Today started early for me. I woke up at 6:00 AM and ate at
the wonderful breakfast buffet. We then met in the lobby to head over to the
Foundation… of course the transportation was running on Dominican Time (Late).
Once we arrived to the Ecological Foundation we were greeted by multiple
children, patiently waiting for our arrival.
Right away we started with the games, Uno, jump rope, Jenga,
dominoes, and all other games. Everyone was doing great with the jump rope,
doing tricks, multiple people at a time, etc. We were having a blast already
and we haven’t even fully met them yet. The counselors jumped right in with the
kids and we all had a blast. After being placed into four groups, the games
began. First, the kids were able to decorate a plastic mug with their names,
colors, and drawings. These cups are used throughout the two days of camp. The
first year of the program it was noticed that the kids were flying through the
disposable cups, which is completely against the environmental education we
provide. Next, the kids learned about the Lionfish, a very invasive type of
fish that eats all other fish in the coral reef and has no natural predators here. They played a game, teaching
them about invasive creatures and then Wellinton spoke to them, even showing
them a model of the fish.
Then, two groups of campers were able to tie-dye their
t-shirts provided for day camp while the other two groups took a tour of the
bee farm, worm composting farm, and nursery. The bees were very interesting to
learn about and I think it is great that they collect their honey and sell it.
The worm compost is used in the resorts and on golf courses. The nursery was
huge! They grow all kinds of fruits, vegetables, and herbs, all used in the
resorts. We were taking small sprigs of the herbs and passing them around to
smell (and even tasted some of the mint, which was great). After lunch, the
groups switched and did the same activities. After, we did some scratch art and
painted little boxes for the campers to take home. The campers also got to
enjoy a yummy treat consisting of chocolate chunks, shredded coconut, oats,
honey (from the ecological foundation), peanut butter, and vanilla. The kids
enjoyed the treats very much.
We then had to say “hasta manana” (see you tomorrow) to all
of our campers and caught the shuttle back to the hotel. After rinsing out the
tie-dye shirts, everyone went for a swim, either in the pool, hot tub, or
ocean. It felt amazing after a busy day at camp! We then met up and had dinner
on the resort at the Brassa Grill, which has great food.
I cannot wait to see what tomorrow has in store for us. It
is just unfortunate that we only have two short days with these awesome kids.
They are definitely a highlight of the trip and I enjoy seeing them every year.
It was also great to see that some of the campers I had a couple years ago were
now counselors! In total we had 41 day campers, 10 American teens, 14 Dominican
teens, and 5 adult chaperones… that is 70 people involved in total.
Chase Smith, Bath County
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