This post was written in July 2012 and appeared on the original Hotel Paper blog.
We spent a week this summer volunteering as a family with a children’s education nonprofit in the town of Monte Cristi, in the Dominican Republic. This is a summary of that trip.
The non-profit we worked with was
Outreach360, which we chose because they met a number of criteria :
- Established track record (these guys have been operating in the region for over a decade)
- Family oriented programs that can easily incorporate younger children, including our 6yo.
- Work that involves the betterment of conditions for children.
- Education as the central theme.
Our flight arrived in Santiago around 3am on Saturday, and we chose to get some sleep at the Hodelpa (airport hotel) until 1pm Saturday when we were met by an O360 long-term volunteer, who came to take us, along with 3 other volunteers who had also arrived that day, to the volunteer center.
The ride out took about 3 hours, and eventually we arrived in the dusty, arrid northwest coastal highlands of Monte Cristi.
The Manolo Tavarez center, where all the volunteers were housed for the week, was rounded out by 4 full-time O360 staff members.
Here is a view of the volunteer center :
After arrival, we spent the rest of Saturday afternoon getting acquainted with our quarters (we were placed in a small casita across the street from the main center – pretty spartan bunk-bed style arrangements, but perfectly functional) and given a quick tour of the surroundings – Lilo’s, the local grocery store, the Farmacía, etc.
Sunday was orientation, where one of the leaders went over the basic structure of the week. The program for the children runs Monday – Friday, but short-term (1 wk) volunteers work only Monday-Thursday, leaving Friday as a “Culture day” – more on that later. We also spent Sunday afternoon scouring the neighborhood handing out fliers advertising the coming week’s program, and trying to get children to come.
During the summer, Outreach360 operates as a “campamento” – essentially a summer camp-style learning environment for the children. There are 2 sessions each day (morning and afternoon), with average attendance running anywhere between 15-25 children at each.
The campamento itself was held a 15 minute walk away from the O360 house, at a building in the Solomon Jorge neighborhood.
I was one of 2 instructors for the Spanish/literacy classroom. A typical day involved anything from reviewing the alphabet to writing practice, reviewing word structure, and playing camp-style games.
On Friday (culture day) we went to Dajabón, which is a town on the DR-Haiti border about 1 hour from Monte Cristi. The goal was to experience the Haitian market, where thousands of Haitians cross the border every week to sell anything from produce, clothing, cigars, and countless other variety of goods. Truly an eye opener.
Dominican guards looking on as Haitian vendors enter the market. The blue gates are the border, and we were not allowed to cross into Haiti.
We went into this with some apprehension, primarily about how our young children would take to the experience. Happily (and thanks in large part to Outreach360 itself) things not only went smoothly, but we are already fielding questions of “When can we go back?”
Next Summer.
The campamento itself was held a 15 minute walk away from the O360 house, at a building in the Solomon Jorge neighborhood.
I was one of 2 instructors for the Spanish/literacy classroom. A typical day involved anything from reviewing the alphabet to writing practice, reviewing word structure, and playing camp-style games.
Dominican guards looking on as Haitian vendors enter the market. The blue gates are the border, and we were not allowed to cross into Haiti.
Hotel Paper 