CHANGING LIVES

It has been a couple of weeks since my last blog but I have been very busy checking on construction sites and working very closely with the Bishop on other projects. One of our biggest projects was the Vocational School in Consuelo; there was so much to do to get the building ready for the dedication and it took up much of my time. We had the dedication of our first Vocational Technical School this past Sunday. Their were over 200 people there and the Mission group from St. Johns Church in Virginia with Father Edward Miller.  His group with his leadership over the past couple of years funded and worked on the building. The group and the community have built a beautiful lasting relationship with each other. The School will now train people in the construction trades. The next few weeks we will be working on a curriculum for the school and hiring teachers. Other projects that we have are a new convention center, three more churches, and we are starting the renovation of another church. Also we are adding more dormitory rooms at the camp. It would be nice to see more churches get involved in projects here to see the changes in people’s lives. If it wasn’t for the Diocese many people would have no change. We are building churches and schools in the very poorest sections of the country and the congregations are growing everyday. These communities have very little money and no jobs but they really look forward to us building churches and schools so they know that someone cares and that their children may have a chance at a better life. We also have Medical teams come here to provide clinical care for the families.  We are now trying to explore better water treatment for potable drinking water and solar power to save the resources. With your help we can make all of this possible. Please encourage your churches to get involved in a very vibrant growing Diocese and help make changes in people’s lives. With God’s help and yours we can do it!!! Get a group together and make a difference! For the specifics please let us know. For example we have a scholarship program, food programs, schools that need supplies, construction projects, VBS, and so much more. Come grow with us!!!

Blessings

Two Months & Traveling in the Dominican Republic

I am here almost two months now and have been traveling throughout the Dominican Republic. Seeing many difficulties that the people here deal with on an everyday basis is mind boggling.  Besides the great amount of poverty, lack of electricity, clean water, jobs, clothing for the children and even with all these difficulties you can see a real faith in God in the faces of the people. Even we in the capital city Santo Domingo experience some of the same thing like, no water, no electricity for sometimes hours and even days. 

This past week and a half I have been traveling to a number of locations to evaluate the construction and to talk with the contractors to meet their deadlines and to make sure that all the construction is being done according to the plans. Last week we went to a camp in Jarabacoa in the mountains which took us 3 hours to get there. It was a relief from the heat and smog of the capital city, it was very cool and the air was refreshing. I went with one other missionary and the Cannon of the Ordinary. We had 2 meetings to attend and to check out the site for what is being planned now. The Diocese is planning to start a greenhouse project there to help people have jobs, it will start out small and as we have money it will expand to hire more people and to bring the produce to the market. We are also adding another floor to the main building for dormitories for guests. We had one other meeting which lasted about an hour and then we headed back to Santo Domingo. On the way back we stopped to have dinner at a roadside stand, there it was a WHOLE PIG   

  and all you do is tell the woman how much you want and she chops off a piece puts it on a plate and you have dinner. WOW!  

    The next trip I went on was with Bishop Holguin and an architect, we went to several locations to see where the construction was and to see how far along they were. The first place we stopped was a construction site in a small barrio and very poor section of Los Conocos. The new church is about half complete and within the next couple of weeks it will be complete. Their were only minor changes made to the original plans which were that the pulpit and lectern were moved slightly and that the concrete block was finished in such a way to make it easier to paint and to prevent water penetration from the outside. Then off we were to the other site, Consuelo a different city where we are building a Technical Vocational School.

 This building is almost complete and that at the end of May it will be dedicated. We found some of the same problems there also; the outside of the building had to be finished in the same way as not to allow water penetration through the walls, the rebar that was protruding from the roof had to be removed and sealed so we could prevent water damage in the future. There was also a Rectory on the property which needed to be completely renovated. From there we went to Santa Cruz to see the demolition of an old church that was in total disrepair and to see the plans for the new church. This project will take a couple of months but will have a parish hall, offices a kitchen and a brand new church.  There are many projects here in the Dominican Republic building schools, churches and dormitories and trying to start business to help the people here have a much better spiritual and economic future. Please continue with your financial support and prayers as we try to improve the future for the Dominican people.

Blessings

Dos meses y viajar en la República Dominicana

Yo estoy aquí casi dos meses y han estado viajando por toda la República Dominicana. Al ver a muchas dificultades que la gente de aquí tratar sobre una base diaria es alucinante. Además de la gran cantidad de la pobreza, la falta de electricidad, agua potable, puestos de trabajo, ropa para los niños e incluso con todas estas dificultades, se puede ver una verdadera fe en Dios en los rostros de las personas. Incluso nosotros, en la capital de la experiencia de la ciudad de Santo Domingo parte de la misma cosa, como, sin agua, sin electricidad, a veces horas e incluso días.

La semana pasada y medio que he estado viajando a varios lugares para evaluar la construcción y para hablar con los contratistas para cumplir con sus plazos y para asegurarse de que toda la construcción se está realizando según los planes. La semana pasada fuimos a un campamento en Jarabacoa en las montañas que nos llevó 3 horas para llegar allí. Fue un alivio para el calor y el smog de la ciudad capital, era muy fresco y el aire era fresco. Fui con otro misionero y el Cañón del Ordinario. Hemos tenido 2 reuniones para atender y verificar el sitio para ver lo que se está planeando ahora. La Diócesis tiene previsto iniciar un proyecto de invernadero allí para ayudar a las personas tienen un empleo, será empezar desde abajo y que tenemos el dinero que se ampliará a contratar a más personas y para llevar los productos al mercado. También estamos añadiendo otro piso del edificio principal de dormitorios para invitados. Tuvimos una reunión de otro tipo que duró aproximadamente una hora y luego nos dirigimos de nuevo a Santo Domingo. En el camino de regreso nos detuvimos a cenar en un local en la calle, no era un cerdo entero y todo lo que hacemos es decirle a la mujer la cantidad que desea y ella las chuletas de un pedazo lo pone en un plato y usted tiene la cena. WOW!

El próximo viaje me pasó fue con el Obispo de Holguín y un arquitecto, fuimos a varios lugares para ver dónde estaba la construcción y para ver qué tan avanzado que eran. El primer lugar nos detuvimos era una obra de construcción en un barrio pequeño y barrio muy pobre de Los Conocos. La nueva iglesia es aproximadamente la mitad completa y dentro de un par de semanas estará completo. Su eran sólo pequeños cambios realizados a los planes iniciales, que fueron que el púlpito y el atril se mueve ligeramente y que el bloque de hormigón se terminó de tal manera para que sea más fácil de pintar y para evitar la penetración del agua desde el exterior. Luego de que nos iban a otro sitio, Consuelo una ciudad diferente, donde estamos construyendo una escuela técnica vocacional. Esta construcción es casi completa y que al final de mayo será dedicado. Hemos encontrado algunos de los mismos problemas también allí; el exterior del edificio tuvo que ser terminado de la misma manera como para no permitir la penetración del agua a través de las paredes, la barra de refuerzo que se sobresale del techo tuvo que ser eliminado y se sella por lo que podría evitar el daño del agua en el futuro. También hubo una rectoría en la propiedad que necesita para ser completamente renovado. De allí nos fuimos a Santa Cruz para ver la demolición de una antigua iglesia que estaba en mal estado total y para ver los planes para la nueva iglesia. Este proyecto va a tomar un par de meses, pero tendrá un salón de la parroquia, las oficinas de una cocina y una iglesia nueva. Hay muchos proyectos aquí en la República Dominicana la construcción de escuelas, iglesias y residencias y tratar de iniciar su actividad para ayudar a la gente de aquí tiene un futuro mucho mejor espiritual y económico. Por favor, continúen con su apoyo financiero y oraciones al tratar de mejorar el futuro para el pueblo dominicano.

BendicionesUndo edits