east. We'll attend the Eucharist on Sunday at 4:00 pm. at the church where we'll be working- Buen Pastor (Good Shepherd). Work begins Monday morning. Look for more posts and updates during the week! -Jason-