2012 and A Long Anticipated Transition

Happy New Year! When I left the US in 2010, it felt like the year 2012 was a long stretch away. Now, it has suddenly appeared and thus marks the beginning of the end of my Peace Corps experience.

The fall surely marked the busiest I have been in the Dominican Republic. I felt like I was running around between conferences, meetings, graduations, and writing graduate school applications - which made for a much needed December break. Luckily, I got just that - a full month with virtually no obligations. My mom came for nearly three weeks, which were spent in the Capital, my community, and exploring different beaches. My favorite memory of her visit was the community dinner in Las Tablas where she met nearly everyone I know in my town. We shared a big dinner with 300 people and my mom got a very positive (if not too idealistic) picture of my life and work here.
My dad, brother, and sister-in-law came to visit for the last ten days of my mom’s vacation, which we spent in Samana. The Samana peninsula always amazes me by its untouched beauty. We all had a wonderful time swimming in the ocean, drinking tons of pina coladas, and enjoying the nice weather. This year’s Christmas was among my very favorites, and one that I will never forget.



Now I am back to my current reality, a.k.a. sitting in my tin-roofed house in a small, desert campo. It certainly will take time to readjust to life here, but I am ready to begin the last stretch of this journey. I have begun to plan my last several months here and how I want them to be spent. I’ve got a working list of goals to accomplish before I leave this island:
1. Create a girls’ group
2. Support a youth-led Escojo class
3. Organize women’s group that will collaborate with Escojo
4. Tutor my three 1st graders
5. Teach one more business class
6. Stretch and strength exercises for 30 min daily
7. Get back into shape so that I can win a Dominican road race
8. TRAVEL the country!
9. Study Spanish daily
During my first year of Peace Corps service I felt like I was in survival mode. I was struggling to keep up with the constant noise, obnoxious men, and other cultural differences that made life more strenuous than normal. I also dealt with my Spanish deficiencies and how to design my projects.
Things will be different this year. For the most part, I am no longer surprised by cultural differences or the language barrier. I have already graduated a girls’ group, business class, and two Escojo groups, which means that now my focus lies in how to produce sustainability out of such programs. Now, two new struggles begin:
what do I take out of this experience?; and,
what comes next?
I often wonder how I will bring all of my experiences living in the DR back to the US. Will I live differently than I did before? How will I react to living with constant electricity and clean, running water now that I know how most people actually live in this world? I expect my remaining time in this country will help to resolve some of these concerns, and my return to the US will ultimately provide the answers over time.
In terms of what comes next… it depends on a few things. If fate allows, I might leave this country a bit early to jump into the next phase of my life: graduate school. The only thing I can do now is enjoy my time here and trust that how I will experience life after Peace Corps will reveal itself soon.

Latest Activities

As a Peace Corps volunteer it is hard to remember that life in the United States continues without you. I always think of my friends as the same, living as they did over a year ago when I left the country. Unfortunately (or fortunately) that is just not the case. I was reminded of this fact when I found out that my friend Ottie is engaged! A friend who always claimed he would never be a husband, I am so happy that Ottie has found Sheryl. Between Ottie’s engagement and Annie who is 7 months pregnant, I guess that sometimes I am glad to be reminded of the constant change that life brings us.

Lately my days have been filled with conference planning, conferences, and a week-long medical mission. I’ll start with the medical mission because it deserves a lot of recognition. First of all, medical missions are very common in the Dominican Republic. Probably because of the country’s proximity to the US, foreign doctors often come to the country to provide free medical service. Peace Corps volunteers are invited to the missions to translate between doctors and patients, which is what I did last week. I went to Santiago and worked with an organization called ILAC, founded by Creighton University in Nebraska. There was a team of about five surgeons, anasethiologists, and tons of nurses who came to the ILAC center to provide free hernia surgeries, and I believe they finished nearly 150 operations from Monday through Friday. My job during the mission was to 1) Walk patients from the waiting room to operation room and comfort them as they got situated for surgery and 2) Help patients in the recovery room and explain to them the next steps after surgery. This experience was by far one of my favorites since arriving in country. I loved translating and being in a hospital (not really a hospital but it felt like one). Even though I still do not feel completely fluent in Spanish, I was really proud of being able to communicate with all the patients and making them feel more at ease. I also felt very inspired by the doctors and nurses who came to provide their expertise. In reality, it was not only time that these people gave. They hand-made blankets for each patient, donated clothes and toiletries, and provided each child with a stuffed animal. The doctors and nurses made sure we, the Peace Corps volunteers, knew how much they respected our work, but I feel like their work in the DR needs to be recognized too. I was inspired by how much the medical team gave to a country that they do not even know.

Another event that I recently completed was the analysis of the barrier analysis study on HIV testing among youth. We learned some interesting news, that those who have not had the HIV test have less confidence in condoms. They also have a lower understanding of the HIV test and AIDS treatment. After a day of analyzing the data, most volunteers felt like we need to start incorporating HIV testing as part of the Escojo Mi Vida curriculum.

Yesterday I brought 5 youth to an Escojo Mi Vida conference in a campo nearby Las Tablas. It was fun and I was excited to introduce the youth from Las Tablas to the youth from my first group in Bani. Katie, another volunteer, and I were surprised to hear that we had to give a talk on the discrimination of gender, but it ended up going really well. We had a fair amount of men in the audience and they were talking about how we need to change the maschiso culture; I was very impressed by their comments and it gave me hope that maschismo may not always exist!

I’ve got two more conferences to go for the month of November. Next weekend is the Chicas Brillantes conference where we will spend a night in beautiful San Jose de Ocoa. The day after this conference I will go to my One-Year In Service Training conference with my Peace Corps group. Can you believe I only have 11 months left in the DR?

Before we know it we will closing in on Christmas and the month of giving; I have a small request that I am asking now, otherwise by the time I receive your packages it will be too late! I want to hold a Christmas Party for my Escojo graduation and would like to provide each youth with a stocking. I would love to get around 10 cheap stockings, peppermint sticks, and Christmas candy to give to each of the Escojo graduates (and some neighbors, if possible). For anyone who is reading my blog and might be able to send such things, I would greatly appreciate the little contribution! You can find my address on this website.
Four more weeks until my mom comes to the DR! It’s officially a countdown.

Keep on pushing

Last night I did something that I am both proud of and regret: I killed a mouse. I have been having serious problems with these little mice, as it seems they are trying to take over my house. They have eaten a pair of my pants, my food and trash, and leave little presents (poop) throughout my house. I decided the other night, when their noises woke me up from a deep sleep, that it was time to do something about this problem. I bought a few rat-killing products and just a few hours later killed my first victim.

Growing thick skin in this country has proved to be useful, but not just in killing unwanted housemates. I think I have also grown thick skin here around the poverty that I have witnessed, as a manner of enduring such difficult conditions.
One such experience just happened about a week ago when I heard my next door neighbor beat his 17-year-old wife. I was later told by a friend that it’s not appropriate to address the issue with the young girl; that this happens all the time in the community and there is nothing that anybody can do to help. The alcohol abuse, and consequent domestic violence, that persists in my town is just one example of how poverty can produce negative results for a community.

This country is filled with extremes. From Outback Steakhouse to houses made of tin, the Dominican Republic really has everything. Despite the difficult moments that come from witnessing such desperation, there are always unexpected situations that remind you that there is always an exception to any circumstance. While poverty can produce indifference in people, there is always someone to be found whose motivation to overcome poverty is inspirational. While Peace Corps will never be able to end poverty in this country, its projects will change the lives of a few individuals.

Last weekend I took two of my youth to the Construye Tus Suenos business plan competition in Santo Domingo and I left with a sense of high hopes for the future of marginalized youth in the DR. Of the twenty-four business plans that were presented, four were given 100% of the money they requested in order to begin their own business. These youth are going to go on to begin a peanut butter factory, repair shop, English school, and motorcycle repairs in marginalized communities throughout the country.

Little moments like that, when you see someone’s hard work convert into a concrete reward, make the Peace Corps volunteer keep on pushing.

October, 2011!

Despite knowing that my schedule would be busy for the next several months, I had no idea that things would come and go so quickly! I can’t believe September has already passed and that we are well into October. Life here has been filled with work and fun and as I look back on the past month I can barely remember any days that were spent just passing time.

One of the reasons for the rapid passing of time is that I am travelling to my old site two or three times monthly. I enjoy keeping up with the two health groups in Bani and just yesterday I, along with other Escojo leaders, organized an all-day trip to a river-turned-pool in San Cristobal. We have over seventy people attend the event, and despite my early frustrations in the planning of such an event everything ended well. Imagine: Sliding Rock State Park but with blasting bachata music and people dancing together in the water. Yep, that sums up the location. Sliding Rock, Dominican style.

Juventud Caribe, the local youth group, is also starting to organize more events in the community. Last weekend a big group walked to la presa, a large pond just a few kilometers outside of Las Tablas, to plant some trees. I am proud to announce that I planted my first tree ever and it was really fun!



I continue to tutor first graders at the local school; it’s amazing how you can find pleasant surprises in the most unlikely circumstances. This is certainly the project I expected to enjoy the least, but its consistency and more “normal” challenges have made the project among my favorites. I am working one hour each morning with three first graders who barely talk. While I initially worked as a teacher’s assistant in the classroom, after just a few days in class I realized that this was a waste of my time. Sadly, the school is too weak to work within the system, so I decided to start pulling out the three most needy kids and invite into my own little escuelita. I can’t even describe how nice it is to avoid more typical Peace Corps challenges (ie; kids not showing up or coming really late) and confront more typical challenges in work, such as figuring out how to teach kids with special needs.

After enjoying the company of the health trainees for the last three weeks, I have two more weeks of their company until the group returns to the capital to swear in as volunteers. It’s been wonderful to have so much time to get to know the soon-to-be new volunteers, and I was recently thrilled to find out that two will be living close to Bani. Soon I will be back to the normal Peace Corps lifestyle, living in Las Tablas as the sole American.

I have a feeling that October is going to fly by just as quickly as September. In a week and a half I will be attending the Construye Tus Suenos (business class) conference with my two youth who completed a business plan and in three weeks I will be spending a few days at an all-inclusive in Puerto Plata to celebrate “one year left in country” with my Peace Corps group. Before I know it we will be entering November, one month left until the whole family comes to the DR for Christmas! I can hardly wait.

It’s been a while since I last wrote a blog and it feels good to be back at it. I returned to the Dominican Republic a few weeks ago after my Portland vacation, and despite the difficult good-bye it feels good to be back. It was a little uncomfortable to first land in the US after an entire year had gone by, but once I saw my family it felt like hardly any time had passed at all. I am amazed by how easy it felt to re-adjust to everything in the States. I was equally surprised by the ease of my transition back to the DR. When I was in the Santo Domingo airport, waiting to board the States-bound airplane, I looked around at the other passengers. I found three categories of people: Dominican Yorks (Dominicans who live in New York), honeymooners, and missionaries. I quickly felt like I didn’t fit in with any of these groups and I guess that summarizes my life right now… partly Dominican, partly American, a little of both but not completely either.
Life in Las Tablas is feeling increasingly “normal,” as I have begun some new projects and moved into my new house last week! First on my list of projects are a girls’ group and another Escojo (health) group. Both have been a little slow to form and I have learned that work in the campo comes at a different pace than in the city. Nevertheless, I am optimistic about these two groups. In a couple of weeks I will be starting a sports program, probably a volleyball team, that combines sports with activities based on HIV awareness and healthy decision making. Next week I’ll take two youth to training for the sports program; I am very excited about this new project! Another thing is that I am helping out with first and second graders at the school. I’m starting off as a sort of teacher’s assistant… spent the entire hour yesterday helping kids write “m.” I usually prefer to work with older kids but these two grades are the biggest and in the most need of help. And… to my surprise I actually enjoyed helping kids write the letter “m.” We’ll see where this project goes. I am hoping to eventually pull out struggling students for more one-on-one help. One last project: support an already existing youth group, Juventud Caribe. This is probably my favorite group so far because Dominican youth themselves are in charge. It’s fun to see them take control of the group. Wow, that sounds like a lot of stuff! But rest assured, it’s much easier in the second year when there is no language/cultural adjustment period to account for.
As for my house… well, it’s a bit of a downgrade from my house in Bani. Okay, a major downgrade. No running water, less electricity, outhouse… but the house feels more like home each day. In fact, I am convinced that, with time, it will feel more like home than the other did. And even though I will miss my mango tree I’ve got sugarcane, lime, guava, and bean plants as my disposal in the new home.
Back to my projects: I have been getting a lot of pressure from the community to start an English class. I know, I am being really stubborn about refusing to teach English, but the refusal comes with good reason. On my run this morning I started to think about the exact reason why I am so resistant to English courses, and I got my answer. I have formed my own list of priorities for the community which stems directly from its most immediate needs/dangers for youth:
1. Healthy decision making/avoiding teen pregnancy: I feel so passionately about focusing on this priority that it’s hard to even put into words why it is so important. First of all, teen pregnancy is a threat to the teen mother, her community, and the environment. There are just plain too many kids whose families cannot provide the financial or emotional support that they need. When 15 year-old girls begin to have a family, the family grows to be really big. It also deters them from finishing both high school and even elementary school. That means for these girls that their life is already established for them before they even turn 18.
2. Basic math and reading skills (and preferably knowledge about geography too): The school system here is terrible. Some people claim it’s the worst in Latin America, and I wouldn’t doubt it. Kids go to school for 3 hours each day, and that includes a snack and recess break. I have met several college students who still do not understand basic applied math skills, such as setting prices on items to make a profit. I am a true believer in education, and without basic skills in math and Spanish, I believe youth will have an extremely difficult time stepping out of poverty. Poverty is not only economic; it refers to many factors beyond money.
3. Service learning: Okay, after taking care of one’s health and basic educational skills, of course it is important to become involved in other aspects of one’s community. This could include art classes, sports, or even English courses. But what if we actually taught youth about helping others? As far as I can tell, service/volunteer projects are not a high priority in this country. I have met a lot of youth who ask if they too can join the Peace Corps. Unfortunately Dominican youth do not have that opportunity, but they can give back to their own communities. They just need a little support to get going.
I still haven’t managed to formulate an appropriate response for Dominicans as to why I am not teaching English, but if I were to be brutally honest I would state the above. There are several people from Las Tablas who have lived in the States for a short period of time; all but one was a baseball player or drug dealer. Until I hear otherwise I will be sticking with my original plan to avoid English classes.
There is a little rant about why I am against teaching English in Peace Corps DR…

Ending projects and Comparting... again

About a month ago a convergence of various factors led me to decide that I need to move to a different location in the Dominican Republic. Despite the friendships I formed, the wonderful youth I met and my incredibly host family, I knew it was the right decision. I packed my bags about three weeks ago, moved to a small campo of 1500 people and started new.

The last few weeks have been overwhelming to say the least, as I have been finishing my projects in Bani while beginning the process of compartir and confianza with my new community at the same time. Last week I graduated 12 youth from my Escojo Mi Vida group, and the graduation was quite a hit! This group will certainly be difficult to separate myself from because they are so intelligent and dedicated for their age and barrio. I left the graduation feeling sad that the group had finished, but proud of putting so much time into this project. Everything certainly ended on a high note.



My last project that I am currently finishing up is Construye Tus Suenos, the business class. We officially ended class last week as well, with two Haitian youth graduating as well as my host mom (that was certainly fun having her tag along), but now we are in the process of writing and editing the two youths’ business plans. Both young men and I have put in a lot of time writing and re-writing their business plans, as they need to turned in before I leave for the States. Kenny is trying to begin a language school, to teach people in the barrio how to speak Basic English. River, the other student, wants to open an internet center because they are virtually non-existent in the barrios north of Bani. My host mom is trying to initiate a restaurant out of her house, which I support because she makes amazing food… anyway, we are in the last big push and almost done with the business course as well. It’s been fun reading the plans that these two boys have constructed all on their own. I am so proud of their dedication to these dreams they have created for themselves.

Now that my health and business classes are basically finished, that leaves me with one year left and one last community to work in. The second time around is much, much easier. Already knowing the language and culture has enabled me to assimilate in Las Tablas at a much quicker rate than my arrival in Bani last October. I also feel genuinely happy to be living in a small community. Las Tablas is exactly what I was looking for in my Peace Corps experience. Even though I thought I wanted to live in a big city the truth is that I was meant to be in a campo, and I can feel that now. Every morning I leave the house with my new Dona; she walks as I run through a windy desert road that crosses several mango fields. I always end my run early so that we can walk back together and have some time to talk. Then the rest of the day can be slow or fast, but I guess most days in the campo are slow moving. I always take Bella for a walk to the sanctuary. I make sure to visit at least a couple of neighbors and play volleyball or go on a walk with the youth. When I return from my visit back home I will begin my projects in Las Tablas, but for now I am still getting to know my new site.



Las Tablas is unique in that it is the training grounds for all health volunteers each fall. That means that just a few weeks after my return from Oregon I will be accompanied by 12 Americans in Las Tablas. I’m sure their five week tenure in my site will get a little old, but to be honest I am really excited to host the new volunteers, make some new friends, and compartir with English speakers!
In just two days I will be returning to the States for a two-week vacation. Lately I have been wondering about how I will ever put into words all that I have learned and experienced here. How can I properly describe this country merely based on a few stories? Nevertheless I am more than extremely thrilled to return to the USA for a while. In 48 I will be on the plane…

Almost second year, already second site

So I have this tradition. Every holiday I take some time to reminisce about what I was doing one year ago on that same day, in order to reflect on how things have changed in just 365 days. For the first time in, well, possibly ever, I could not remember what I did for the 4th of July last year! I think I was in Arizona, preparing for my best friend’s wedding, but could I have been in North Carolina? Has this year been so full, so overwhelming, that I completely forgot what was happening a mere year ago?!

Time is an interesting concept. Right now it feels like time is dragging, yet I also can’t believe I have lived on this island for almost an entire year. Month 11 is going to go blazing fast, too, because I’m starting back at 1.
In just three days I will be moving. Referred to as a “site change” in Peace Corps lingo, I am moving from my urban barrio of 12,000 to a campo, a small community, of just 1600 people. This decision is the result of months of build-up (believe me, you don’t want a site change if you can help it), of lacking community support to security incidents, that combined made my decision easy. Out of respect for the amazing youth I have met I requested to move nearby Bani so that I can continue to work in my old barrio a few times each month… so Las Tablas it is!
Las Tablas is only a 30 minute guagua ride from Bani and is located, well, in the middle of the desert. It really feels like I have moved to a Dominican version of Tucson, Arizona, except I am lucky to remain just a few miles from the ocean. I have only been to Las Tablas twice, each trip lasting about 5 minutes, but from what I can tell this campo has plenty of discotheques, a few colmados, several hundred homes, a huge baseball field, and thousands of pigs, dogs, mules and other farm animals. I am both excited and apprehensive about the fact that my biggest threat to security in Las Tablas will be the tarantula… ugh. Despite any future encounter with my worst enemy, I can honestly say that I am thrilled to get the opportunity to actually live the “Peace Corps experience.” My house was a little too nice, Bani a bit too luxurious to really merit Peace Corps living. Now I’m back to how it all started when I arrived in country. Host family. Dominican food. No running water. No privacy.

So, one month with a host family and performing a mini-community diagnostic, then a two week paradise in Portland, Oregon. By the time I return to the DR I will have been in country for exactly a year. Another important date in which I will reflect on what happened just 365 days before.