This week has been a crazy and unexpected week! We are now in the DR, but it has been a journey to get there. We were supposed to fly out of LAX on Sunday, so we left and started driving! We got a little past Bakersfield and found out our flight was cancelled. So, we pivoted! We went to Hume Socal to stay the night and figure things out! We spent the night Sunday and woke up and got to help the Hume Socal Staff clean and get the camp ready for the next Winter camp. I was on KP to help figure out what we were going to eat. Our cook Precious and a group of us got to throw things together with whatever they had at camp! I had so much fun! Our KP group also got down to a town and went shopping, which is not something we usually get to do! We spent one more night at Socal and then left the next morning. We spent the day in LA with our van groups. My group went to the Getty and got dinner! Then we went to the hotel! A bunch of us went swimming till 10 even though we all had to wake up at 4! It was such a blast! After spending the night we left for the airport very early in the morning! Our flights were pretty smooth from there!
And we are finally here! It still doesn’t feel real! It is so beautiful here and I have already met so many wonderful people! I am in the Micro Finance site here! I have gone to 2 bank meetings with women in the area who meet to pray, worship, do an ice breaker, listen to a devo, get financial advice, and save money in the “bank.” Today we got to be apart and help lead the meeting. I got to lead the ice breaker! We tossed a ball and whoever got it answer what is one thing that brought them joy today. It was so cool to hear there answers and be apart of this meeting! We also got to visit a business that is helped through micro finance! It was a tutoring business that we got to help decorate! I helped make a banner! This week has been crazy but so fun! Even though we did not get to the DR on time the Lord knew what he was doing! We had so much fun and genuine time together just traveling all together! I am so grateful to be here and am doing what I love! Looking forward to another week here!
Alathea (Current Student)
Wow, has time flown by! I still can’t believe that we are in the Dominican Republic. As Alathea previously wrote, our intended departure was supposed to be last Sunday, the 25th. Instead, that flight was delayed to Wednesday. To fill our time, we helped the staff and community at Hume SoCal flip camp for this weekend’s round of campers. I served with a group of Joshua students that fixed fences, assembled lamps, and deep-cleaned a few of the maintenance vehicles. To see God working through us in a physical, tangible way such as this, was a blessing. From there, we got on the road to the LA area and had some free time to spend with our van travel group, which we used to visit the Getty museum. The exhibits were beautiful, and though we didn’t have much time to check everything out, I am very grateful for the experience that visiting the Getty proved to be. Eventually we wound up staying at a hotel in LA and had a good—albeit short—rest after swimming and participating in few fruitful conversations before our early-morning flight the next day.
Eventually, we wound up in the Dominican Republic! It was by the grace of God that just enough spots were open for us to rebook on Wednesday that we got here so early. These past two days have already been a tremendous blessing to us, as they were filled with community, laughter and celebration. I am helping to serve at the physical therapy site during this time, and I am excited for what God has in store for this ministry. Already, we have assisted with leading and modeling exercises for many different people including a women’s group, a man in recovery, and an elderly woman. So far, I have been able to see God in the recovery and healing processes of these folks, having gotten to hear parts of their stories and have a part in aiding them along the way. To hear about God moving in people’s lives is so stellar, and to see it is even more so. I am so stoked to be here, and am ready to serve for another week.
Orion (Current Student)