victor ricci with joel….2  years old…..

Greetings from the DR!  We have arrived safely and after a very busy day we are quite tired.  Our flights went well and timely, arriving in the DR at 2pm (they are one hour ahead of us).  We immediately went to the orphanage to see the children, 21 orphans from age 2 to 20.  Our young missionaries were understandably nervous and maybe a bit overwhelmed initially, but soon were at play with the kids!  You would have been very proud of them indeed.  Once we get comfortable with these computers we’ll post some photos for you to see.  Everything moves slowly in the DR, especially computers!

We left the orphanage at 5pm and went to the mission house where we will stay, about a 25 minute ride.  The kids have their room assignments (rooms have AC!) and we just finished our dinner (fresh ice cold guava juice, chicken, rice, fries).  That was followed by some journaling and reflection and prayer, where the missionaries shared some of their thoughts on this first day.  

Tomorrow we are up at 6am, dressed for the cathedral where we will attend the 10am mass with 9 of the orphans, then return to the orphanage, change into swimwear and bring many of the kids to a neighboring beach.  It will be a lot of work, more than our missionaries know!  These young orphans will keep them busy.  

It’s almost 10pm now, curfew, and this correspondent needs to get to bed.  Your kids all love you, but they are enjoying a little space.  As might you, perhaps!  Feast of Christ the King tomorrow.  Pray for us.  We’ll pray for you.  And together let’s pray for these orphans and their caregivers.

Peace

This afternoon we did an outdoor Stations of the Cross to honor and pray through the events of Good Friday. We made a cross out of scrap wood and put the faces of some of the orphans on the cross. As we walked to each station, we read from scripture and each student prayed for someone they met this week who carries a cross of some kind. It was a very simple, very beautiful, and very fitting prayer service to commemorate Good Friday and the end of our trip. 

Today was a long and beautiful day. We began the day with work. Our cement foundation started to become a wall as we carried cement cinderblocks to the worksite. The day was hot and the work of building this wall was exhausting. But, our students continued to give it their all with assistance from eager children who live in the town. The local kids have grown so attached to our students. They hang around all day looking for ways to help us. They love to help, chat, play and just be around our students. Meanwhile, we completed our other work projects: repairing broken cribs and beds, painting the playground, and painting signs on all of the doors of the orphanage. We know that once we leave it may be several months before another group comes to the orphanage. So we wanted to finish our work projects, and finish them well! 

Then, we had the pleasure of taking several kids from the orphanage to a nearby beach. It was such a treat for them and us. The water was cool and refreshing (and helped us remove some of the concrete and dirt from our legs). The kids loved it! Then, we returned to the orphanage, and walked with several orphans to the church in town for the Holy Thursday Mass. This Mass was amazing! It was a tiny church filled with people singing at the top of their lungs! We sat with the kids from the orphanage and participated in the Mass as much as we could considering the language barrier. 

Tonight, in reflection our students made a lot of connections between our work here and the Last Supper. They talked about the ways they have seen Christ in the people we’ve met, the way they have washed feet this week, and the way their feet have been washed by this experience. It was a really beautiful way to live Holy Thursday. 

As always we are humbled by this place and these people. 

Tomorrow is Good Friday. We have seen quite a bit of suffering this week. As we think about Christ on the cross, images of the people living in the dump and our friends at the orphanage who struggle to breathe and eat come to mind. I feel like we have walked the stations of the cross all week… and we have seen glimpses of Easter all along the way too. 

Time for bed! Good night! 

A trip to the local beach with some of the children of Hogar Immanuel!

More Faces of the Children of Hogar Immanuel