It’s been a
while since I’ve given a solid job/project update, so here's what I've been up to and what I plan to do in the coming weeks/months:
Deportes Para la Vida:
I’m sitting down
to relax por fin after a long Sunday of compartir and an even longer week of
camp! I took two youth to the San Cristobal in the south for a training camp
for a Peace Corps initiative called Deportes
Para la Vida (DPV) or “Sports for Life.” It’s the DR’s version of a famous
program Grassroot Soccer which started as a Peace Corps initiative in South
Africa. DPV’s basic methodology is giving presentations to prevent HIV/AIDS and
promote healthy decision making through sports. I left the camp feeling so energized,
excited and ready to start my own DPV group in Manzanillo. The two youth I took
are also ready to tackle the project and together, I’m excited to see how many
groups we can start and eventually graduated here.
 |
| DPV masters presenting certificates to my youth who graduated as DPV trainers! |
 |
| Just some new jovenes I met during the DPV camp |
Escojo Mi Vida:
My Escojo youth
groups are now in their second year and second phase. It is now the job of my
students to impart the knowledge we learned during the past school year. I have
26 graduated students who will be helping me give charlas (presentations) to their peers in the local high school.
Peace Corps is all about sustainability and I sure hope that these kids even
form their own groups outside of school. I will still serve as facilitator and
mentor for my old Escojo kids, but it is now in their hands to continue the
program. One of my students, Genesis, now in her 1st year of high
school, has started a course in her church and the are suprisingly open and
progressive, letting her teach correct condom usage and family planning methods
like the pill, IUD and implants. Yay for progress! In order to get a foot in
the door and classroom time and space, I convinced the teacher that I would be
giving English lessons and so I have also been named a tallerista (workshop giver) in the high school and will be using
that time to have my old kids teach a little bit of English but mostly just Escojo
to new kids. And I get free lunch, yumm!
Hogares Saludables:
My women’s
groups have both graduated and are also on their second phase – home visits!
Each woman was named a community health promoter and has her own official
badge, binder and book of information. They are now conducting house visits,
educating women on critical health topics and investigating important
information like which households have people with diabetes, hypertension,
obesity or other chronic illnesses. The idea being that we follow up with them
and help them implement a regimen to follow or seek further help at the clinic.
I would really like to work in coordination with the local health clinics to
gather and disseminate this information and ensure that we aren’t being
redundant in our efforts so I have been speaking with the town doctors to
organize this and work with us more this year.
 |
| Yesenia, my Hogares leader, showing off her shiny new certificate |
Improved Cookstoves Construction:
This week, I
celebrate a landmark moment – constructing my first (and second and third and
fourth) improved cookstove! The process of soliciting a grant, waiting for
approval and subsequent deposit of approved monies, purchasing materials,
finding beneficiary families, building cement tables from which to start,
organizing transportation and establishing a work schedule for my mason, and
training to build these stoves is a massive undertaking. I went to stoves
training in March and am just starting construction now. Which goes to show a)
how much planning has gone into this process, b) how much waiting was done
while my grant was being approved and funded and c) just how complicated
logistics are in the DR. I am thrilled to be starting this project and feel so
proud to have completed my first stove. This Sunday, in Margot’s house, we will
be inaugurating the project with an asopao
(stew) and some good old compartir!
 |
| Getting my hands dirty! |
 |
| Pepe climbing on the roof to attach the chimney |
 |
| Coming along slowly but surely |
 |
| Our first stove = complete! |
Blog It Home:
On the 15th, I head to DC for the Blog It Home Tour. I can't wait to go to DC and share the culture of the DR. I've come to love this place as my own and I am really excited to bring my enthusiasm back to America - if only for a bit!
Onward!
No comments:
Post a Comment