May Update

I almost forgot to write a blog; how is it already May 25th?

This month has moved so fast. I have nothing super insightful to share, but I can update you on my weeks!

We started the month by hosting a team from Northwest Ohio who did many things. This wasn’t a super big group, but they covered all of our points of ministry. The same week, we also had a physical therapy team from Bradley University in Illinois. Let’s see, in one week, we hosted 2 barrio days, provided OB education to 6 different locations, completed a playground project, worked at both our schools in San Juan with ESL and IT classes, completed consults at the clinic for gynecology care and physical therapy, and worked side by side with the physical therapist in a public hospital for children. Wow!

After that week, we all deserved a little rest. I celebrated my 35th birthday on the 17th and asked the group if we could have a beach day. Dr. Pena, who works with has the same birthday, so before I knew it, we had a full-fledged beach day planned! Glenny and Flerida helped to plan and organize who was bringing what food, and Tuesday, we packed up and headed to the beach. We even had a birthday cake! Then, after spending some time at the beach, we went to Las Marias, a natural pool! It was beautiful, but the water was freezing. On Thursday, Bianca, Kate, Hilda, Juario, and I went to a pool just outside San Juan and spent a few hours relaxing. Kate made me a red velvet cake, it was so pretty and delicious!

That same week, on Friday, Bianca and I traveled to a clinic in San Pedro called One World Surgery. We met with the director there and talked with him about how they serve the people in their community. It was a good trip, and it was good to connect with people in other areas of the Dominican doing similar work. After our trip to San Pedro, we returned to Santo Domingo and stayed at the Dominican Fiesta. The Fiesta is like my home away from home, so we walked to dinner at my favorite restaurant and called it a night early. Bianca says I got to celebrate my birthday with a patronales (a week-long celebration). I also received the sweetest stack of cards from friends at home that had me crying. I didn’t realize until last week how important it is to me to celebrate my birthday, so coming home to those cards was so special to know people at home were also thinking of me.

Saturday, we were in the capitol to pick up the next team. We spent the next week hosting a team from Utah. This team is a breath of fresh air every year. They are a young team, full of life, and ready to serve in anything you ask them to do. A lot of them usually have some experience living in different cultures, so they are ready to dive in. The week went pretty quick, but it was so good!

This week, we are hosting a team from Ohio Northern University. But, more importantly, that means Riley is back! I can’t help but be reminded how thankful I was that Riley said yes last year when we asked her if she wanted to return for the summer. In true Riley fashion, she jumped right in, helping to make whatever needed to be done for the week. She is staying with me for a few extra days after her team leaves. I’m excited to get to spend some time with her!

This is also our last “medical team” until the end of summer. We are getting ready to shift into Vacation Bible School with our summer teams. Last summer was my first experience with VBS teams. The days can be a little hectic, but they are fun. I’m looking forward to welcoming back the youth teams!

I continue to take Spanish classes and improve. I can see the most improvement in my Spanish when we hire Dominican Doctors and Nurses to work with us. Some of them don’t speak much English, so it forces me to use my Spanish, and somehow, we figure it out.

Bianca and I are working on organizing education for July with a team planning to come and do some education with 911. We are also happy to have two surgery teams added to the schedule for this fall and have started advertising for those.

I will head home in a few weeks for a quick trip to celebrate my little sister’s wedding. Some friends are coming home with me, and I’m looking forward to showing them around Indiana while they are there.

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